Comment by Danny Alexander on January 26, 2014 at 7:53pm

Look what I have found on the WWW!

http://irishamericanheritagemonth.com/

Comment by Okey Simmons on January 26, 2014 at 9:01pm

  Aye, I'm proud of my heritage & am torn both ways Danny.  As a wee lad our school had its bullys.  I tried ignoring them, was considered a "sissy" & the teasing went on.  One day enough was enough & I exploded into the 3!  Their surprise enabled me to give them  some souvenirs!   No more a pain in my side but they continued their bully ways.For sure I stopped them around myself but others elsewhere were just as bad.  I couldn't whip the world but I could bring some peace in my corner!  Can ye see my point?

Comment by Danny Alexander on January 27, 2014 at 9:00am

es your point is very clear. All of us at one time or another needs to standup for ourselfs!

Comment by Kieron Punch on January 27, 2014 at 9:40am

Here in Britain the anti-Irish "joke" has been used to denigrate the Irish for centuries. The jokes were arguably of a more vicious nature than those which appeared about the Irish elsewhere in the world because here they were used to reinforce British racial superiority and as a justification for conquest, suppression and continued occupation e.g. the beneficent British surely had to remain in Ireland to prevent the ape-like, feckless, irrational, barbaric, thick/stupid Irish from murdering each other.

Such "humour" flourished in the pages of publications such as "Punch" in the late 19th Century, and coincided with the resurgence of Irish nationalism and the Home Rule movement. Most recently it reached new heights of abuse during the post-1969 Troubles, and was to be found throughout the British press (broadsheets as well as tabloid rags), TV, pubs, clubs, the workplace and even in the Oxford English Dictionary - in the early printings of the Second Edition of this work, which was published in 1991, a definition of "Irish" was that it was a synonym for something "thick", or "stupid". Complaints from the Irish community in Britain resulted in this definition being removed from later printings of the dictionary. This, of course, merely reflected how a barage of negative sterotypes, mostly a result of jokes, had caused the British public to believe that Irish people were indeed stupid, and that that had become part of the everyday language. It was common for British people to say "That's a bit Irish" if they saw something stupid, or irrational, or "Stop being Irish" if someone said, or did something silly.

Of course there was a very dark side to this humour, and how it affected the million strong Irish-born population in Britain and their children. There are the obvious manifestations of racial hatred such as the "No Dogs, No Blacks, No Irish" signs that would appear in boarding houses and hotels, but perhaps more damaging was the way the British population did not raise an eyebrow to protest when the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act, aimed largely against the Irish community, sailed through Parliament on the back of anti-Irish hysteria, reinforced by humour's negative stereotyping. This act resulted in thousands of innocent Irish people being arrested and held without charge for 7 days, and numerous others being deported.

It was not pleasant at times to be Irish and living in Britain during the 1970s and 1980s. The Irish community was viewed so negatively and with such distrust, that they mostly kept their heads down. Many, in fact, tried to hide their Irishness...I remember reading a report about Catholic schools in England in which 90-95% of the children were Irish born, or had irish parents, yet where virtually none of the children admited to being Irish for fear of being ridiculed as stupid, or bullied because of The Troubles. It has also been stated that the negative portrayal of the Irish in Britain contributed to the Irish community here having the worst mental health of any non-British ethnic community.

Thankfully the ceasefires of the 1990s and Good Friday Agreement have seen a rapid decline in anti-Irish humour here in Britain, and following 9/11 the British have found a new target for their nasty brand of bigoted humour - the Muslim community. Hopefully the Irish community in Britain will recognise it for what it is and refrain from participating in "raghead" jokes, etc.

I would recommend that members try to get hold of a copy of Liz Curtis's excellent, short book, "Nothing but the Same Old Story: The Roots of Anti-Irish Racism" http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nothing-But-Same-Old-Story/dp/1901005003

This is a famous cartoon that mocked the bigoted British comedian, Bernard Manning, who was famous for his crude anti-Irish "jokes"

Comment by Danny Alexander on January 27, 2014 at 10:37am

Thank you that was very good!

Comment by Geraldine Callaghan on January 27, 2014 at 3:44pm

I lived in England in the early 60's. I am thankful I didn't experience any blatant hatred or discrimination. I had many English friends who were thoughtful and kind. I have fond memories of my time there. I was very young and perhaps overlooked the dark side. Thanks for sharing.

Comment by Tom Pendergast on January 27, 2014 at 7:25pm

Found a sign in Big Lots tonight that reads: "IRISH PUB - IF YOU CAN WALK OUT YOUR NOT DRUNK ENOUGH"

Talked to manager, he referred me to corporate.Sent email, we'll see what happens

Comment by Danny Alexander on January 28, 2014 at 9:28am

Found similiar items in local Wal-Mart and sent email to corporate. Keep you posted!

Comment by Danny Alexander on January 28, 2014 at 11:11am

As an update for all Wild Geese, I have written not only my district Congresswoman but also the Governor of North Carolina. I'll let you know about any response or the lack thereof.

Founding Member Comment by Mark Connor on January 28, 2014 at 6:31pm

Just two cents worth of input. From 1992 to around 2008 I helped put on a Ceili every St. Patrick's day in St. Paul, Minnesota with a group called Minnesotans for a United Ireland. Not a drop of alcohol was present and there'd be 500 or so people there every year. We'd sell pop (our term for soda in Minnesota) and Irish soda bread and coffee and tea. People might have a pint before and/or after but it was a very fun family event every year.

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