Joe McDonnell
Joe McDonnell ( Irish Seosamh Mac Dónaill , born September 14, 1951 in Belfast , † July 8, 1981 in Maze Prison ) was a member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army and hunger striker .
Joe McDonnell was born the fifth of ten children (other sources say eight children) in West Belfast. In 1970 he married his wife Goretti; the children Bernadette and Joseph emerged from the marriage.
In 1972, McDonnell was imprisoned in Maze Prison for several months as part of the "policy of internment" , after which he joined the Provisional Irish Republican Army immediately after his release . In October 1976, following an attack in Belfast, there was an exchange of fire between the British Army and the RUC , as a result of which Joe McDonnell was arrested along with Bobby Sands , Séamas Finucane and Seán Lavery . In September 1977, Joe McDonnell, like his co-defendants, received a 14-year prison sentence for illegal gun possession, which had to be served again in Maze Prison . In 1981 Joe McDonnell, like many other inmates, joined the hunger strikers around Bobby Sands to fight for their status as a political prisoner.
Joe McDonnell died on July 8, 1981, 61 days after starting his 1981 hunger strike .
Joe McDonnell's life is the subject of an Irish ballad, which was interpreted by the Wolfe Tones , among others .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | McDonnell, Joe |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Northern Irish resistance fighter and hunger striker |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 14, 1951 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Belfast |
| DATE OF DEATH | July 8, 1981 |
| Place of death | Maze Prison |