Who is Gerry Adams?
The bearded, bespectacled, buck-toothed visage of Gerry Adams is the most recognisable public face of violent Irish republicanism, and has latterly been associated with the transition of this movement to ceasefire and peace negotiations. Despite his apparent omnipresence in the media when events in Northern Ireland are being discussed, however, Adams is a frustratingly opaque character. One of his favourite phrases is, “Let’s be perfectly clear about this…”, but generally this is deployed for obfuscation rather than illumination. In writing about Adams, It is possible to list the important events of his life, rehearse his birth date and marital status, and so on, but any assessment of his character will inevitably be coloured by one’s political perspective. At the extreme ends of the political divide, there are those who see him as either an Antichrist or a saviour. More moderate political opinion provides several possible perspectives on this controversial figure: • Peacemaker: It i
