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Presidents & First Ladies of Irish Ancestry

By Carl Sferrazza Anthony

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There's as much of the old sod in the White House as there is on its south lawn. The backgrounds of America's First Families are diverse: Nancy Reagan and Lady Bird Johnson have Spanish forebears; Herbert Hoover was Swiss and Canadian; Mamie Eisenhower was part Swedish while Ike was German; Martin Van Buren and the Roosevelts were Dutch; James Garfield had a royal strain … [Read more...] about Presidents & First Ladies of Irish Ancestry

Daniel Shays and the 1786 Protest Against Economic and Civil Rights Injustices

By Ray Cavanaugh

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Though it was far from successful, Shays' Rebellion – which spanned several months during the latter part of 1786 and early 1787 – certainly captured everyone's attention. Some, such as Thomas Jefferson, felt that “a little rebellion now and then is a good thing.” But others, such as George Washington, considered it a serious threat to the stability of a nascent … [Read more...] about Daniel Shays and the 1786 Protest Against Economic and Civil Rights Injustices

Sarah Parker Remond

By Christine Kinealy

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Continuing Christine Kinealy’s series on Black abolitionists who visited Ireland, we find, in Sarah Parker Remond, a woman who was remarkable and fearless. Frederick Douglass’s visit to Ireland 175 years ago—an experience that he described as “transformative”—has been commemorated on both sides of the Atlantic. However, Frederick was not the first or the last black … [Read more...] about Sarah Parker Remond

Looking Back at an Interview with Supreme Court Justice William Brennan, Jr.

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Below is an excerpt from an interview Sean O Murchu conducted with Supreme Court Justice William Brennan in April 1990, just prior to Justice Brennan retiring from the Supreme Court. Appointed to the Supreme Court in 1956 by President Dwight Eisenhower, Brennan served for 33 years.  In the opinion of many, he was the most influential member in the Supreme Court's history.  He … [Read more...] about Looking Back at an Interview with Supreme Court Justice William Brennan, Jr.

LONE JUSTICE: An Interview with
Justice William Brennan, Jr.

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On April 25, 1990 William Joseph Brennan, Jr was 84 years old. An associate justice on the Supreme Court of the United States for the past 33 years, he is considered – ruefully, by his many conservative detractors – to be one of the most influential shapers of public policy in the country. A native of Newark, New Jersey, the son of Irish immigrants, Brennan was appointed to the … [Read more...] about LONE JUSTICE: An Interview with
Justice William Brennan, Jr.