Ciaran McKeown (1943 – 1 September 2019) was a peace activist in Northern Ireland.

Early life and education

Born in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

to a Roman Catholic family, the son of a schoolmaster Richard Deutsch, ''Mairead Corrigan, Betty Williams'', pp.69–70 McKeown served as a Dominican novice for eight months in his youth.Judith Stiehm, ''Champions for peace: women winners of the Nobel Peace Prize'', p.70 He attended

Queen's University Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

, where he studied philosophy,Susan Muaddi Darraj, ''Mairead Corrigan and Betty Williams: partners for peace in Northern Ireland'', pp.16–17 becoming the first Catholic to be elected president of the university's student council. He was also elected chair of the National Democrats, a ginger group linked with the National Democratic Party. He became president of the Union of Students in Ireland in 1969, based in Dublin, and stood in Dublin South-West at the

1969 Irish general election The 1969 Irish general election to the 19th Dáil was held on Wednesday, 18 June, following the Dissolution of Parliament, dissolution of the 18th Dáil on 22 May by President of Ireland, President Éamon de Valera on the request of Taoiseach Ja ...

, taking last place, with only 154 votes.

Journalist

In 1970, McKeown became a reporter for '' The Irish Times'', then later worked for '' The Irish Press'', as their Belfast correspondent. Given his experience of reporting on the emergence of The Troubles, he supported the 1976 creation of "Women for Peace", a Northern Ireland-based movement, by

Betty Williams Elizabeth Williams ( Smyth; 22 May 1943 – 17 March 2020) was a peace activist from Northern Ireland. She was a co-recipient with Mairead Corrigan of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1976 for her work as a cofounder of Community of Peace People, a ...

and Mairead Corrigan. When his involvement became more widely known, the movement changed its name to "Community of Peace People," or simply "Peace People". After the events of 1976-7 he found it difficult to return to full-time journalism.

Peace Activist

Although McKeown became known as a thoughtful and calm presence in the leadership of the organisation, his criticisms of the reluctance of church authorities to speak out on sectarian issues caused some tensions. Corrigan and Williams won the 1976 Nobel Peace Prize, but McKeown was not made a party to it. However, the Ford Foundation made a grant to the group, which included a salary for McKeown, enabling him to become full-time editor of ''Peace by Peace'', the group's newspaper,Judith Stiehm, ''Champions for peace: women winners of the Nobel Peace Prize'', p.78 also completing a year as editor of ''

Fortnight Magazine ''Fortnight'' was a monthly political and cultural magazine published in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

'', in 1977. McKeown, Corrigan and Williams all stepped down from the leadership posts in 1978, although McKeown continued to edit ''Peace by Peace''. His articles brought him into conflict with the group's new leadership, while financial disagreements massively reduced the group's membership. Ultimately, his belief that the group should call for special status for paramilitary prisoners led to a split, with Williams and her leading supporter, Peter McLachlan, resigning in February 1980. McKeown could no longer survive on the group's salary, nor could he find work as a journalist, so he retrained as a typesetter. In 1984, he published his autobiography, ''The Passion of Peace''; this was almost immediately withdrawn following a claim that it libelled a journalist, although it was later reissued with an additional note.''Books Ireland'', Issues 138–155, p.151

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mckeown, Ciaran 1943 births 2019 deaths Alumni of Queen's University Belfast National Democratic Party (Northern Ireland) politicians Nonviolence advocates The Irish Press people The Irish Times people People of The Troubles (Northern Ireland) Politicians from Derry (city)