The U.S.-Ireland Forum got off to a good start when Dr. Hugh Brady, President of University College Dublin, announced that funding had been obtained to assist the university in establishing an International Center to support the global Irish family. This was his address: Today there is unprecedented interest in the Irish and the Irish Diaspora, Over 80 million identify … [Read more...] about The US Ireland Forum: Hugh Brady’s Address
Diaspora
The US Ireland Forum: Don Keough’s Address
Does the Diaspora Matter? Keynote speaker and principal honoree at the forum dinner Don Keough, chairman of Allen & Company and former president of Coca-Cola, gave a stirring speech that captured the essence of what the forum was about and what it could lead to. This forum is asking an important question: Does the Diaspora really matter, and is it something that is really … [Read more...] about The US Ireland Forum: Don Keough’s Address
Choosing the Green
Everyone knows the story about Eamon de Valera supposedly being spared execution in 1916 because of his American birth. But de Valera was not the only 1916 figure who was second-generation Irish. His superiors during the Easter Rising, James Connolly and Tom Clarke, had been born in Scotland and England respectively. In fact, according to those at the heart of the Rising in … [Read more...] about Choosing the Green
Irish Family in the U.S.
Faces Deportation
The holiday season was a tense one, to say the least, for the McAllister family. Days before Thanksgiving, federal agents raided their New Jersey home in the dead of night. Before Christmas, it became a distinct possibility that all six Belfast natives would be deported.
Now, the McAllisters are awaiting a crucial decision from an appeals court in Philadelphia. When that … [Read more...] about Irish Family in the U.S.
Faces Deportation
Irish American of the Year: Michael Flatley
For what he has done for the world of Irish dance, Irish America is proud to honor Michael Flatley as our Irish American of the Year. Flatley talked to Debbie McGoldrick about his extraordinary journey and what's next on the cards. It's hard to remember the days when Irish stepdancing wasn't in vogue, when it wasn't scintillating and sublime and sexy, when it wasn't a global … [Read more...] about Irish American of the Year: Michael Flatley