The death of Ted Kennedy precedes by three weeks the end of John Sweeney’s 14-year tenure as president of the AFL-CIO. Together, these events signal the end of an epoch in American political history: that of Irish American leadership of the nation’s liberal institutions and Democratic organizations. Time was, of course, when the Democratic Party was largely big-city machines … [Read more...] about The Last Word: What Ted Kennedy & John Sweeney Built On
Opinion
End the Silence on Torture
The sacrifice of the heroes of 9/11 must not be used as a justification for torture. September 11, 2001 will always remain an infamous day to the world. But to the men and women of the NYPD and FDNY it remains indelibly stamped in their minds. For on that tragic September morning in the dying embers of summer, they raced towards lower Manhattan by any means … [Read more...] about End the Silence on Torture
The First Word: Celebrating the Far-Flung Irish
When I was young, a visit by two Frenchmen caused great excitement in our house. They were distant cousins – descendants of Oliver Harty who was born in Knockainey, Knocklong, County Limerick in 1746 and left for France as a lad of sixteen. Like many young Irishmen who had lucrative careers in continental armies since the 16th century, Oliver left for France in 1762 to serve … [Read more...] about The First Word: Celebrating the Far-Flung Irish
The First Word: The Comfort of Tradition & Ritual
“The robins came – that’s a sign of luck,” my cousin whispers in my ear as the men start to shovel the clay. Sure enough, I look up and see a pair of robins swoop down over the heads of those gathered and then fly off together. It’s a bright sunny day, but the temperature is below freezing and I worry that the clay will be frozen solid. Perhaps it is. But the men – whom I … [Read more...] about The First Word: The Comfort of Tradition & Ritual
Please Treasure Our History
By Cormac MacConnell
April / May 2008
April / May 2008
Many of you out there in the diaspora are in possession of treasures of our history which we here at home either carelessly lost or callously threw away into the footprints of the Celtic Tiger. That reality was hammered home to me an hour ago. I was in my neighbor Jimmy’s house and his Limerick mother was there. Her eyes were glowing as she showed me an aerial photo of the … [Read more...] about Please Treasure Our History