User:David Johnston2012/sandbox

Jamie (James) Bryson is a Loyalist from Donaghadee Northern Ireland born circa 1988. He is a prominent opponent of the Northern Irish peace process and stood in the 2011 local election campaign in North Down. He is a community worker in the staunchly loyalist Kilcooley estate in Bangor, Co.Down. Bryson is widely believed to be a member of the loyalist paramilitary group the UVF however he has never been charged and publically denies he is a member of any outlawed organisation. It has also been claimed that he was a Commanding Officer in the youth wing of the UVF, the Young Citizens Volunteers at the time of the infamous flag campaign in North Down, in which Brysons actions received significant media coverage, however this claim is widely denied by both Bryson and the UVF in what by some is seen as an attempt to distance the UVF from unapproved actions carried out by Bryson and those around him.

During this protest in 2009 a sinister group began attacking council property with many believing Jamie Bryson was at least the instigator, if not the actual attacker, in this campaign. The local press carried a number of stories on the incidents and the loyalist paramilitary organisations denied any involvement.

In January 2011 a new political party was set up with Bryson and local Pastor Mark 'Tatty' Gordon heavily involved. Mark 'Tatty' Gordon was described as the party leader by Belfast based newspaper, the Newsletter.

Prior to the 2011 elections more protests kicked of and Bryson was at the forefront of most of them, including a staged sit in at the local town hall. 

Jamie Bryson and all members of the new political party failed to get elected at the 2011 local elections and following this gave their support to a local parmilitary protest which drew over 2,000 people to Bangor Town Hall.

In recent times he has developed links with fellow anti-peace process loyalists across the province.

In July 2011 Bryson publically praised local bandsmen for playing 'the sash' passing a local chapel and responded furiously to claims from the SDLP that the Black Institution had apologised, branding the Institution and Orangemen 'gutless', calling on all loyalists to refuse to recognise the parades commission and further printing a letter in the local paper suggesting 'suffer little children come unto me' be played passing the chapel in a swipe at the Catholic church amid sex abuse claims.

Jamie Bryson has claimed to be a born again Christian and conducts himself in an almost identical fashion to loyalist Billy Wright the founder of the dissident Loyalist Volunteer Force. The ideas promoted by Jamie Bryson and those around him seem to find the most fertile ground in rural areas of Ulster where he has a strong support network of former UVF members aswell as links to Ulster Resistance and the South Londonderry Protestant Volunteers.

For the most part those in his area have remained loyal to the peace process promoted by the UVF and UDA Belfast leadership under the command of John Graham and Jackie McDonald. Whilst seemingly diametrically opposed to eachothers political direction Bryson has had strong links to both organisations leaderships and was part of a DVD produced which heard the views of former paramilitaries.

Bryson spoke at the DVD launch and was highly critical of the peace process. There is considerable support across the province for his political thinking which is totally against the DUP and any compromise with Sinn Fein who he describes as 'Nazi's'.