After two days in Northern Ireland, I can say that the city of Belfast differs greatly from my expectations. Most of our time here was spent in service at a local youth center, where we learned from elementary age children about their culture and lifestyle. By the end of our time with them, I realized just how severely I underestimated the present division between loyalist and Irish nationalist factions. Clearly, the situation has diffused since the Troubles, but there remain many holes to be patched in the intergroup relationships as they relate to socioeconomic status and city infrastructure. For example, on our tour of the Peace Murals in Belfast, we came across a large wall that separated the loyalist and nationalist communities. Notably, the wall was built very close to the homes on the nationalist side, making bombings more easily facilitated. On the other hand, the loyalist houses were stationed much farther away from the wall on their side, making direct damage more challenging. There are many such symptoms and signs of the loyalist favoritism throughout the town. Why don’t they tear down the wall, you may ask. When asked, around 70% of Belfast’s young adult population favored the walls torn down. However, as our guide explained: the homeowners on the Catholic/Irish side of the wall–mainly older survivors of the Troubles–actively oppose the tearing down of the wall, as they continue to fear for their own safety even in this modern era. Past a certain hour, the gates close and the walled off area becomes inaccessible. Unfortunately, this shows that many Northern Irish citizens still live in a relative state of uncertainty and fear. The nation’s history of division-fueled violence has caused irreversible damage. Talking with the children in West Belfast, I found that many of them harbor somewhat of a distaste for England and most have never traveled there despite the proximity. In that way, Belfast greatly surprised me, though I have no doubt that my two days here haven’t even scratched the surface of loose ends caused by the Troubles. Here are two depictions of faction-biased media from the time: