The violent conflict based on nationalism continues in North Ireland, and it has now taken a gay journalist’s life.
According to The Guardian, 29-year-old Lyra McKee was shot on Thursday night (April 18) during a violent night of riots in Londonderry. After the shooting, McKee was rushed to the nearest hospital by police Landrover, but she died of her injuries.
Police are investigating the case to find the person responsible for McKee’s death and they believe it was a masked Irish Republican who initially was firing at officers.
Meanwhile, Saoradh, a fringe political group that mirrors thinking from the New IRA, blame the crown forces for the conflict.
“A Republican volunteer attempted to defend people from the PSNI/RUC [Royal Ulster Constabulary]. Tragically a young journalist covering the events, Lyra McKee, was killed accidentally,” the group reports in a statement.
McKee was a notable young writer whose 2014 post, “Letter To My 14-Year-Old Self” went viral and inspired a short film. Then Forbes added her to the 2016 “30 under 30 in media” list.
Now, her death may have another impact as Northern Irish police and leaders are calling for peace in the name of the fallen journalist.
A vigil was held in McKee’s honor on Friday. Sara Canning, McKee’s partner, shared that the shooting has deprived her of the woman she was “planning to grow old with.”
Lyra McKee’s partner, Sara Canning, speaks to the vigil in Derry/Londonderry. pic.twitter.com/oaMOUnDXg4
— Peter A Smith (@PeterAdamSmith) April 19, 2019
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, who is also gay, said that McKee “changed lives as she lived and will do so again in death.”
He added, “We cannot allow those who want to propagate violence, fear and hate to drag us back to the past.”
Meanwhile, Michelle Stainistreet, the head of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) said that McKee was “a journalist of courage, style, and integrity.”
A GoFundMe page was created in the memory of Lyra McKee. All funds will go to Lyra’s family to pay for funeral services and her legacy.
Source: The Guardian
