The book will be launched. The documentary will be screened.
Investigative journalist and author Trevor Birney will be in Rockland County this Thursday evening to present his documentary on the murder of the chairman of Bellaghy Wolfe Tones GAA Club in Derry, Sean Brown.
Copies of the book "Shooting Crows" will also be available for sale at the event which is set for the Rockland GAA facility in Orangeburg at 7 p.m.
Birney, along with attorney Niall Murphy, will speak at the screening and launch and will do so again on Friday evening, October 25 at the Commodore John Barry Arts and Cultural Center in Philadelphia, also at 7 p.m.
In advance of both events Trevor Birney said: “It's an honor to be able to bring the Sean Brown documentary to audiences in Rockland and Philadelphia. Having produced 'No Stone Unturned,' which premiered at the New York Film Festival in 2017, to get the opportunity to direct 'Murder of a GAA Chairman' was an opportunity for myself and Fine Point that we jumped at.
"The stoicism and courage of the Brown family in the film is in stark contrast to the dark arts of the British state who have adopted a policy of deny and delay in order to prevent the family from getting to the truth. Shooting Crows is based on the events of the night of June 18th, 1994 and the Ireland match against Italy at the World Cup. We all remember where we were when Ray Houghton put the ball in the Italians net. But, 30-years-later, the village of Loughinisland, County Down, is still dealing with the horror that was visited upon the men who were watching the game in The Heights Bar. Six of them died in a hail of bullets unleashed shortly after half-time.
"The families of the men who died and those who were injured fought, just like the Brown family, for justice. In 2016, The Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland ruled that the RUC had colluded with Loyalist paramilitaries involved. A year later, 'No Stone Unturned' revealed the identities of the chief suspects. But rather than arrest them, police arrested myself and my colleague, Barry McCaffrey, alleging we had breached the British Official Secrets Act. The book tells the story of the massacre and of the police operation against us."
Niall Murphy said: "We are consistently humbled by the engaged, knowledgeable and empathetic reception that we receive in America, from the Irish American community. The depth and breadth of local knowledge of the issues we are litigating and publicising is really inspirational.
"When we receive invitations to speak, and screen our materials, it is always our ambition to meet the request to ensure that the Irish American community have access to the most up to date information that we have.
"The benefit of having an engaged community is that that means there is an engaged elected representative political community in America and we know from experience, the power and real influence that American politicians hold.
"One only has to consider the influence of Congressmen Brendan Boyle and Richie Neal, who as members of the Ways and Means Community during Brexit prioritised the protection and preservation of human rights as well as the Good Friday Agreement whilst grappling with the issues presented by Brexit.
"We know that themes addressed in the documentary 'Murder of a GAA Chairman' and Trevor’s book 'Shooting Crows' will be well received and indeed we look forward to the always vibrant and informed Q&A sessions after the event.”
