Political victims: unionist political parties and the rhetoric of victimhood around the Good Friday Agreement

Collective victimhood and its relationship to identity have received much attention in recent years, though its impact on the Northern Irish context has been underexplored. Historically, unionist interests were prioritised within Northern Ireland, as the group formed both the largest political bloc and the majority of the population; yet despite this, language framing unionists as victims is often apparent within their discourses. The question arises: why might this be the case and what are the specific characteristics of this victimisation? This article aims to explore that question by carrying out an analysis of the discourses of unionist political leadership during the period around the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. It was found that unionist discourses of victimhood substantially feature themes of threats to security from republican paramilitaries compounded by either the incompetence or complicity of the British government. It was also found that unionists voiced a sense of victimisation from the state itself in perceptions of their government’s unwillingness to provide resources or status. This article concludes by raising questions about the impact that this framing may have had on the peace process, with narratives creating boundaries between communities damaging social cohesion, and narratives framing the government as hostile damaging state legitimacy.