Near Media Co-op is a not for profit community media project in Coolock, working as part of the community of north east Dublin for over 30 years.
As an organisation, we recognise that members of our community hold different and sometimes opposing opinions on a range of matters. We welcome honest discourse to aid mutual understanding and cooperation for the good of the communities we serve, both existing and new. We reiterate the points made in the Northside Community Forum (of which we are part) in March 2024:
· We find ourselves working in a context in which global poverty and inequality is rising and services essential to addressing poverty and inequality in Ireland have been critically underfunded since the economic crash of 2008. Yet, Ireland is one of the few countries that has now generated a budget surplus.
· We are mindful that many people across our community have legitimate concerns regarding the lack of adequate investment in essential services including housing, health care, education and community facilities.
· We recognise that in a democracy citizens have a right to protest, but we are concerned when those protests seek to divide communities and target vulnerable human beings who, like so many Irish living abroad, wish to contribute to their new home and build a better life.
· There is no doubt that inequality and poverty are insidious and they can undermine democracy if left unchecked. We call on government to invest further in the work to address poverty and inequality and increase funding in the longer-term to essential community and voluntary services across the state.
We cannot condone the violence which took place at the ex-Crown Paints factory site on Monday 15th July, nor the misinformation and disinformation that has been spread surrounding the plans for this site.
However, we also endeavour to understand fully the motivation behind this event.
Near Media Co-op calls on national government and all key stakeholders to create a space for dialogue with all concerned parties in this community.
