Excerpts from Bill Clinton's address at the 2011 Irish America Hall of Fame celebration. "Most of us go back to Ireland and feel immediately at home in a way that’s impossible to describe. Most of us feel an inexpressible pride, not only in our roots, but in the fact of the peace and the fact that, even amidst this horrible economic calamity, no one is talking about getting … [Read more...] about Bill Clinton on Ireland’s Economic Crisis and Recovery
A Taste of Ireland
Ireland's Food Revolution We Irish have had a fraught relationship with food for far too long. Generations were raised to see it as a crime to leave even the tiniest morsel on our plates. Instead of being encouraged to develop a taste for good food, we were told to consider ourselves lucky to have any food at all. Is this a legacy of our past? For centuries, British landlords … [Read more...] about A Taste of Ireland
The Irish Brigade: Heroes of The Civil War
As we commemorate the 157th anniversary of the start of The Civil War, Matthew Brennan remembers the shining role of The Irish Brigade. Irish American actor Martin Sheen commented in an interview published in Irish America that he loves his Irish heritage in part because the Irish have never planted their flag on the soil of another nation. He loves the Irish because Ireland … [Read more...] about The Irish Brigade: Heroes of The Civil War
Portrait of an Irish Artist: Louis le Brocquy
A 20th century master. Louis le Brocquy, one of the most important and influential Irish artists of the last century, died at age 95 in his family home on April 25th, 2012. The following is a feature from the June/July 2011 issue of Irish America on his incredible life and legacy. After seven decades of painting, Louis le Brocquy has clearly established himself as one of the … [Read more...] about Portrait of an Irish Artist: Louis le Brocquy
“Green Georgette”
A short story by Edna O'Brien from her collection Saints and Sinners. Thursday Mama and I have been invited to the Coughlans’. It is to be Sunday evening at seven o’clock. I imagine us setting out in good time, even though it is a short walk to the village where they live and Mama calling out to me to lift my shoes so that the high wet grass won’t stain the white patent. I … [Read more...] about “Green Georgette”