The lens of Brexit: Examining cultural divisions among Northern Ireland farmers

Abstract

This article seeks to add to our understanding of the public versus private behavioral dichotomy in Northern Ireland by examining the underlying system of moralities. I argue that two sets of values, a “public” and a “private” one, exist within the Northern Ireland farming community. According to public values, it is more important to be a “good person” (honest, caring, hardworking) than a Protestant or Catholic. In contrast, the system of private values acknowledges the significance of ethnoreligious identities to economic and social relationships. Knowing when to use each set of values is a form of Northern Ireland cultural intimacy. I use the lens of a potential Brexit, as imagined by farmers in 2013–14, to examine these opposing moralities. Providing more depth to participants' views of the European Union (EU) and each other, I discuss their interactions at the Farmers' Advice Center. Both Protestants and Catholics identified England as a place of industry and Ireland as a place of agriculture. No one said that his or her views were influenced by ethnoreligious identity. However, most Protestants stated that Northern Ireland could produce “domestic” food for the United Kingdom with a national subsidy. Catholics believed that farmers benefit from EU subsidies and would benefit even more if they lived in a member state supportive of agriculture, such as the Republic of Ireland. The theory of internal colonialism, in which peripheral countries (Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales) provide resources to England, illuminates participants' political views.