Setting the Truth Free: The Inside Story of the Bloody Sunday Justice Campaign

On 30th January 1972 thirteen people were shot dead and a further fourteen wounded, one of whom died later, by British paratroopers during a peaceful civil rights march in Derry. In June 2010, thirty-eight years later, Lord Saville’s report made headlines all over the world, and the people of Derry were brought to a stunned silence as British Prime Minister David Cameron apologized on behalf of his government and his country for the ‘unjustified’ and ‘unjustifiable’ acts of Bloody Sunday. Setting the Truth Free is the first ever account of the remarkable Bloody Sunday Justice Campaign as told by the campaigners, relatives and the wounded themselves.

Many books have been written on the subject but few mention in significant detail how these ordinary people achieved the impossible and unwittingly made history. Determined to clear their loved ones’ names, this group took on the might of the British government, and won. Each major turning point during the campaign is described and accompanied by family testimonies. Written by Derry journalist and niece of Jackie Duddy who was killed on that day, with a foreword by political activist Gareth Peirce. Winner of the Christopher Ewart Biggs Award in 2013.

JULIANN CAMPBELL is ideally placed to write Setting the Truth Free. She is a journalist in Derry, a member of the Bloody Sunday Trust and was the Press Officer for the Bloody Sunday families in the lead up to the publication of the Saville Report. She is also the niece of Jackie Duddy who was one of those killed on that tragic day. Her first non-fiction book, Julieann has previously co-edited an anthology Harrowing of the Heart: The Poetry of Bloody Sunday and contributed to City of Music: Derry's Musical Heritage.