Families Against Intimidation and Terror
Encyclopedia
Families Against Intimidation and Terror (FAIT) was a group that campaigned against paramilitary violence during the Troubles
in Northern Ireland
. Formed in 1990 by Nancy Gracey and others following the shooting of her son by a paramilitary organisation, it was funded by, among others, the British Government, having a budget of about £30,000. In addition to Gracey its public spokespersons were its director Sam Cushnahan and development officer Vincent McKenna. Clifford Peeples
was also a prominent member.
McKenna, who claimed to have been a member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army
in 1980-91 and was especially vociferous in campaigning against the IRA, appeared on a United Kingdom Unionist Party platform and accused named individuals of responsibility for the Omagh bombing
. Cushnahan then resigned, and in 1999 McKenna abandoned FAIT and campaigned as the Northern Ireland Human Rights Bureau, while FAIT disappeared from view. In 2000 McKenna was convicted of 31 counts of child sexual abuse.
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. Formed in 1990 by Nancy Gracey and others following the shooting of her son by a paramilitary organisation, it was funded by, among others, the British Government, having a budget of about £30,000. In addition to Gracey its public spokespersons were its director Sam Cushnahan and development officer Vincent McKenna. Clifford Peeples
Clifford Peeples
Clifford Peeples is a Northern Irish pastor who has been associated with Ulster loyalist activity...
was also a prominent member.
McKenna, who claimed to have been a member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
in 1980-91 and was especially vociferous in campaigning against the IRA, appeared on a United Kingdom Unionist Party platform and accused named individuals of responsibility for the Omagh bombing
Omagh bombing
The Omagh bombing was a car bomb attack carried out by the Real Irish Republican Army , a splinter group of former Provisional Irish Republican Army members opposed to the Good Friday Agreement, on Saturday 15 August 1998, in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Twenty-nine people died as a...
. Cushnahan then resigned, and in 1999 McKenna abandoned FAIT and campaigned as the Northern Ireland Human Rights Bureau, while FAIT disappeared from view. In 2000 McKenna was convicted of 31 counts of child sexual abuse.