Belfast: "We need a solution the dead can live with," is how one Belfast resident, in a uniquely Irish way, described the prospects for long-term peace after the recent events in Northern Ireland that shook the world. His words were not such a paradox as they may seem. The graves of the over 3,000 dead stand as mute testament to the suffering on all sides that the Long War of … [Read more...] about The First Word: And Now the Good News…
First Word
The First Word: No Immigrants Need Apply
Franklin Delano Roosevelt once told an uncomfortable audience of the Daughters of the American Revolution that "we are all immigrants." It is something that we should remember now when the scapegoating of immigrants is reaching a new height in this country. California is leading the way in states that are proposing initatives that would deny public education and medical care to … [Read more...] about The First Word: No Immigrants Need Apply
The First Word: The New Irish Heroes
IN olden times, Ireland's icons were comely maidens strumming harps or perhaps mythical heroic warriors such as Cuchulainn, bravely besting the enemy in his lair. In more recent times, a flame-haired temptress called Maureen O'Hara fit the bill. Not any more. Shortly, the symbol of Ireland to millions worldwide is just as likely to be a Black athlete, speaking with a British … [Read more...] about The First Word: The New Irish Heroes
The First Word: Where’s Our Famine Movie?
There is a curious irony surrounding Schindler's List and the part that the Irish have played in bringing the movie to fruition. Thomas Keneally, an Australian of Irish Catholic background, wrote the book, and Liam Neeson, from the North of Ireland, was nominated for an Academy Award for his portrayal of the man who saved some 1,100 Jews. As Keneally wrote in a recent … [Read more...] about The First Word: Where’s Our Famine Movie?
The First Word: Our Own Flesh and Blood
Wee Annie's uncle is dead. You might have read about him. He got a line in the New York Times. He was the 72-year old pensioner shot in the Loyalist backlash that followed the Shankill fish shop bombing. Wee Annie's uncle lived alone. They found him in the living room of his small house -- bound and gagged and shot in the head. It is thought that the UDA were trying to get him … [Read more...] about The First Word: Our Own Flesh and Blood