Back in 1974, City Council President Paul O’Dwyer introduced a bill that would change the date on the New York’s flag and seal from 1664 to 1625. The move was an effort to set history straight and to recognize the city’s Dutch heritage on the 700th anniversary of the founding of the city of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. The Irish-born O’Dwyer noted that the only … [Read more...] about A Tale of Two Flags
Issues
Window on the Past
The Irish Bambino
In late 1990s baseball, home runs were everywhere. The balls were allegedly juiced. The sluggers were definitely juiced. Players who had been lanky rookies would later display cartoon-sized muscles, thanks to a regimen of syringes in the posterior. Even hitters of mediocre power were expected to belt 15 home runs per season. About one century earlier, however, 15 round-trippers … [Read more...] about Window on the Past
The Irish Bambino
Wild Irish Women: More Sinned Against Than Sinning
Pilloried by the press and railroaded to prison, she still managed to sail into the sunset. During the summer of 1965 in the East Bronx, the collective grief in Saint Raymond’s convent was almost palpable. The nuns learned that one of their students, a former Good Irish Catholic Girl, had brought shame on them and the rest of the tribe. Alice Crimmins was now fodder for … [Read more...] about Wild Irish Women: More Sinned Against Than Sinning
You’ve Got Mail: Irish History From Stamps
Over the last four decades, stamp-collecting, also known as “philately,” has been undergoing a slow but sure death. This has been mirrored by a decline in letter-writing and a similar wane in the use of cursive writing. Consequently, the hobby of stamp-collecting, so beloved by generations of schoolchildren, is mostly the preserve of people above the age of 60. Ireland’s Great … [Read more...] about You’ve Got Mail: Irish History From Stamps
What Are You Like? Kristen Shaughnessy
A NY1 television reporter since 1995, Kristen Shaughnessy says the best part of her job is meeting New Yorkers from all walks of life. Wherever in the five boroughs the story takes her, she feels privileged to share the stories of her fellow New Yorkers. Kristen graduated from Hofstra University with a B.A. in communications in 1990. She started out in radio and then went on … [Read more...] about What Are You Like? Kristen Shaughnessy