Irish America

Irish America

An Gorta Mor

How the Irish Famine Changed American History

By IA Staff
IA Newsletter March 25, 2023

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Niall O'Dowd, Irish America's publisher, was the guest of honor at the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick's 239th-anniversary dinner in New York City on March 16, 2023. In his speech to the over 600 members and guests, he talked about the history of the Irish in America – from the early days when they were the first wave of poor refugees to arrive in the U.S. – to how they went on to … [Read more...] about How the Irish Famine Changed American History

The Spoilers of Our Land

By Dr. Christine Kinealy, Contributor
June / July 2010

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How the British Government Responded to the Great Hunger In January 1847, the Nation published a poem entitled ‘The Stricken Land.’ It was a searing indictment of the policies of the British Government in the wake of the second failure of the potato crop only a few months earlier.  It was written by a young woman, Jane Elgee, who was drawn from the Protestant Ascendancy, … [Read more...] about The Spoilers of Our Land

The Great Hunger and the Celtic Gene

By Dr. Thomas P. Duffy Contributor
August / September 2013

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Thomas P. Duffy MD of the Yale School of Medicine explores why certain people survived the Great Hunger and reasons that the answer may lie in their gene pool. Shortly after the great Irish famine of 1847-49, the initial description appeared, in 1865, of a fatal disorder that compromised the liver and pancreas and resulted in bronzing or hyperpigmentation of the skin. Many … [Read more...] about The Great Hunger and the Celtic Gene

Hunger and its Children

By Peter Quinn, Contributor
August / September 2013

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Schizophrenia and other diseases associated with starvation. The outward physical consequences of famine and severe malnutrition have been long known. They are the same everywhere. In his recent history of the Irish Famine, The Graves Are Walking, John Kelly describes them this way: “In the later stages of starvation, the eyelids inflame, the angular lines around the mouth … [Read more...] about Hunger and its Children

Fordham Law to Host Famine Tribunal

October / November 2012

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UPDATE: The Irish Famine Tribunal has been rescheduled for April 2013 due to overwhelming requests and limited seating capacity at the original venue. It is still to be held at Fordham. Specific dates will follow. More than 150 years after the fact, a tribunal examining the Irish Famine will be held at Fordham Law School in New York City on October 19 and 20. The stated aim of … [Read more...] about Fordham Law to Host Famine Tribunal