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Being a black woman living in this part of the UK, Maureen Hamblin knows full well that racial discrimination manifests in a multitude of ways. “It’s not overt acts of vandalism,” she remarks. “It can be quiet, it can be silent.”

Individuals who overhear prejudiced statements and remain mute only serve to deepen the pain, leaving victims to feel utterly abandoned. This recurring experience exhausted Hamblin emotionally. “There was a time when I’d lost a lot of trust in Caucasian individuals, particularly men.”

Race riots in Belfast, Ballymena and other towns in recent years threatened to shatter the last of that faith, but on the contrary, Hamblin, who hails from Kenya, stumbled upon a source of hope.

She became involved with an initiative named the Change Circle, which brings together individuals from contrasting backgrounds – wealthy and impoverished, from various racial groups, of different sexual orientations – and tasks them with a simple yet powerful activity: genuinely getting to know one another.

“It restored my hope. It made us all see our shared humanity.” – Maureen Hamblin

Annually, a different cohort of a small group assembles and convenes for monthly gatherings in various Belfast locations to exchange experiences and generate donations for organisations that champion acceptance and healing.

Hamblin described incidents involving racist abuse with her circle – its members reacted with shock – and learned from their own varied stories. Some had lives of privilege, and others had experienced poverty and isolation. All recognised a powerful commonality: Belfast was their home, and it must become a welcoming one.

The Origin of a Community Organisation

The this unique program is the brainchild of a community trust based in the north Belfast district of north Belfast, an meeting point of Catholic and Protestant housing estates that witnessed sustained conflict during the Troubles. Operating from a cultural arts centre, it supplies practical help to the disadvantaged and acts as a focal point for creative talents.

The charity started the pilot program in 2018 with the express aim of combating societal splits, said its chief executive. “We try to build a small-scale model of Belfast in each group. We want to break down preconceptions.”

Transformative Encounters

One founding member found herself engaging with peers in locations, such as an local food bank, far removed from her previous life experience. “A lot of places I’d never visited previously. The greater our initial discomfort, the happier they [the organisers] were,” she recalls with a laugh.

Another member, with a Prostant upbringing, developed a deeper understanding on homelessness after conversations with a young member who had experienced rough sleeping to escape a household with addiction issues. “It made me realise how privileged I was to have a support system that I could depend on.”

She also describes her shock when a mother in the group, from Africa, stated that white youths regularly threw dog excrement at her children. “She wasn’t especially angry, her tone was detached. The story was heartbreaking.”

The first-ever group managed to secure significant funding for after-school care for black children – an feat that carries greater weight given the subsequent eruption of community divisions. “This region has a tradition here of ‘stay silent’,” the CEO observed, referencing a poetic reference. “Few people understood at that time how deeply racist attitudes were. But when the violence erupted they were less of a surprise to us because of the stories we'd been told.”

Building Bridges With Music and Connection

When Maureen Hamblin became part of the more recent group, she felt hopeless about the pervasive “spectator inaction”. Even in her local church, which was outwardly progressive, insensitive statements went unchallenged. “When people are quiet it’s like being invalidated twice over.”

She managed to build a meaningful relationship with other participants, especially with a peace activist who recounted an experience about speaking out against discrimination – at the risk of a physical confrontation – in a fast-food outlet. Hamblin, who loves to sing, and her new friend, an noted peace activist, teamed up to record literary readings and songs for social media.

“We used to think that the Troubles would never end, that peace would never come. Yet it finally emerged. Situations can turn around.” – A Circle of Change Participant

The 2024 circle chose to raise funds to support a special project called Melodies Shared, which offers weekly classes in folk music from Ireland to weekly classes split between newcomers to the region and local people.

“Music has the power to cross communication hurdles and creates a sense of cohesion and belonging,” said the scheme's coordinator. “One member told me he’d not previously known that people from different backgrounds could be great company.”

Although this initiative are swimming against the tide – with race hate incidents in Northern Ireland hitting the highest levels in years – that is all the more reason to push forward, the coordinator asserts. “This is precisely why they’re important.”

The underlying message from these grassroots actions is one of optimism via engagement. Thousands of ordinary people played a part in the peace process through everyday courage, the charity's leader reflected. “This offers a blueprint. I can’t do anything about what happens at a global scale, but I have the power to participate in my community and make a difference at a personal level. It is my sincere belief that’s how real progress begins.”