Adams and Clinton at Cooper Union
Former U.S. president Bill Clinton and Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams both spoke at an event in early April celebrating the historic achievements of the Good Friday Agreement, which was signed 25 years ago.
“A return to British direct rule is not an option,” Adams said at the event, held at The Great Hall of Manhattan’s Cooper Union college.
Clinton urged the crowd to understand that progress often requires patience, compromise and hard work – all of which are harder and harder to find, these days.
“More and more people see politics as sort of a performance art, an exercise in triggering identity reactions, and it’s a lot easier than getting something done. Making people mad is easier than making progress together. I just want to see the Irish peace flourish. I want to see what was enshrined 25 years ago make a difference today.”
The April 3 event was entitled “Reflections on The Good Friday Agreement, Twenty Five Years of Peace & Progress.”
Also acknowledged was former U.S. Senator George Mitchell, widely credited as the top negotiator in the intricate process of bringing the North’s nationalists and loyalists to the bargaining table.
In a video message, Mitchell reminded us that the seeds of further challenges are found in the solution of old problems. Every action has an effect, some known, some unknown.
Clinton earlier told RTE that achieving peace in N.I. has always presented challenges – right up to today.
He said that it was a “miracle” that Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union did not do fatal damage to the peace accord.
At Cooper Union, Clinton said the so-called Windsor Framework for dealing with Brexit and Ireland’s border issues “is about as good (an agreement) as anyone can get.”
Looking ahead to the future, Gerry Adams emphasized that the U.S. must remain active in the North.
“We appreciate the work done by President Biden to defend the Good Friday Agreement. People in Ireland still need the White House to act as guarantor of the Agreement, as President Clinton did and as President Biden continues to do.
“And embedded into the Agreement is the right of the people of Ireland to decide our future. It does not belong to an English government or indeed the DUP.”
The event was organized by longtime civil rights activist and lawyer, Marty Glennan with a number of prominent Irish American organizations, including Friends of Sinn Féin, the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians (LAOH), the James Connolly Labour Coalition, and the Brehon Law Society.
“Tonight we look back and remember those great individuals who challenged the opinion that peace and prosperity in Ireland was impossible,” said Marty Glennon, who coordinated the event.
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