Saturday, January 17, 2009

Emigration, Racism and the Irish

Anti-Irish Propaganda from Punch
It’s not so long ago since the “No Irish” signs came down. It seemed that we were seeing the end of endless years of anti-Irish racism. I came across a certain amount of anti-Irish sentiment in London in the seventies. Then came the EEC, later EU; increasing affluence, eventually the tiger; notable successes in sports, entertainment and various areas in the arts. Our day had arrived.U2 was the biggest band in the world, Riverdance was sending our dancing into orbit, Irish companies were going multi-national and we were chanting Óle Óle in Italia.We were no longer an underclass.

A pity to see “No Irish Need Apply” beginning to appear again. This time on building sites in Poland, apparently in revenge for poor treatment meted out to Polish workers here during the boom; unpaid work, unpaid holiday money.

There are few Irish families that have not directly or indirectly experienced the hardships of emigration in the last century. So many, in the not so distant past, have suffered from anti-irish taunts, discrimination or even violence. One would assume there’d be an affinity here with people who emigrate to earn an honest living. You sometimes hear the proud claim “we built America”; it would do good to remember who has been rebuilding Ireland.

Riverdance, first appearance on RTE, 1994 Eurovision Song Contest

1 comment:

Sabne Raznik said...

Wow! Is that Micheal Flatley? That's the first time I've seen him perform his own work. His feet make Colin Dunne seem snail-like, and I didn't think it was possible to dance faster than Dunne. Flatley is also a better height for the lady. lol Thank you for that beautiful clip! I've been looking to replace my video of Riverdance with a DVD- I've worn it out-, perhaps I'll go for an earlier version so as to enjoy Flatley, as well as another of the version I have to enjoy Dunne's personality. I'm sorry the boom didn't last very long. But I'll always love Ireland. :)