From: EGilmar100[at]aol.com
Subject: Query White Nationalists' use of symbols of Irish identity
To: irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk

Hello,

I've been lurking on this list for a few months now, but recently
heard
about a disturbing trend in the White Nationalist/Supremacist movement.
Some
groups in Ireland, the UK, and US are using the symbols and ideology of
Irish or
Celtic pride as part of their own message. I'm curious to know what
others
know about this. I hadn't known about it, but that's probably my own
ignorance.
I'd like to know how widespread this is. If anyone knows of
references
that discuss this or of examples you are familiar with, I would be
appreciative.
Thanks very much.

Sincerely,
Beth Gilmartin
Dept. of English
Monmouth University
W. Long Branch, NJ

From: patrick maume
Sender: P.Maume[at]Queens-Belfast.AC.UK
To: irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk
Subject: Re: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 2


From: Patrick Maume
This sort of stuff goes back quite a long way. The use of the
burning cross as KU Klux Klan symbol derives from Sir Walter
Scott's description of sending out a fiery cross to muster the
clans in his narrative poem THE LADY OF THE LAKE. More
recently I remember seeing reports that when Mel Gibson's
BRAVEHEART (mediaeval scottish setting, filmed in Co. Wicklow
with Brendan Gleeson and Sean McGinley amongst the plaided
throng) came out it was so popular with white supremacist groups
that federal monitoring agencies arranged viewings so that
agents would pick up references to it. I presume this reflects
a self-consciously antimodern self-image among these groups,
as noble barbarians or mediaeval warriors depending on context.
I believe far-right groups in France also use the Celtic
Cross symbol, though this is probably related to the old view
popular in the nineteenth century that the French were
racially Celtic ("nos ancetres les Gaulois") which itself is an
inversion of the older myth that the French nobility derived
their superiority through descent from the conquering Germanic
Franks and a Romantic reaction against Classical exaltation of
the Roman inheritance. (Nineteenth-century Irish nationalists
used to make a lot of this and refer to France as "the eldest
of the Celtic nations"; a lot of nineteenth-century British
Celtophobia is directed against the French as much as the
Celtic nations usually so called.) I believe Le Pen likes to
emphasise his Breton origins.
Best wishes,
Patrick
----------------------
patrick maume

From: "Jones Irwin"
To:
Subject: RE: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 5

Further to a previous mail, Ive also noticed quite a large number of
Irish names amongst neo-fascist groups in the UK - John O'Connor for
example who was leader of an offshot of Combat 18, entitled 'the white
wolves'. And a certain Mr Treacy who used to be a BNP representative.
Another interesting case of Irish affirmation of English nationalism
(although not fascism) is that amongst second generation Irish musicians
in the UK, most notably Morrissey (ex-Smiths), some of whose songs have
been accused (wrongly in my view) of racism. Even the Gallagher brothers
use of the Union Jack is another case in point here, although a
prominent counter-example would be that second generation Galwegian
Johnny Rotten's (nee Lydon's) anarchic disavowal of the UK.

Jones.


Dr Jones Irwin
Lecturer in Education
St Patrick's College
Dublin

From Email Patrick O'Sullivan

The following item has been brought to our attention...

IRISH THEATRE MAGAZINE will send you a regular, free email newsletter -
useful to folk who want to follow the Irish theatre scene...

I don't know who writes the newsletter - but there is something familiar
about the style... It it is written with vim and zest - it is fun and
informative.

P.O'S.


- -----Original Message-----

IRISH THEATRE MAGAZINE LAUNCHES ONLINE NEWSLETTER

Irish Theatre Magazine recently launched a new online newsletter.

Our online newsletter will be delivered straight into your inbox six
times a year featuring an opening night review of a major new
production, a round up of home and international theatre news, our
must-see production picks and a whole lot more.

Our first issue includes Helen Meaney's review of Sebastian Barry's
version of THE HOUSE OF BERNARDA ALBA, and much more.

Subscription is free and we promise not to pass your details on to any
other organisation.

If you would like to subscribe simply visit our website:
http://www.irishtheatremagazine.com/newsletter/indexform.htm

irish theatre magazine is a quarterly magazine devoted to the timely and
topical coverage of theatre in Ireland and Irish theatre around the
world.

Each issue contains features, reviews, commentary, columns, and news
about productions, companies, individuals, venues, and festivals.

More info at www.irishtheatremagazine.com

From: "Sarah Morgan"
To: irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk
Subject: Re: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 2

In response to Beth's query, firstly there are racist/facist groups in
Ireland itself. They are small, granted, but they exist. They have not
all
arisen solely in response to recent immigration in to Ireland. Some
Irish
facists have made contact with British groups - for example, Derek
Turner
who when in Ireland descibed himself as 'your neighbourhood nazi'.
Turner
was then involved with a group called the 'Social Action Initiative'. He
now
operates in Britain (since the late 1980s) and has or has had links with

different British far right groups. In addition, the British National
Party
(BNP) has made efforts to 'raise awareness' of its racist agenda in
Ireland
- - in May last year Nick Griffin, BNP leader, appeared on an RTE radio
phone
in and it was clear that many people ringing in endorsed his point of
view.
The BNP has long standing links with loyalists in Northern Ireland and
white
supremacists in the US. Incidentally, Nick Griffin lives in north Wales.

The BNP and other facist groups in Britain try to construct their own
revised history of England/Britain which involves the concept of the
'true
Briton'. This very clearly harks back to ideas of Anglo-Saxon and Celtic

Britain, conveniently circumventing the issue of other influences on
England/Britain (Romans, Normans, never mind immigrants in the 20th &
21st
century, including Irish people). This is where the appropriation of
Celtic
style imagery comes in. Indeed some loyalist murals in Northern Ireland
also
use Celtic imagery (although mainly these murals glorify particular
loyalist
groups through depictions of masked gunmen). So as Noel Gilzean points
out,
there is no direct connection to Ireland through this imagery other than
on
the international stage Celtic imagery is often interpreted as 'Irish'.

However, before we get too self-congratulatory, I had heard from a
couple of
left-wing friends that they suspect that there are second generation
Irish
people here in Britain involved in the BNP (they are, however, going by
the
name method of picking these people out). I don't have any hard evidence
for
this but it's reasonable to think that Irish people represent as broad a

range of political opinion as any other group. And in the US it as
likely
that some Irish Americans are involved in white supremacism - Timothy
McVeigh (responsible for the Oklahoma bombing), for example, was
descended
from an immigrant originally from Portadown - although I don't recall
seeing
anything which suggested he identified as Irish in any way. (Of course,
the
emphasis put on this part of his past was one way of distancing him from

'ordinary white Americans'.)

Like Noel, I would also recommend Searchlight - which I read and from
which
I would be aware of the goings on of the BNP and other facist groups. If
you
do a search for 'Celtic', you'll get stories about Celtic Warriors (the
hate
music band) and Celtic football club (sectarian violence).

Sarah Morgan.

From: "MacEinri, Piaras"
To: "'irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk'"
Subject: RE: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 4

I lived in Belgium and France in the last 1970s mid-1980s and the use of
the Celtic Cross was quite common in far-right racist organisations. In
particular it was common to see it on walls as the symbol of a
particular organisation called the Front le la Jeunesse. They were
involved in racist attacks on immigrants and general street thuggery.
It gave me no pleasure to note today that it continues to be used on the
web by such organisations
- - see 'Ordre Nouveau' (new order) at
http://francepolitique.free.fr/PUR2.htm. It also appears that a new
Front de la Jeunesse has emerged in France, attached to the Megret
faction of the Front National party - I don't know what their emblem is.

I am sure Patrick Maume's explanation for the use of the Celtic Cross is
the correct one. My own experience is that it was not uncommon to meet
people from a certain historical strand of French thinking (i.e.
Vichyist/collaborationist and their successors) who had a marked
sympathy for Ireland because it was the last bastion, as they saw it, of
European whiteness. This should not be confused with the much commoner
phenomena of French people who like Irish people because they are not
British or those French Catholics who like Ireland because, God help
them, they think it's a Catholic country.

Piaras

From: "MacEinri, Piaras"
To: "'irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk'"
Subject: RE: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 4

On Irish racists, I used to monitor Irish racist websites such as
http://www.nsrus.com ('Say No to a Black Ireland') regularly. They come
and go but numbers are tiny. On balance I would be more worried about
mainstream politicians using the issue of 'race' and immigration in an
opportunitistic way (e.g. Joe O'Callaghan Cork, who is now trying to
defect from Labour to Fine Gael, Noel O'Keeffe, Cork, Fianna Fail, who
has been responsible for openly anti-immigrant statements, Jackie Healy
Rae, Independent, Kerry, ditto, and Ivor Callelly, Dublin) than I would
be about the vapourings of a mad and sad minority of sickos and an even
smaller group of hardcore racists.

Have a look at the threads in white 'nationalist' site Stormfront's
Ireland section. http://www.stormfront.org/forum/forumid41.php. Many of
the views expressed on this site are viciously racist and would appear,
on the face of it, to be blatantly in breach of the 1989 legislation -
including explicit threats of violence.

See also
http://www.faughaballagh.com/library.htm

And don't forget out own homegrown Cork organisation, the Immigration
Control Platform (ICP) http://www.immigrationcontrol.org. Like the tired
doctrines it espouses, this website if rather out of date.

Piaras

Noel Gilzean
n.a.gilzean[at]hud.ac.uk

The Southern Poverty Law Centre http://www.splcenter.org/ has been
tracking white supremacist organisations for many years - on their
web-site they have examples of the symbols used by these organisations.

The most common one seems to be the celtic cross of which they say.
"Celtic Cross Originally a symbol for the Celts of ancient Ireland and
Scotland, the Celtic cross has been adopted by many American White
supremacist groups. In modern times, it was first used by the far-right
National Front in England." There are several examples of this given.

The race traitor website has some interesting articles on race and the
Irish mainly inspired by Noel Ignatief's work. http://racetraitor.org

Searchlight magazine (an anti-fascist paper) describes a meeting in the
United States "In March 2000, over 120 people crowded into a room in
Arlington, Virginia, to hear speeches from the former Klan leader David
Duke, former Klansman-cum-cyber-nazi Don Black, National Alliance
membership coordinator Sam van Rensberg, and others. The last speaker of
the day was Peter Gemma, a spokesperson for the Virginia Reform Party,
who stood in front of the huge black-and-white Celtic Cross flag, passed
around a petition and spoke about the "importance of getting Pat
Buchanan on the ballot in all 50 states".
http://www.searchlightmagazine.com/stories/expelled.htm

There are bands such as Celtic Warrior that are Nazi bands but these are
Welsh rather than Irish. My guess would be that these symbols don't have
much connection with Ireland, for example the BNP may use the Celtic
Cross but they are violently anti Irish Nationlism as regards the North
of Ireland. I would guess they have much more to do with Nazi myths of
race than anything rooted in the histories of Irish people. I would be
interested to hear of anyone who has researched this topic.

Noel


- -----Original Message-----

From: EGilmar100[at]aol.com
Subject: Query White Nationalists' use of symbols of Irish identity
To: irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk

Hello,

I've been lurking on this list for a few months now, but recently
heard
about a disturbing trend in the White Nationalist/Supremacist movement.
Some
groups in Ireland, the UK, and US are using the symbols and ideology of
Irish or
Celtic pride as part of their own message. I'm curious to know what
others
know about this. I hadn't known about it, but that's probably my own
ignorance.
I'd like to know how widespread this is. If anyone knows of
references
that discuss this or of examples you are familiar with, I would be
appreciative.
Thanks very much.

Sincerely,
Beth Gilmartin
Dept. of English
Monmouth University
W. Long Branch, NJ

From: Eileen A Sullivan

Paddy,

There is a web site in the Caribbean. I have written on the Irish in
Montserrat and corresponded with officials there. Have searched my past
email files, but without success.



Dr. Eileen A. Sullivan, Director
The Irish Educational Association, Inc. Tel # (352)
332
3690
6412 NW 128th Street E-Mail :
eolas1[at]juno.com
Gainesville, FL 32653

From Email Patrick O'Sullivan

A Google search for 'Brian McGinn' turns up this free sample at the web
site of Irish Roots magazine...

http://www.irishrootsmagazine.com/about/TheBlackIrish.htm

I am wary of mentioning it, because I had heard that Brian was perturbed
by this magazine's use of his contributions.

P.O'S.


- --
Patrick O'Sullivan
Head of the Irish Diaspora Research Unit

Email Patrick O'Sullivan
Email Patrick O'Sullivan
Personal Fax 0044 (0) 709 236 9050

Irish-Diaspora list
Irish Diaspora Studies http://www.brad.ac.uk/acad/diaspora/
Irish Diaspora Net Archive http://www.irishdiaspora.net

Irish Diaspora Research Unit
Department of Social Sciences and Humanities
University of Bradford
Bradford BD7 1DP
Yorkshire
England

From Email Patrick O'Sullivan

Further to my earlier email, about launch of the Moving Here web site at
the City Hall, London, on Wednesday 30 July 2003, 3.30 to 6.30 pm...
Extract below...

It has now been revealed to me that I will be in Italy, on a family
holiday, on that date...

Would anyone like to be the Irish-Diaspora list's representative in
London at this event? A chance to gossip, nibble and gawp.

Contact me directly, with name, email and postal address, and I will
forward these details to the organisers.

Paddy


- -----Original Message-----
Subject: Ir-D Launch of Moving Here web site

From Email Patrick O'Sullivan

There will be a public launch of the Moving Here web site at the City
Hall, London, on Wednesday 30 July 2003, 3.30 to 6.30 pm...

There is information about the Moving Here project at the web site...
http://www.movinghere.org.uk/ Where it is described as 'the ultimate
online database of original sources recording the migration
experience...'

...

P.O'S.


- --
Patrick O'Sullivan
Head of the Irish Diaspora Research Unit

Email Patrick O'Sullivan
Email Patrick O'Sullivan
Personal Fax 0044 (0) 709 236 9050

Irish-Diaspora list
Irish Diaspora Studies http://www.brad.ac.uk/acad/diaspora/
Irish Diaspora Net Archive http://www.irishdiaspora.net

Irish Diaspora Research Unit
Department of Social Sciences and Humanities
University of Bradford
Bradford BD7 1DP
Yorkshire
England

From: "MacEinri, Piaras"
To: "'irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk'"
Subject: Closure of Irish Centre for Migration Studies

Dear Colleagues

It is with the greatest regret that I must inform the list that the
authorities of University College Cork have decided on financial grounds
to close the Irish Centre for Migration Studies.

On behalf of myself and my colleagues, I would like to say how much we
have appreciated the many close working relationships built up over the
years. As you will know, valuable and worthwhile research and
publications have resulted.

We are at present considering whether alternative ways and means can be
found to sustain the Centre's work in the field of migration studies in
Ireland.

Piaras Mac Éinrí Director/Stiúrthóir
Irish Centre for Migration Studies/Ionad na hImirce
National University of Ireland, Cork/Coláiste na hOllscoile, Corcaigh
email/post leictreonach migration[at]ucc.ie web/idirlíon
http://migration.ucc.ie

From: "Sean Campbell"
To:
Subject: White Nationalists and Irish symbols

As Jones pointed out in his message, there certainly appears to be a
history of second-generation Irish involvement in British nationalist
politics. I recall a story in the Guardian newspaper in the late 1990s
about a former BNP member who apparently became disillusioned with the
organisation and went on to advise the police about the group's actions.
(The article explained that he had an Irish father, and implied that he
had exprienced a certain degree of uncertainty about his identity). I
also recall a reference, in Rex and Tomlinson's Colonial Immigrants in a
British City, to a British nationalist politician of Irish descent.

It is of course difficult to gauge the extent of the second-generation's
involvement in racist organisations, but it might be that extreme forms
of British nationalism appear to offer - to sections of the
second-generation - a kind of imaginary solution to the apparent
tensions of having a hyphenated (i.e. Irish-English) identity. This
might be a Janus-face to the more widely recognised withdrawal - amongst
sections of the second-generation - into extreme forms of Irish
nationalism. The conditions and circumstances in each case are obviously
very different, but absolutist forms of identity politics have perhaps
offered an ostensibly fixed and stable subject position for those
struggling to negotiate - in an often difficult environment - a hybrid
Irish-English identity.

There is, as Jones points out, a particularly long-standing engagement
with the Union Flag amongst musicians of Irish descent in England. The
first such example I can think of is the former Pogues frontman, Shane
MacGowan, who can be seen in many television documentaries about the
late 70s London punk scene wearing a Union Flag suit whilst 'pogoing' in
front of the camera. His adopted name at the time, Shane O'Hooligan,
suggests that this gesture wasn't simply an attempt to conceal his
Irishness, although John Lydon - in his autobiography No Irish, No
Blacks, No Dogs - criticizes MacGowan for abandoning the Union Flag suit
for a London-Irish identity in the Pogues (implying that this was a
self-conscious identity-switch from Englishness to Irishness).

Lydon himself, of course, engaged with the iconography of British
nationalism in his song lyrics for the Sex Pistols tracks 'God Save the
Queen' (1977) and 'Anarchy in the UK' (1976) although, as Jones pointed
out in his message, the sentiment here was unambiguously critical. Ten
years later, Irish-Mancunian Morrissey revisited Lydon's take on
Englishness in the Smiths track 'The Queen is Dead' (1986) which was
taken at the time as a consciously intended sequel to 'God Save the
Queen'. Interestingly, in Derek Jarman's promotional video for 'The
Queen is Dead', there is a brief shot of the Union Flag on fire.

Morrissey became increasingly fascinated with British nationalism in his
solo career, eventually writing a song called 'The National Front Disco'
(1992) which featured the controversial refrain 'England for the
English' (the line was apparently in quotation marks in the original
lyric, implying that Morrissey wasn't necessarily endorsing the
sentiment, but this was difficult to gauge in the context of live
performance). During a particular performance of this track at Finsbury
Park in 1992, the singer picked up and began waving a Union Flag (this
was, I believe, the one and only occasion on which he did this).
Subsequent accusations of racism in the British music press were ignored
by the singer, who has yet to explain his reasoning for using this flag
in this way. However, the title track of Morrissey's forthcoming album,
'Irish Blood, English Heart' (the first explicit reference he has made,
in his song lyrics, to his Irishness) is apparently an attempt to
explain his position on questions of Englishness, Irishness and
nationhood.

Finally, the rock group Oasis (led by the second-generation Irish
brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher) made a particular engagement with the
Union Flag in the mid-1990s, occasionally using a guitar, for instance,
that was painted with Union Flag colours. This was, of course, at the
time of Britpop, when the British music press (and the British music
industry in general) was attempting to make a specifically British
intervention in the context of US domination in global rock culture. In
this particular context, then, the flag might be taken as signifying a
particular pop culture version of Britishness (connoting Carnaby Street,
the Who, 'Cool Britannia') against American cultural hegemony, rather
than against Irish difference.

Oasis' engagement with the flag was apparently not an attempt to conceal
or deny the group's Irishness, as they frequently made references to
their background in music press interviews, and even authorised an
official biography of the group that was preoccupied with this Irish
dimension. Moreover, the group's use of the flag can be traced back to
an early demo tape sleeve that featured the Union Flag being flushed
down a toilet. This would appear to suggest that their engagement with
the flag was, at least initially, not intended as a straightforwardly
patriotic gesture.

Dr Sean Campbell
Department of Communication Studies
APU, Cambridge








- ----- Original Message -----
From:
To:
Sent: Sunday, January 12, 2003 5:59 AM
Subject: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 7


>
>
> From: "Jones Irwin"
> To:
> Subject: RE: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 5
>
> Further to a previous mail, Ive also noticed quite a large number of
> Irish names amongst neo-fascist groups in the UK - John O'Connor for
> example who was leader of an offshot of Combat 18, entitled 'the white

> wolves'. And a certain Mr Treacy who used to be a BNP representative.
> Another interesting case of Irish affirmation of English nationalism
> (although not fascism) is that amongst second generation Irish
> musicians in the UK, most notably Morrissey (ex-Smiths), some of whose

> songs have been accused (wrongly in my view) of racism. Even the
> Gallagher brothers use of the Union Jack is another case in point
> here, although a prominent counter-example would be that second
> generation Galwegian Johnny Rotten's (nee Lydon's) anarchic disavowal
> of the UK.
>
> Jones.
>
>
> Dr Jones Irwin
> Lecturer in Education
> St Patrick's College
> Dublin
>
>
>
>

From: patrick maume
Sender: P.Maume[at]Queens-Belfast.AC.UK
To: irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk
Subject: Re: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 8

From: Patrick Maume

On 13 June 2003 05:59 irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk wrote:

>
>
> From: "Sean Campbell"
> To:
> Subject: White Nationalists and Irish symbols
>
> As Jones pointed out in his message, there certainly appears to be a
> history of second-generation Irish involvement in British nationalist
> politics. I recall a story in the Guardian newspaper in the late 1990s

> about a former BNP member who apparently became disillusioned with the

> organisation and went on to advise the police about the group's
> actions. (The article explained that he had an Irish father, and
> implied that he had exprienced a certain degree of uncertainty about
> his identity). I also recall a reference, in Rex and Tomlinson's
> Colonial Immigrants in a British City, to a British nationalist
> politician of Irish descent.
>
> It is of course difficult to gauge the extent of the
> second-generation's involvement in racist organisations, but it might
> be that extreme forms of British nationalism appear to offer - to
> sections of the second-generation - a kind of imaginary solution to
> the apparent tensions of having a hyphenated (i.e. Irish-English)
> identity. This might be a Janus-face to the more widely recognised
> withdrawal - amongst sections of the second-generation - into extreme
> forms of Irish nationalism. The conditions and circumstances in each
> case are obviously very different, but absolutist forms of identity
> politics have perhaps offered an ostensibly fixed and stable subject
> position for those struggling to negotiate - in an often difficult
> environment - a hybrid Irish-English identity.

There are earlier examples of this - Skidelsky's biography of
Mosley claims that in the 1930s both former IRA men and former
Black and Tans joined the Blackshirts in the East End of London.
There was a film a couple of years back called LIAM, set in
1930s Liverpool, in which one of the central characters who was
of Irish descent joined the BUF and expressedhostility to more
recent Irish immigrants.
Best wishes,
Patrick

From:
To: irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk
Subject: Re: Ir-D Closure of Irish Centre for Migration Studies

This is very sad news - shocking but not altogether surprising...

The Irish Centre for Migration Studies has had to fight for funding and
recognition from Day One and, without the magnificent dedication and
tenacity of it staff and, in particular, of its Director, Piaras
MacEinri, it would have been allowed to wither on the vine long ago.

Its closure underlines what I myself, as an independent scholar working
in the field of Irish migration history in Ireland, have always found:
namely, that Official Ireland is utterly indifferent to the living Irish
Diaspora and to those who work on its behalf.

Perhaps, had the ICMS been located in the West of Ireland, it might have
fared better. As an Irish sub-contractor retired from England once said
to me: 'The higher and hillier the ground, the better the workman - like
the mountain hare'. Where people have always had it easy, they like to
keep it that way, and they don't want to be reminded of those who were
less fortunate...

Knowing Piaras, however, I doubt that the story will end here. Tiochaidh
Ar La!

Ultan Cowley











irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk wrote:



< Subject: Closure of Irish Centre for Migration Studies <
< Dear Colleagues
<
< It is with the greatest regret that I must inform the list that the <
authorities of University College Cork have decided on financial grounds
< to close the Irish Centre for Migration Studies. <
< On behalf of myself and my colleagues, I would like to say how much
we < have appreciated the many close working relationships built up
over the < years. As you will know, valuable and worthwhile research
and < publications have resulted.
<
< We are at present considering whether alternative ways and means can
be < found to sustain the Centre's work in the field of migration
studies in < Ireland. <
< Piaras Mac Éinrí Director/Stiúrthóir
< Irish Centre for Migration Studies/Ionad na hImirce
< National University of Ireland, Cork/Coláiste na hOllscoile, Corcaigh
< email/post leictreonach migration[at]ucc.ie web/idirlíon <
http://migration.ucc.ie
<
<

From: "Sarah Morgan"

Below is the text from an article in today's (Friday 13 June 2003) Irish

Independent - which is worth pasting in in full. It shows that beliefs
that
the conflict in Northern Ireland is/was solely the responsibility of
Irish
people still holds in some quarters here in Britain, along with some
good
old-fashioned anti-Irish prejudice. Some of you may be aware that over
the
last few months, a number of families have been seeking answers from the

British Ministry of Defence regarding the deaths of young soldiers. The
soldier in question here shot himself while on the phone to his father;
he
had been complaining of abuse from other soldiers. Paul Cochrane and his

family originate from East Belfast. Carrickfergus Council is reported as

having written to councils in Britain, asking for support in urging an
open
inquiry into Paul Cochrane's death (there has been an army inquiry but
the
findings will not be disclosed).

There is also a report in The Guardian at
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Northern_Ireland/Story/0,2763,976380,00.html

Sarah Morgan.
-----------------------------------------
FURY AT TORY CHIEF'S F-WORD OUTBURST

A BRITISH politician, who stunned the family of an Irish suicide victim
with
a four-letter word outburst, stood by his tirade last night.

Neville Sanders, Conservative Party leader on Peterborough City Council,

said there should be an apology from Ireland for British soldiers killed
by
the IRA.

Mr Sanders spoke after Peterborough Council was asked to support a
campaign
calling for an inquiry into the death of Royal Irish Regiment Trooper
Paul
Cochrane from Belfast. He left relatives of the dead soldier and party
colleagues shocked when he claimed they should accept the deaths of
members
of the armed forces.

"That is what they are paid for," he said.

Last night Mr Sanders said: "I want an apology for the hundreds of
English
soldiers that have been killed by the Irish over the past 25 years."

Trooper Cochrane is believed to have shot himself in 2001 at an army
base in
Co Armagh. He had left three suicide notes which claimed he had been
abused
by other soldiers while under the command of Gulf War hero Col Tim
Collins.

Peterborough is one of a number of English local authorities being urged
to
back calls for a full inquiry into Trooper Cochrane's death and other
disputed deaths on military bases such as Deepcut in Surrey. The council

received a letter from Carrickfergus Borough Council asking it to back
the
campaign but this was returned by Mr Sanders.

Billy Cochrane, father of the RIR soldier, was flabbergasted by the
offensive tone of the Tory councillor's remarks. He described the
outburst
as "staggering."

The councillor told the Belfast Telegraph: "The Troubles in Northern
Ireland
have been of your own making. There have been enough English soldiers
killed
in Northern Ireland to fill a doomsday book. The Irish should learn to
live
in peace and bloody well get on with it.

"We are quite happy for Northern Ireland to f..k off and run its own
affairs. If you have a dispute do not involve us. I want an apology from

Carrick(fergus) council for trying to involve us in this. What has it
got to
do with me if someone wants to commit suicide, we have no jurisdiction
over
that. I am fed up paying taxes to cover lazy bastards in Ireland."

Conservative Central Office distanced itself from his comments and
launched
an internal investigation.

Dan McGinn

From: "Mary J. Hickman"
Subject: Re: Ir-D Closure of Irish Centre for Migration Studies 3

Can I join in the regret already expressed about the closure of the
Irish Centre for Migration Studes at UCC. It held a memorable launch
conference 'The Scattering' in 1997 and has subsequently been a constant
source of information and ideas about migrations and immigrations in
Ireland and beyond. The research conducted by Breda Gray interviewing
'those left behind' about emigration was groundbreaking in Ireland. I am
just setting up a new research institute at London Metropolitan
University, the Institute for the Study of European Transformations
(which includes the Irish Studies
Centre) and we are all delighted that Piaras MacEinri, who as Director
has done so much to ensure that the ICMS will be sorely missed, has
agreed to became a member of our External Advisory Board.

Mary Hickman

irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk wrote:

> Thread-Topic: Ir-D Closure of Irish Centre for Migration Studies
> From: Noel Gilzean
>
> Noel Gilzean
> n.a.gilzean[at]hud.ac.uk
> This is really bad news. They produced an excellent web-site that
> demonstrated great generosity with the sharing of research and
> analysis. I hope that Cork will continue to maintain the website at
> the very least. Noel
>
> -----Original Message-----

Subject: RE: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 9
From: Noel Gilzean

Noel Gilzean
n.a.gilzean[at]hud.ac.uk
Re the use of the union flag by people of Irish descent. There is an
interesting interview with a young woman of Irish descent in O'Brien,
J., McAdam, M. and Lennon, M. 1988 Across the water : Irish women's
lives in Britain, London: Virago. I haven't read it for a while but the
gist of it was. She was an ex punk and said that she wore the union flag
in rebellion against her parents Irishness but later rejected it as she
rediscovered her own sense of Irishness. I think this is also true of
the wearing of swastikas by the punks and possibly the goths. As Brando
said in The Wild Ones to the question What are you rebelling against",
Brando replies "whadayah got?" Noel


- -----Original Message-----

From: patrick maume
Sender: P.Maume[at]Queens-Belfast.AC.UK
To: irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk
Subject: Re: Ir-D White Nationalists & Irish symbols 8

From: Patrick Maume
>
>
There are earlier examples of this - Skidelsky's biography of
Mosley claims that in the 1930s both former IRA men and former
Black and Tans joined the Blackshirts in the East End of London.
There was a film a couple of years back called LIAM, set in
1930s Liverpool, in which one of the central characters who was
of Irish descent joined the BUF and expressedhostility to more
recent Irish immigrants.
Best wishes,
Patrick

Thread-Topic: Ir-D Closure of Irish Centre for Migration Studies
From: Noel Gilzean

Noel Gilzean
n.a.gilzean[at]hud.ac.uk
This is really bad news. They produced an excellent web-site that
demonstrated great generosity with the sharing of research and analysis.
I hope that Cork will continue to maintain the website at the very
least. Noel

- -----Original Message-----
From: "MacEinri, Piaras"
To: "'irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk'"
Subject: Closure of Irish Centre for Migration Studies

Dear Colleagues

It is with the greatest regret that I must inform the list that the
authorities of University College Cork have decided on financial grounds
to close the Irish Centre for Migration Studies.

On behalf of myself and my colleagues, I would like to say how much we
have appreciated the many close working relationships built up over the
years. As you will know, valuable and worthwhile research and
publications have resulted.

We are at present considering whether alternative ways and means can be
found to sustain the Centre's work in the field of migration studies in
Ireland.

Piaras Mac Iinrm Director/Stizrthsir
Irish Centre for Migration Studies/Ionad na hImirce
National University of Ireland, Cork/Colaiste na hOllscoile, Corcaigh
email/post leictreonach migration[at]ucc.ie web/idirlmon
http://migration.ucc.ie

From: Maria Power
To: "'irish-diaspora[at]Bradford.ac.uk'"
Subject: Call for Papers


Dear Patrick

I've made a slight change to this as we've just had another speaker
confirm. Would you mind posting this one instead please?

Thanks
Maria


The Women on Ireland Research Network

Meeting of Minds: Comparing Migrant Experiences Across Ethnic Groups

Saturday 22nd November 2003 at the Camden Irish Centre, London.

We are inviting proposals for papers on the themes of

* Migrant culture, gender and identities
* Media representations of minorities and or refugees
* Stereotyping and racism
* Migrant health
* Travellers and gypsies.

Speakers already confirmed include Choman Hardi, David Millar, Joanne
O'Brien and Mary Tilki.

Please send abstracts of no more than 200 words to Louise Ryan,
l.ryan[at]rfc.ucl.ac.uk or Dr Louise Ryan, Medical School, Royal Free and
University College Hospital, Rolandhill Street, London NW3 2PF by 1st
September 2003.