If things were never simple they are even more complicated now, when we talk about the “Irish vote” as the 2020 presidential election nears. A 2017 Newsweek headline put it bluntly: “Why are all the conservative loudmouths Irish American.” The short answer: Um, they’re not. The longer answer: It’s complicated. But 2020 may finally be the year we recognize the many shades of … [Read more...] about Reagan Democrats, Biden Time, and The Irish Swing Vote
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Crossing Over
Beginning in the 1930s, the Irish became more visible in the ranks of Republicans, disrupting decades-old loyalties writes Robert Schmuhl From the time of the Great Hunger through the early decades of the 20th century, the American Irish tended to be nearly as faithful to the Democratic Party as to the Catholic Church. Big-city political organizations worked with machine-like … [Read more...] about Crossing Over
Lincoln’s New Party, Anti-Irish and Anti-Slavery
An excerpt from "Lincoln and the Irish: The Untold Story of How the Irish Helped Abraham Lincoln Save the Union," by Irish America publisher, Niall O’Dowd. By 1856, the Whig party Lincoln belonged to had destroyed itself over slavery and the violence of the Know-Nothings, an extremist group of nativists with a deep hatred of immigrants and … [Read more...] about Lincoln’s New Party, Anti-Irish and Anti-Slavery
That Further Shore: A Memoir of Irish Roots and American Promise
By Stephen J. Fearon
John D. Feerick’s rise, from child of Irish immigrants to the hallowed halls of Fordham Law School, is covered in his new book, reviewed here by Stephen Fearon. It is often remarked that although the overwhelming majority of Irish immigrants to America in the early 20th century were literate and fluent in the English language, very few of them recorded their life stories in … [Read more...] about That Further Shore: A Memoir of Irish Roots and American Promise
The Transatlantic Cable That Changed the World
By Colin Lacey
Colin Lacey writes about the historic underwater cable that linked Kerry’s Valentia Island to Heart’s Content, Newfoundland, and why the island deserves to be added to UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites. The connections between Ireland and Newfoundland run deep. The Irish began visiting there as far back as the 17th century, first as seasonal fishermen, and later migrating … [Read more...] about The Transatlantic Cable That Changed the World