Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Article,
Religious discrimination in Scotland: A rebuttal of Bruce et al.
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

Members of the IR-D list will recall my disquiet when an article by Steve
Bruce and colleagues was published in the journal Ethnic and Racial
Studies...

That article was
Ethnic and Racial Studies
Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group
Issue: Volume 28, Number 1 / January 2005
Pages: 151 - 168

Religious discrimination in Scotland: Fact or myth?
Steve Bruce , Tony Glendinning , Iain Paterson , Michael Rosie

I emailed Martin Bulmer, the editor of Ethnic and Racial Studies, expressing
my disquiet that - when we had, at last, a study of the ways in which anti
Irish/Catholic prejudice might operate over a lifetime and in the workplace
- that study was so crudely attacked by Steve Bruce. I said that it seemed
to me that Steve Bruce was continuing within the pages of the journal his
quarrels with Professor Tom Devine, and with the Scottish Parliament. I
have already sent copies of my email to those who asked for it, and I am
happy to send out further copies.

There are genuine methodological, inter-disciplinary questions to be
addressed here - but the Bruce article did not address them, and the tone of
that article was very odd indeed.

And I asked the editor for assurances that Patricia Walls and Rory Williams
would have a Right of Reply.

The latest issue of Ethnic and Racial Studies is now available on its web
site, and includes the Walls and Williams rebuttal. Abstract pasted in
below. The paper edition of the journal will follow in due course.

P.O'S.


Ethnic and Racial Studies
Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group
Issue: Volume 28, Number 4 / July 2005
Pages: 759 - 767

Religious discrimination in Scotland: A rebuttal of Bruce et al.'s claim
that sectarianism is a myth

Patricia Walls and Rory Williams

Abstract:

A recent article on sectarianism in Scotland in Ethnic and Racial Studies by
Bruce et al. sought to undermine the conclusions of a previous paper of
ours, also published in this journal. Bruce et al. contend that sectarianism
is a myth, while we have provided new qualitative evidence for personal
experience of anti-Catholic discrimination in employment, which clearly
contradicts their thesis. To contextualize these papers, we have summarized
some of the key points of the evidence, and of the increasing concern about
sectarianism in Scotland. In an effort to ridicule this concern, Bruce has
attacked us as he has previously attacked a number of others. He and his
co-authors accuse us of relying on respondents' fallible judgements about
the actual and appropriate proportions of Catholics in workplaces; then they
try to interpret some of our respondents' statements and their own
quantitative evidence as supporting their myth hypothesis. We document here
the process of misrepresentation by which they have sought to support their
allegations, and we re-affirm the actual argument which led to our
conclusions. We suggest a more obvious alternative interpretation of their
own quantitative data, while raising misgivings about their use of 2001
census data. Questions about sectarian discrimination in Glasgow in the
period 1950-2000 can no longer be baulked.

Keywords:

Scotland, anti-Catholic, sectarianism, discrimination, qualitative, 2001
Census

The references of this article are secured to subscribers.

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Article,
Second-generation Irish identifications in multiethnic Britain
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

For information...

P.O'S.


Ethnicities, Vol. 5, No. 2, 160-182 (2005)
DOI: 10.1177/1468796805052113
C 2005 SAGE Publications

The limitations of whiteness and the boundaries of Englishness
Second-generation Irish identifications and positionings in multiethnic
Britain

Mary J. Hickman
London Metropolitan University, UK, mary.hickman[at]londonmet.ac.uk

Sarah Morgan
Anglia Polytechnic University, UK, dympna101[at]hotmail.com

Bronwen Walter
Anglia Polytechnic University, UK, b.walter[at]anglia.ac.uk

Joseph Bradley
University of Stirling, UK, j.m.bradley[at]stir.ac.uk

The focus of this article is the second-generation Irish in England. It is
based on data collected as part of the Irish 2 project, which examined
processes of identity formation amongst the second-generation Irish
population in England and Scotland. The article examines and maps
identifications and positionings of second-generation Irish people and
discusses how two hegemonic domains - Ireland and England - intersect in the
lives of the children of Irish-born parents, with material and psychological
consequences. Their positionings in multiethnic Britain are compared with
those of 'visible' minority ethnic groups, and their narratives of belonging
and non-belonging are analysed in terms of the limitations of whiteness and
the boundaries of Englishness.

Key Words: Irishness . minority ethnic group

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Etudes Irlandaises CFP Ireland and Europe in the 20th century
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

It is worth noting that Etudes Irlandaises now has a good web site, =
managed
by its publisher Septentrion - in French and in English...

http://etudes-irlandaises.septentrion.com/

The way to get at the TOCs of past issues seems to be to CLICK on the
'Through sale per item'/'Par vente au numero' button, on the left - and =
then
you can see individual issues and their contents.

I have pasted in, below, the current Call for Contributors from =
Christophe
Gillissen, which has appeared on the Etudes Irlandaises web site...

P.O'S.



Call for contributions :

"Ireland and Europe in the 20th century"

The interdisciplinary peer-reviewed French journal Etudes Irlandaises
invites submissions for a special issue, "Ireland and Europe in the 20th
century", to be published at the end of 2005. Editors: Christophe =
Gillissen
(Paris, Sorbonne) and St=E9phane Jousni (University of Rennes 2).

The links between Ireland and Europe can be studied from various angles, =
be
they literary, historical, political, linguistic or cultural. Possible
topics, very broadly defined, include (but are not limited to) :

- the historical dimension : the two world wars, diplomatic alliances,

- organisations: European integration, the Council of Europe, the League =
of
Nations,

- cultural, migratory, economic and other exchanges,

- a comparative approach:convergence and divergence (politics, =
economics,
society),

- the European city in 20th century Irish literature,

- the classical heritage in 20th century Irish thought,

- Europe as the crucible of modernism,

- the Irish specificity within European modernism,

- theoretical interactions between Ireland and the Continent, especially =
in
the field of historiography.

Articles including photographs will be particularly welcome.

Submitted articles should be sent in four paper copies and one =
electronic
copy to:

Dr Christophe Gillissen
27, rue de la Fraternit=E9
92700 Colombes
FRANCE
christophe.gillissen[at]paris4.sorbonne.fr

Please ask Christophe Gillissen for the style-sheet of the journal.

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: "William Mulligan Jr."
Subject: Irish Australian Conference
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I am wondering if those members of the list who will be attending the
Irish-Australian Conference in Cork next month would be interested in
arranging an informal gathering to meet in person rather than, as we do,
virtually. I am thinking of a pub after the end of a day's activities
so as not to conflict with anything the organizers have planned.

If interested, let me know.

Bill

William H. Mulligan, Jr., Ph.D.
Professor of History
Murray State University
Murray KY 42071-3341 USA

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Article, Religious discrimination in Scotland 2
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I have been asked for background information...

The web site of the journal Ethnic and Racial Studies is

http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/01419870.asp

I do not have access to this journal.

The original Walls and Williams article, attacked by Bruce and colleagues
was...

Ethnic and Racial Studies
Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group
Issue: Volume 26, Number 4 / July 2003
Pages: 632 - 661

Sectarianism at work: Accounts of employment discrimination against Irish
Catholics in Scotland

Patricia Walls A1 and Rory Williams A1
A1 MRC, Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow

Abstract:

This article examines accounts of discrimination in employment against Irish
Catholics in Glasgow from both majority and minority ethnic and -religious
perspectives. It reveals evidence of continuing experience of sectarian
discrimination in work. Of particular note is the existence of
discriminatory practice affecting Catholic (Irish-descended) attempts to
move up the social scale. This evidence disputes the thoroughness of
analyses which ignore discrimination experience as relevant to the current
social-class position of Glasgow's Irish Catholic community. The analysis
presented here also questions the practice of excluding 'white' ethnic
groups from most studies of ethnicity in Britain and considers whether
sectarianism or racism might most aptly describe experiences marked out by
religious belonging but clearly denoting ethnic origin. As part of a wider
study of prolonged and continuing health disadvantage among the Irish in
Britain, it is suggested that discrimination is one component in any
explanation of the health of the Irish or Irish Catholic minority, whose
minority experience is usually overlooked by researchers of ethnicity.

Keywords:
Catholic, Irish, Discrimination, Racism, Sectarianism, Whiteness



-----Original Message-----
Email Patrick O'Sullivan

Members of the IR-D list will recall my disquiet when an article by Steve
Bruce and colleagues was published in the journal Ethnic and Racial
Studies...

That article was
Ethnic and Racial Studies
Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group
Issue: Volume 28, Number 1 / January 2005
Pages: 151 - 168

Religious discrimination in Scotland: Fact or myth?
Steve Bruce , Tony Glendinning , Iain Paterson , Michael Rosie

I emailed Martin Bulmer, the editor of Ethnic and Racial Studies, expressing
my disquiet that - when we had, at last, a study of the ways in which anti
Irish/Catholic prejudice might operate over a lifetime and in the workplace
- that study was so crudely attacked by Steve Bruce. I said that it seemed
to me that Steve Bruce was continuing within the pages of the journal his
quarrels with Professor Tom Devine, and with the Scottish Parliament. I
have already sent copies of my email to those who asked for it, and I am
happy to send out further copies.

There are genuine methodological, inter-disciplinary questions to be
addressed here - but the Bruce article did not address them, and the tone of
that article was very odd indeed.

And I asked the editor for assurances that Patricia Walls and Rory Williams
would have a Right of Reply.

The latest issue of Ethnic and Racial Studies is now available on its web
site, and includes the Walls and Williams rebuttal. Abstract pasted in
below. The paper edition of the journal will follow in due course.

P.O'S.


Ethnic and Racial Studies
Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group
Issue: Volume 28, Number 4 / July 2005
Pages: 759 - 767

Religious discrimination in Scotland: A rebuttal of Bruce et al.'s claim
that sectarianism is a myth

Patricia Walls and Rory Williams

Abstract:

A recent article on sectarianism in Scotland in Ethnic and Racial Studies by
Bruce et al. sought to undermine the conclusions of a previous paper of
ours, also published in this journal. Bruce et al. contend that sectarianism
is a myth, while we have provided new qualitative evidence for personal
experience of anti-Catholic discrimination in employment, which clearly
contradicts their thesis. To contextualize these papers, we have summarized
some of the key points of the evidence, and of the increasing concern about
sectarianism in Scotland. In an effort to ridicule this concern, Bruce has
attacked us as he has previously attacked a number of others. He and his
co-authors accuse us of relying on respondents' fallible judgements about
the actual and appropriate proportions of Catholics in workplaces; then they
try to interpret some of our respondents' statements and their own
quantitative evidence as supporting their myth hypothesis. We document here
the process of misrepresentation by which they have sought to support their
allegations, and we re-affirm the actual argument which led to our
conclusions. We suggest a more obvious alternative interpretation of their
own quantitative data, while raising misgivings about their use of 2001
census data. Questions about sectarian discrimination in Glasgow in the
period 1950-2000 can no longer be baulked.

Keywords:

Scotland, anti-Catholic, sectarianism, discrimination, qualitative, 2001
Census

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Research Fellowship - Institute of Irish Studies/School of
History, Belfast
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

For information...

Please distribute...

P.O'S.


From: Irish Studies General Office
irish.studies[at]qub.ac.uk
Subject: Research Fellowship - Institute of Irish Studies/School of =
History

The Institute of Irish Studies and School of History at Queen's =
University
Belfast announce the following opening:

Research Fellow =96 =91Imagining Belfast=92
School of History/Institute of Irish Studies

Available for two years, to contribute to a major research project
undertaken under the direction of Professor S.J. Connolly and Dr Dominic
Bryan as part of the ESRC Identities and Social Action Programme on =
changing
public expressions of identity in nineteenth and twentieth-century =
Belfast.

Salary scale: =A319,460 - =A321,640 per annum

Closing date: 4.00 pm, Friday 3 June 2005

Further details and an online application pack may be downloaded from =
the
Queen's University website: www.qub.ac.uk/iis/for-researchers/jobs.htm

Best wishes
Catherine Boone
Administrator
Institute of Irish Studies
Queen's University Belfast
University Road
Belfast BT7 1NN
Tel: 44 (0) 28 9097 3386
Email: irish.studies[at]qub.ac.uk
Website: www.qub.ac.uk/iis

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: CFP Latitude(s): Nomadic Imagination and Transnational Spaces in
the New Europe
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

Forwarded on behalf of
Molly Grogan Lynch

P.O'S.


08-09 d=E9cembre 2006, Cergy-Pontoise, Imaginaires nomades et espaces
transnationaux dans l'Europe =E0 25

Contact : Molly Grogan Lynch
=20

Latitude(s): Nomadic Imagination and Transnational Spaces in the New =
Europe
Latitude(s): Imaginaires nomades et espaces transnationaux dans l'Europe =
=E0
25

A Proposed Exploratory Workshop of the European Sciences Foundation,
Strasbourg, France (approval pending).

Universit=E9 de Cergy-Pontoise
Centre de Recherche Texte et Histoire [E.A. 1392]
Paris, France
Friday and Saturday, December 8-9, 2006

Presentation/Probl=E9matique
The Europe of 25 countries which came into being on May 1, 2004, =
heralding a
new era of economic, cultural and technological exchanges among its =
members,
intends to redraw the map of a continent fragmented along distinct
geopolitical and cultural lines from East to Center to West. An enlarged
Europe comes not without its challenges, however, and a great number of
questions. To begin with notions of identity, for example, what are the
possible consequences of an enlargement which hopes to open perspectives =
as
much as borders in an inevitably transformed social and cultural =
landscape?
In these 25 countries united by a single market, a parliament of freely
elected representatives and, in the future perhaps, a constitution
enshrining universal rights and values, will issues like migration and
exile, which posit an irreversible, usually problematic supplanting of =
one
culture by another, cease to hold meaning? Instead, could the expected
transnational exchanges which lie at the heart of the new Europe give =
rise
rather to a continuum of experiences over time and space, where cultures
could intersect and compliment each other in an unbroken, =
multi-directional
flow that would challenge more static paradigms of national and =
individual
identity? And what might traditional immigration patterns and =
experiences
(South-North, Margins-Center) to Europe contribute to the consequent
reimagining of Self and Other? Finally, recognizing the possible
trajectories of the citizen of the reunified Europe in the "territorial
principle" of the nomad - that is to say, the individual who "spreads
himself" over a "smooth space" by occupying and inhabiting it, and who =
in
"grabbing hold of this space [...] invents nomadism as a response to =
[its]
challenges" (Deleuze and Guattari, A Thousand Plateaus), is it possible =
to
discern in the recently expanded European map the signs of that
"deterritorialized place" charted by Deleuze and Guattari which defines =
a
nomadic "being-in-the-world"?

The principle goal of this workshop is to invite writers, researchers =
and
academics from throughout Europe to lay the groundwork for a =
theorization of
nomadism in European literature. Objectives include, but are not limited =
to
the following:
1) To discern structural, thematic and narrative strategies of a =
"nomadic"
genre in European literature, through whose resolutely transnational and
cosmopolitan nature the parameters of a nomadic "being-in-the-world" =
could
be defined, where movement through the enlarged European space would
encompass unlimited points of meeting, exchange and supply;
2) To conceptualize, through a comparative reading of modern European
literature, the possible paradigms of identity which could emerge from a
transnational, hybrid Europe, with a view to discovering how =
contemporary
literature may be facilitating understanding of both the potential and
limits of the enlarged Europe;
3) To open avenues of dialogue between postcolonial Europe's "migrant"
writers and the transnational literatures of the new Europe;
4) To explore the role of the contemporary European writer in =
challenging
fixed notions of identity and in opening the way towards improved human
understanding in a Europe turned toward even greater enlargement and a
reinforced global presence.

L'Europe =E0 25 pays qui a vu le jour le 1 mai 2004, avec l'intention =
d'ouvrir
la voie =E0 une nouvelle =E8re d'=E9changes =E9conomiques, =
technologiques et
culturels pour ses membres, devrait sonner le glas d'un continent =E0 =
trois
r=E9gions (ouest, est, centre) g=E9opolitiquement et culturellement =
distinctes.
L'Europe ainsi =E9largie ne manquera toutefois pas de soulever de =
nombreuses
interrogations, dont certaines surgissent d'embl=E9e. Sur le plan =
identitaire
d'abord, quelles cons=E9quences seront =E0 tirer d'un =E9largissement =
qui entend
s'op=E9rer tant au niveau des esprits que celui des fronti=E8res, dans =
un
paysage social et culturel qui ne peut qu'en sortir durablement =
transform=E9?
Dans une Europe unifi=E9e autour d'un march=E9 unique, d'un parlement =
compos=E9
d'=E9lus librement choisis, et, un jour aussi peut-=EAtre, d'une =
constitution de
valeurs et de droits universels, saurait-on en finir avec les pressions
migratoires et d'exil, o=F9 une culture finit in=E9vitablement par en =
=E9vincer
une autre? Autrement dit, le vaste projet d'=E9changes transnationaux =
qui est
au c=9Cur de l'Europe moderne pourrait-il donner lieu =E0 un continuum
d'exp=E9riences europ=E9ennes se relayant dans l'espace et dans le =
temps, o=F9 des
cultures s'entrecroiseraient et se compl=E8teraient dans un mouvement =
fluide
et multidirectionnel qui s'opposerait aux paradigmes identitaires =
convenus?
Et si c'est le cas, qu'est-ce que l'immigration provenant des pays du =
Sud et
des anciennes colonies des Etats europ=E9ens apporterait =E0 la fa=E7on =
de
regarder et de concevoir l'=E9tranger dans l'Europe =E9largie? Enfin, =
devinant
dans "le principe territorial" du nomade - celui qui "se distribue" dans
l'espace, l'occupe et l'habite, qui "s'accroche =E0 cet espace lisse =
[...] et
invente le nomadisme comme r=E9ponse =E0 ce d=E9fi" (Deleuze et =
Guattari, Mille
Plateaux) - les trajets possibles des habitants de l'Europe =E9largie et
r=E9unifi=E9e, serait-il possible de d=E9celer dans le r=E9cent =
red=E9ploiement de la
carte europ=E9enne l'av=E8nement du "milieu d=E9territorialis=E9", =
rep=E9r=E9 par
Deleuze et Guattari et qui d=E9finit l'=E9tant-dans-le-monde "nomade"?

L'objectif principal de cet atelier est d'inviter des =E9crivains, des
chercheurs et des universitaires, de toute l'Europe, =E0 r=E9fl=E9chir =
sur la
question du nomadisme dans les lettres europ=E9ennes. Ce travail se =
situera
sous une perspective =E0 quatre volets :
1) D=E9gager une typologie des formes, des th=E8mes et des postures =
narratives
d'une litt=E9rature europ=E9enne r=E9solument transnationale et =
cosmopolite =E0
travers laquelle pourraient se dessiner les param=E8tres d'un
=E9tant-dans-le-monde nomade, qui s'engagera sur un trajet r=E9unissant =
des
lieux de rencontre, d'=E9change et d'approvisionnement illimit=E9s dans =
l'Europe
=E0 25;
2) Conduire, =E0 travers une =E9tude comparatiste de la litt=E9rature =
europ=E9enne
contemporaine, =E0 une r=E9flexion sur les nouveaux paradigmes =
identitaires
auxquels une Europe transnationale et hybride pourra donner lieu, afin =
de
voir comment ces litt=E9ratures pourraient faciliter notre =
appr=E9hension du
nouvel espace europ=E9en, de ses possibilit=E9s comme de ses limites;
3) Faire dialoguer les litt=E9ratures "migrantes" de l'Europe =
postcoloniale
avec les =E9critures transnationales de l'Europe =E9largie;
4) Interroger les =E9crivains sur leur statut particulier d'=E9claireurs =
d'une
pens=E9e relationnelle qui invite =E0 franchir les fronti=E8res pour =
aller =E0 la
rencontre de l'autre, dans la nouvelle Europe qui, en s'=E9largissant
toujours, se pr=E9pare =E0 un r=F4le plus positif sur la sc=E8ne =
internationale.
The Exploratory Workshops of the European Sciences Foundation
The Exploratory Workshops of the European Sciences Foundation (ESF) =
allow
scientists and scholars to explore novel ideas at the European level =
with
the aim of "spearheading" new directions of research, across all =
scientific
domains. The aims of ESF Exploratory Workshops in the Humanities are to =
1)
target and explore a challenging scientific topic, preferably an =
emerging or
innovative field of research that would benefit from a collaborative
European approach; 2) foster transnational and interdisciplinary links; =
and
3) develop future collaborative research projects/programmes within or
outside the frame of ESF.

Complete information concerning the Exploratory Workshops of the =
European
Sciences Foundation is available on the ESF website:
www.esf.org/esf_activity_home.php?language=3D0&domain=3D0&activity=3D4

Les "ateliers exploratoires" de la European Sciences Foundation (ESF)
permettent aux scientifiques et aux universitaires d'examiner de =
nouvelles
id=E9es au niveau europ=E9en afin de baliser des pistes de r=E9flexion =
novatrices
dans tous les domaines scientifiques. Des renseignements complets sont
disponibles sur le site web de l'ESF :
www.esf.org/esf_activity_home.php?language=3D0&domain=3D0&activity=3D4

Applications/Propositions
Papers should not exceed 20 minutes in length. Proposals should include: =
an
abstract (of 300 words maximum), name, email and mailing addresses,
affiliation, and a brief biography.
Proposals should be sent by email no later than 23 April 2005 to:

Les int=E9ress=E9s sont pri=E9s d'envoyer leur proposition de =
communication (20
minutes), accompagn=E9e d'un r=E9sum=E9 (300 mots maximum) et d'une note
biographique (fonction, =E9tablissement, enseignement, recherche) avant =
le 23
avril 2005, par courrier =E9lectronique =E0 :

(Proposals in English)
Molly Grogan Lynch
Professor of Francophone Studies and Literature
Skidmore College - Paris
Molly.Lynch[at]wanadoo.fr

(Communications en fran=E7ais)
J=E9r=F4me Ceccon
Chercheur postdoctoral en Litt=E9ratures francophones et =E9tudes =
postcoloniales
Groupe de recherche en litt=E9ratures postcoloniales, Universit=E9 =
d'Anvers,
Belgique
Jerome.Ceccon[at]ua.ac.be

(Please include "ESF Workshop" in the subject lines of all emails.)
(Tout courrier =E9lectronique devrait =EAtre signal=E9 dans la rubrique =
"Objet"
par la mention "ESF Workshop".)

Financial support for participants in the form of travel and =
accommodation
subsidies will be determined upon acceptance by the European Sciences
Foundation of this proposed Exploratory Workshop. Publication of the
conference papers in an accredited journal is planned.

L'attribution des bourses pour subvenir aux frais de d=E9placement et de
participation encourus par les intervenants sera d=E9termin=E9e en =
fonction de
l'=E9ventuel accord de financement de la European Sciences Foundation. =
Les
communications donneront lieu =E0 la publication d'Actes.

Pour plus de renseignements : Renseignements complets sur le site web de
l'ESF :

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Further on Article,
Religious discrimination in Scotland: A rebuttal of Bruce et al.
MIME-Version: 1.0
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

Further to my message below, about the Walls and Williams Rebuttal of Bruce
and colleagues...

Religious discrimination in Scotland: A rebuttal of Bruce et al.'s claim
that sectarianism is a myth
Patricia Walls and Rory Williams

Ethnic and Racial Studies
Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group
Issue: Volume 28, Number 4 / July 2005
Pages: 759 - 767

I now have the text of the Walls and Williams Rebuttal, as a pdf file.
Usual between the lines conditions - which is to say, if you want the text
email me and ask for it. And I'll see what I can do.

P.O'S.


-----Original Message-----
Email Patrick O'Sullivan

Members of the IR-D list will recall my disquiet when an article by Steve
Bruce and colleagues was published in the journal Ethnic and Racial
Studies...

That article was
Ethnic and Racial Studies
Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group
Issue: Volume 28, Number 1 / January 2005
Pages: 151 - 168

Religious discrimination in Scotland: Fact or myth?
Steve Bruce , Tony Glendinning , Iain Paterson , Michael Rosie

I emailed Martin Bulmer, the editor of Ethnic and Racial Studies, expressing
my disquiet that - when we had, at last, a study of the ways in which anti
Irish/Catholic prejudice might operate over a lifetime and in the workplace
- that study was so crudely attacked by Steve Bruce. I said that it seemed
to me that Steve Bruce was continuing within the pages of the journal his
quarrels with Professor Tom Devine, and with the Scottish Parliament. I
have already sent copies of my email to those who asked for it, and I am
happy to send out further copies.

There are genuine methodological, inter-disciplinary questions to be
addressed here - but the Bruce article did not address them, and the tone of
that article was very odd indeed.

And I asked the editor for assurances that Patricia Walls and Rory Williams
would have a Right of Reply.

The latest issue of Ethnic and Racial Studies is now available on its web
site, and includes the Walls and Williams rebuttal. Abstract pasted in
below. The paper edition of the journal will follow in due course.

P.O'S.


Ethnic and Racial Studies
Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group
Issue: Volume 28, Number 4 / July 2005
Pages: 759 - 767

Religious discrimination in Scotland: A rebuttal of Bruce et al.'s claim
that sectarianism is a myth

Patricia Walls and Rory Williams

Abstract:

A recent article on sectarianism in Scotland in Ethnic and Racial Studies by
Bruce et al. sought to undermine the conclusions of a previous paper of
ours, also published in this journal. Bruce et al. contend that sectarianism
is a myth, while we have provided new qualitative evidence for personal
experience of anti-Catholic discrimination in employment, which clearly
contradicts their thesis. To contextualize these papers, we have summarized
some of the key points of the evidence, and of the increasing concern about
sectarianism in Scotland. In an effort to ridicule this concern, Bruce has
attacked us as he has previously attacked a number of others. He and his
co-authors accuse us of relying on respondents' fallible judgements about
the actual and appropriate proportions of Catholics in workplaces; then they
try to interpret some of our respondents' statements and their own
quantitative evidence as supporting their myth hypothesis. We document here
the process of misrepresentation by which they have sought to support their
allegations, and we re-affirm the actual argument which led to our
conclusions. We suggest a more obvious alternative interpretation of their
own quantitative data, while raising misgivings about their use of 2001
census data. Questions about sectarian discrimination in Glasgow in the
period 1950-2000 can no longer be baulked.

Keywords:

Scotland, anti-Catholic, sectarianism, discrimination, qualitative, 2001
Census

The references of this article are secured to subscribers.

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: FW: [IR-D] William Blake 2
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Another...

I don't usually let through to IR-D something as vague as this...

But there is the hint of a reference here...

P.O'S.

-----Original Message-----
From: The Irish Diaspora Studies List [mailto:IR-D[at]JISCMAIL.AC.UK] On Behalf
Of Patrick O'Sullivan
Sent: 22 April 2005 11:17
To: IR-D[at]JISCMAIL.AC.UK
Subject: [IR-D] William Blake 2

From: Michael Donnelly
mikedx[at]yahoo.com
Subject: Re: [IR-D] William Blake 2

One of the important things regarding this topic for us is that whether or
not Blake was of Irish origin, Joyce and others *believed* him to be of
Irish origin (his father said to be an O'Neill)(see Ellman and others).

Blake always did seem a bit gaye to me to be strictly British...

Michael Donnelly

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Fulbright opportunities in Irish Studies
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

It seemed worth noting the CIES message about the Fulbright Program, for
there are a number of Irish connections and possibilities. As always =
with
these things it is a bit like playing one of those computer games where =
you
have to play the game in order to find out the rules...

And, as ever, much talk about 'inter-disciplinary' approaches, but the
structures seem to entirely within existing academic disciplines.

Some possible starting points...

Go to the web site of the Council for International Exchange of Scholars
(CIES), which helps administer the Fulbright Scholar Program, the U.S.
government's flagship academic exchange effort, on behalf of the United
States Department of State...

http://www.cies.org/

And use the SEARCH facility to look for Irish and Ireland. This gets =
you
everything, including examples of applications that have been successful =
in
the past.

OR
go to the CIES Ireland page...

http://www.cies.org/award_book/award2006/country/EuroIreEI.htm

Or

Go to
2006-07 AWARDS CATALOG, which is a pdf file at

http://www.cies.org/cies/download/WEB_PDF_06_07.pdf

And search within Adobe Acrobat for Irish and Ireland...

P.O'S.

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

The Fulbright Scholar Program is offering 26 lecturing, research, and
lecturing/research awards in non-US history for the 2006-2007 academic =
year,
including research awards in European Union Affairs and Irish Studies, =
and a
postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Cardiff. Awards for both
faculty and professionals range from two months to an academic year.

While many awards specify project and host institution, there are a =
number
of open =B3All Disciplines=B2 awards that allow candidates to propose =
their own
project and determine their host institution affiliation; both the =
United
Kingdom and Ireland offer such awards.

The application deadline for Fulbright traditional lecturing and =
research
grants worldwide is August 1, 2005. U.S. citizenship is required. For
information, other eligibility requirements, and online application, =
visit
our Web site at www.cies.org .

Anne Clift Boris, Ph.D. Senior Program Officer for Recruitment Council =
for
International Exchange of Scholars 3007 Tilden Street NW, Suite 5L
Washington, DC 20008-3009 Phone: 202-686-7859 Fax: 202-362-3442=20

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Outline,
James H. Murphy EVANGELICALS AND CATHOLICS IN NINETEENTH-CENTURY
IRELAND
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From: P.Maume[at]Queens-Belfast.AC.UK

From: Patrick Maume
For information:
Chapter list of James H. Murphy EVANGELICALS AND CATHOLICS IN
NINETEENTH-CENTURY IRELAND (Four Courts Press, 2005) 256pp hbk, E55/#50.
This is the proceedings volume of the 2004 conference of the Society for the
Study of Nineteenth-Century Ireland, held at DePaul University, Chicago, in
April 2004. I add some comments on items of diaspora interest:

Notes on contributors 7

Introduction (James H. Murphy) 9

SECTION I - THE DEVOTIONAL REVOLUTION REVISITED Before the Devotional
Revolution (Emmet Larkin) 15

Did Ulster Presbyterians have a devotional revolution? (David
W. Miller) 38

Unremembering the devotional revolution (James H. Murphy) 55

SECTION II - PROTESTANT ANXIETY IN THE AGE OF CATHOLIC EMANCIPATION
"Perge, signifer" - or, where did William Maginn stand? (David
E. Latane, Jr.) 61
Discussion of a celebrated London-Irish journalist and his self-image as
defender of a beleaguered Tory-Anglican cause.

The siege of O'Connell: Charlotte Elizabeth Tonna's historical novels of
Ireland (Kara M. Ryan) 73 Diaspora in reverse: an English writer whose
self-image was formed during several years' Irish residence in the 1820s.

'Second spring' and 'precious prejudices': Catholicism and anti-Catholicism
in Hampshire in the era of emancipation (Shirley Matthews) 85 Argues on the
basis of Hampshire that early nineteenth-century British anti-Catholicism
had more to do with generalised fears than exposure to Irish Catholic
immigrants.

Religious affinity and class difference in two famine poems from Young
Ireland (Katherine Parr) 97

SECTION III CONFIGURING CATHOLICISM
William Carleton's literary religion (Marjorie Howes) 107

Nationalism as blasphemy: negotiating belief and insanity in the
genre of Fenian recollections (Amy E. Martin) 127

Religious ambivalence in May Laffan's HOGAN, M.P. (Jill Brady
Hampton) 136

Walter McDonald's window on Maynooth, 1870-1920 (Louise Fuller)
142

SECTION IV - INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES
Tell this to the Indians: the religious basis of William Warren Baldwin's
THOUGHTS ON THE CIVILISATION OF THE ABORIGINAL
CANADIANS OF ONTARIO (1819) (G.K. Peatling) 154
The Cork-born founder of a Canadian landed/political dynasty discussed as
exemplifying the ambivalence of missionary-oriented policies towards Native
Americans.

Father Boyce, Lady Morgan and Sir Walter Scott: a study in intertextuality
and Catholic polemics (Patrick Maume). 165 Discusses the career, religious
beliefs and literary sources of a mid-nineteenth century Donegal-born
Massachusetts Catholic priest-novelist.

A Victorian atheist [Charles Bradlaugh] encounters Roman-Catholic Ireland.
(Walter L. Arnstein) 179

Frances Power Cobbe and the patriarchs (Maureen O'Connor)187 A celebrated
British-based Victorian suffragist and her ambivalence towards the values of
her Anglo-Irish upbringing.

From Templeglantine to the Golden Temple: religion, empire, and
Max Arthur Macauliffe (Tadhg Foley) 197
An Irish-born expert on and convert to Sikhism placed in the context of
imperialist orientalism (with Sikhs presented as natural Protestants
threatened by popular idolatry & superstition).

SECTION V - EVANGELICAL INFLUENCES
Irish evangelicals and the British evangelical community, 1820s- 1870s
(Janice Holmes) 209 The difficulties faced by Irish-born evangelicals in
maintaining a separate identity in Britain and Irish-based evangelicals in
working within wider evangelical networks.

Religion, community relations and constructive unionism: the
Arklow disturbances of 1890-92 (Martin Doherty) 223

Darwin at church: John Tyndall's Belfast address (Matthew Brown)
235

Index 247
----------------------
patrick maume

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Call For Papers - 16th Annual ASEN Conference, London, 2006
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

Forwarded for information...

P.O'S.


-----Original Message-----
Could you please circulate the following Call for Papers in your IR-D
mailing list and forward it to your members, associates or students.

Best regards,
ASEN
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
--

CALL FOR PAPERS

16th Annual ASEN Conference:
"Nations and their Pasts: Representing the Past, Building the Future"
28-29 March 2006, London School of Economics

The Association for the Study of Ethnicity and Nationalism (ASEN) is holding
its 16th Annual Conference, entitled "Nations and their Pasts: Representing
the Past, Building the Future", on Tuesday and Wednesday, March 28-29, 2006,
at the London School of Economics.

The 2006 Conference Committee is now calling for papers to be presented on
Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Suggested themes include:

* Constructing and Changing National Pasts
* Myths and Memories of the Nation
* New Nations and their Pasts
* National Pasts and War Memories
* Nations as National Heritage
* Present Representations of the National Past - Music, Art, Literature and
Monuments

The abstracts of the proposed papers should not exceed 500 words and are
expected by November 1, 2005. The Committee will notify applicants by
November 30, 2005.

For further enquiries please email asen[at]lse.ac.uk

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: AN SIONNACH: NEW IRISH STUDIES JOURNAL,
CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY PRESS
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

The following message has reached us.

I cannot see any further information on the Creighton UP web site - but
David Gardiner is based at Creighton, and the Creighton UP does specialise
in Irish Studies. It has published books by Thomas Dillon Redshaw (on John
Montague) and David Gardiner (on Edmund Spenser)...

I think sionnach is fox - is it?

P.O'S.

________________________________

NEW IRISH STUDIES JOURNAL

CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY PRESS is proud to announce the launch of a new journal
dedicated to all aspects of contemporary Irish Studies. AN SIONNACH: A
Journal of Literature, Culture, and the Arts will publish serious articles,
creative work, and reviews that will promote active discussion and provide
in-depth analysis of developments in Irish Studies in the United States,
Ireland, and Europe since 1958.

Beginning with the Spring 2005 issue, this twice yearly, peer-reviewed
journal will be the first journal devoted entirely to the critical enquiry
of contemporary Irish Studies and the research and articulation of its
rapidly shifting nature.

SUBMISSIONS: The editors are currently accepting submissions and inquiries
for our Fall 2005 issue. Two copies of your submission should be prepared
according to either the Chicago Manual of Style or the MLA Style Sheet,
double spaced, with your name appearing on a separate cover sheet so as to
aid in the blind review process, and sent to: Dr. David Gardiner / Editor /
An Sionnach: A Journal of Literature, Culture, and the Arts /Creighton
University / Omaha, NE 68178/ USA. E-mail inquiries: gardiner[at]creighton.edu
.

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Job, Research Assistant, QUB,
Social & Political Archive for Northern Ireland
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Email Patrick O'Sullivan

Forwarded for information...

P.O'S.


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

ARK Project =96 Social & Political Archive for Northern Ireland Research
Assistant Queen=92s University Belfast Reference: 05/W328B

This post, funded by the ESRC, is available immediately for 18 months to
assist in the NI Social and Political Archive (ARK, www.ark.ac.uk) in =
the
development of a catalogue and archive of qualitative material on the NI
conflict. The successful applicant will be required to disseminate
information about the archive, and to assist in the development of
arrangements for managing access to the archive holdings.

Applicants must hold a primary degree in a Social Science or cognate
discipline, including History or Librarianship and have experience in
personal computer-based applications, including word-processing, email =
and
the internet. Additional criteria will be listed in the application =
pack.

Informal enquiries may be directed to Paula Devine, tel: 028 90973034 or
email: p.devine[at]qub.ac.uk

Commencing Salary range: =A318,267 - =A320,312 per annum
Closing date: 4.00 pm, Friday 10 June 2005

Further details and an online application pack may be downloaded from =
the
Queen's University website: http://www.qub.ac.uk/jobs/

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: "William Mulligan Jr."
Subject: Article: Why We're the New Irish
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Of interest from this week's Newsweek.


Why We're the New Irish
Mexican-Americans, too, began apart-and are now a thread in the
tapestry.

May 30 issue - Antonio Villaraigosa may not realize it, but his election
as mayor of America's second largest city borrows a page from Al Smith.
Like a lot of Irish-American politicians of his day, Smith knew how to
play the ethnic card to great effect. After all, "shamrock politics" had
helped the Irish establish a firm grasp on power throughout the
Northeast in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

For the rest of the article:

http://g.msn.com/0MN2ET7/2?http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7936463/site/news
week&&CM=EmailThis&CE=1
_____________________________

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: "William Mulligan Jr."
Subject: Article: Why We're the New Irish
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-----Original Message-----
From: Richard Jensen [mailto:rjensen[at]uic.edu]
Sent: Wednesday, May 25, 2005 7:49 PM
To: William Mulligan Jr.
Subject: Re: [IR-D] Article: Why We're the New Irish


I appreciate Bill Mulligan's useful post but I suggest the Mexicans are
the
new Poles, not the new Irish. Unlike the Irish they have a quite low
rate
of political participation in terms of voting and political activism.
Unlike the Irish they do not build "machines" and unlike the Irish do
not
try to take over the Democratic party. Finally, they have produced
surprisingly few politicians of statewide or national importance. They

seem to resemble the eastern and southern European Catholic immigrants
of
the early 20th century in this regard.

Richard Jensen rjensen[at]uic.edu

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
Comments: DomainKeys? See http://antispam.yahoo.com/domainkeys
From: Michael Donnelly
Subject: Article: Why We're the New Irish
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While it is true that Latino voting patterns in the
U.S. reveal low percentages of participation, I think
it cannot be said that Latinos have not produced
important local, state, and national politicians in
the U.S.

The next mayor of New York City (Fernando Ferrer) will
probably be a Latino, and Matt Gonzalez lost his bid
to become San Francisco's Mayor by only 14,000 votes.

Bill Richardson is the Governor of New Mexico, the
former U.S. Ambassador to the UN, and often mentioned
as a potential presidential candidate.

There are several other prominent Latinos who have
been or still are serving in Congress or the Senate,
such Loretta Sanchez, Henry Gonzales, and Ken Salazar.

In the last U.S. presidential election, both Bush and
Kerry attempted to campaign in Spanish, and the
political power of Latinos cannot be ignored,
especially in places like New York, New Jersey,
Illinois, Texas, Florida, and California.

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: An Sionnach
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From: Aaron Thornburg
aa_thornburg[at]yahoo.com
Subject: An Sionnach

Right! "An Sionnach" means 'The Fox.'

Anyone know to what this is referring?

Besides some idiomatic phrases such as "Chomh glic le sionnach" (clever as a
fox), I have no idea.

Aaron Thornburg
Duke University

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From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Immigrants to rural Ireland
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From: MacEinri, Piaras
p.maceinri[at]ucc.ie
Subject: Immigrants to rural Ireland

Hello Paddy

The Irish Farmer's Journal is probably not required reading for all you
urban sophisticates on the Irish Diaspora list. However, this week's issue
(today, Thursday 26th) contains a fascinating feature (Rainbow Ireland '05),
as well as statistics, on the large number of immigrants now living in all
parts of rural Ireland. Many jobs in agriculture and agribusiness are being
done here by new accession country migrants (i.e. the ten countries which
joined the EU last year - over 85,000 have registered to work here since May
2004) or from other countries such as Brazil, from where a substantial
number of meat factory workers have come.

The exact figure of 85,115 may be broken down as follows:

Poland 40,973
Lithuania 18,064
Latvia 9,207
Slovakia 7,190
Czech Republic 4,447
Hungary 2,693
Estonia 2260
Malta 166
Slovenia 85
Cyprus 30

One needs to add in figures for non-EU countries (who require work permits)
and well as special permits for high-skills migrants from non-EU countries.
I don't have the most recent figures for high-skills visas (probably less
than 1,500 p.a. to judge from previous years) but I do for work permits.

Jan/April 2005 was 9,349, suggesting a current average for non-EU
immigration of approximately 25,000 p.a. This suggests an overall inward
annual flow of 100,000 plus, a statistic which surely cannot last and which
also masks a high outflow (next para).

Please note that these figures represent _flows_, not _stocks_. In other
words, we don't know just now what the 'churn' factor is - how many people
come for a short period and leave again. In particular, the data for new EU
accession countries is based on the issuing of PPSN numbers (Personal Public
Service Numbers) - the equivalent of a social security number in the US. A
lot of Poles, for instance, register, work in a bar or restaurant for a few
months and then leave. They are not unlike their Irish equivalents in the
USA in the 1980s, sometimes undocumented people with a good education who
chose unskilled or semiskilled work before returning to Celtic Tiger
Ireland. They should also, nonetheless, be set in perspective - Ireland's
85k compares with the UK's 130k for the same period (no doubt this is
explained in part by the larger floating population of undocumented workers
in the UK, but it is instructive nonetheless. It may also reflect, in the
case of the Poles, an illusion that they are coming to a Catholic country,
about 40 years too late).

To make sense of these modest-seeming Irish data bear in mind Ireland's
population of 4m (26co) compared to almost 60m (UK) and 296 m (US Census
bureau estimate).

If in UK: multiply by 15. Equivalent to immigration from Eastern/Central
Europe of 1.275 million (ignoring extra-EU immigration) If in USA: multiply
by 74. Equivalent to immigration from Eastern/Central Europe of 6.290
million (ignoring extra-EU immigration).

At latest reports, Ireland's unemployment rate was 4.4% approx, lowest in EU
and OECD has just predicted 5% growth for 2006. Our strong immigration is
likely to continue.

Unfortunately the entire supplement is not online but two sections are (see
below). Other sections feature detailed interviews with Nigerian, Polish,
Lithuanian, Latvian, Estonian, Brazilian and Filipino migrants. It is nice,
for once, to be able to report that the tone is uniformly positive.

I feel these facts may be of interest to the list because they do not
reflect the voices of 'immigration advocates' or intellectuals in the cities
and universities - this is ordinary mainstream rural Ireland. Incidentally,
the reference to Conor Lenihan is to a junior Minister in the Dail last week
who attacked Socialist Party Joe Higgins, who has championed the cause of
exploited Turkish workers in Ireland, with the phrase 'stick with the
kebabs, Joe'. He has apologised and there has been a universally critical
response to the comment.

I know someone is going to disagree with me, and they are entitled to, but,
for once in a debate which often seems hopeless, I can feel slightly
optimistic. Then I think about our politicians and (almost) despair....

EXTRACTS FOLLOW...

(1)

The Journal investigates immigrants' attitudes to Ireland

This week in The Journal we take a look at the recent phenomenon of foreign
nationals coming to our country in search of a better life. Ireland in 2005
is a far cry from the desolate times of the '50s, '60s and the '80s, when we
exported thousands every year to far-off America, Australia or the UK. Few
would have believed such a scenario as recently as 20 years ago, when
unemployment was high and for many an American visa was the ticket to a
better life.

The incredible turnaround in our economy now means we can provide jobs for
the thousands coming to our shores. Ireland is now the 'America of the
'80s'. Is America a better country as a result of the Irish invasion? Of
course it is.

This has meant some readjustment to our lives. As a country we are still
getting used to the fact that many of the people we meet as we go about our
everyday lives are not Irish. For some this transition has proven difficult
and there have been incidents over these past few years that we should not
be proud of.

The latest was Conor Lenihan's unfortunate remark in the Dail last week.
While not wishing to pour more hot water over the Minister for State, the
comment was fairly atypical of many Irish attitudes to foreign nationals in
Ireland. The misconception that we are being treated like a 'gravy train' is
in fairly wide circulation. Yet last year alone some 31,000 people from the
accession counties of the EU came to this country to work. That work, in a
majority of cases, consists of jobs that employers cannot find Irish staff
to even consider.

It is widely acknowledged that our healthcare system, already creaking,
would collapse altogether were it not for the influx of nurses from far
a-field, many from the Philippines. The construction industry is fighting to
keep up with Celtic Tiger demand and this means foreign workers.

The Ennis by-pass, a crucial component in opening up the Western road
network, is currently being built and the infamous Gama group has employed a
huge number of foreign nationals on the project. Millions upon millions is
being lost for every year this bypass is not open and without this workforce
it would not get built.

The tourist industry in this country is now staffed with a huge number of
foreign nationals, many of whom are prepared to work for minimum wage -
unlike quite a number of their Irish counterparts.

Not so long ago the Irish student would scour the locality in search of a
summer job and would gladly take this 'minimum wage'.

The Journal has spoken to businesses crying out for summer staff, but few
are listening. Instead we occasionally complain because a shop workers'
English isn't up to scratch. We decry the level of service in certain
restaurants and blame our recent arrivals. We say things like 'stick with
the kebabs'.

Read their stories in The Journal this week. Be proud that we are giving
people a chance to make a better life. Remember how we Irish were treated in
America and Britain down through the years and think again about that person
you met today who did not have perfect English.

Think about the person who has taken his family thousands of miles in the
hope that his children can have opportunities denied to him. We all want
what is best for our families. So does he.

(2)

Full of Eastern promise

By Kay Kevlihan

It is now 12 months since citizens of the new EU member states were allowed
full _freedom of movement in Ireland. Has the influx of workers from Eastern
Europe _and our more liberalised labour market impacted on the business of
recruiting _staff for farmers? Kay Kevlihan reports.

Since 1 May 2004, citizens of the 10 new EU member states no longer require
work permits to get employment in Ireland. Reports of car loads of workers
driving around the country calling to farms and businesses seeking work
raised serious issues for recruitment agencies, whose bread and butter came
from recruiting foreign workers for Irish farms and handling tedious work
permit applications.

The general consensus among recruitment agencies now is that where
unskilled, short-term labour is needed, workers from the new member states
who have come to Ireland are providing a good service.

As opportunities in other sectors lure skilled Irish operators out of
farming, many farmers continue to depend on recruitment agencies to source
skilled farm workers who are interested in longer term commitments.
Polish farm workers _in demand

Co Meath based recruitment agency FRS Solutions, which sources skilled
Polish workers for the farming community, was inundated with calls from
migrant workers post 1 May 2004.

"We had streams of people arriving at our offices and it was evident that a
lot of people came to Ireland without work organized,' said Chief Executive
of FRS Group Limited Martin Frayne.

"Many of these people were unskilled and managed to get a start as general
operators, but some hadn't the ability or skills to make it on farms or in
the construction industry, and a lot of them returned home.'

According to Martin, the market adjusted very quickly to the influx and,
while there is still a steady stream of people from Eastern Europe arriving
on our shores, demand is possibly higher than ever for skilled people to
work on farms.

"There is still a demand for highly skilled people and employers are more
discerning than ever about what they want, so our business hasn't
differed,' he said.

"We have our own office and staff in Poland and we source skilled people for
horticulture, dairying, tillage and agri-business. The tedious procedure of
getting work permits is no longer an issue and, as we have a database of
skilled workers, we can now place people within four to five days - a little
longer if a specific skill is required.'

FRS Solutions Limited can be contacted on 01-825-9116.
No longer recruiting _farm labour

Dalmac Recruitment Agency in Swords, Co Dublin, was one of the first Irish
agencies to source farm workers from Eastern Europe.

Back in the '90s, labour shortages were putting fruit and vegetable growers
out of business and factories were crying out for operatives.

Located in the market garden belt in north Co Dublin, Dalmac's Managing
Director Ann McCrudden saw the desperation of farmers whose businesses were
closing down as a result of labour shortages.

Ann had developed contacts in Eastern Europe through her language school and
over the years she sourced thousands of workers from Latvia, Lithuania and
Poland and successfully solved the labour needs of farmers and
agri-businesses.

"The days of placing 30 or 50 employees with a company are over, and most
farmers are now approached directly by foreign staff and do not need to use
the services of a recruitment agency,' Ann said.

"These workers are not screened, so employers may not be getting the same
quality as before and the vast majority would have a very poor standard of
English. Also, there is no long-term commitment, as workers have freedom of
movement and can switch from one employer to another, so you might have just
trained a worker when they decide to move on.'
Focus changed

Dalmac Recruitment now concentrates on sourcing skilled workers - such as
HGV drivers, welders, metal workers and steel fabricators - who have a good
command of English.

"We find that with health and safety issues, employers are afraid to take on
people with a low standard of English and our business has gone from
quantity to quality.'
Opportunities for _part-time work

Paudi Collins, Bride and Blackwater FRS in Co Cork, says there is some
foreign labour in his region, but accommodation for workers can be a
problem, so demand for relief workers is quite good. Getting enough
operators is the problem.

"We can find it difficult enough to get sufficient people to work as
operators and there are good opportunities there for young lads running the
family farm or small operators to do relief work.

"Dairy units are expanding and people need a break from the routine of
milking seven days a week. Relief workers can fit in milking mornings or
evenings during the week, but sometimes on busy weekends we can have
problems getting enough milkers.

"It can also be difficult getting general workers during the week.'
Secure employment _opportunities

The advantage of being employed by FRS is that you receive an instant income
and are insured under the PRSI scheme.

"The bigger units need labour and it is very much on a business basis.
Milkers get paid a rate for up to 50 cows and an additional payment for each
additional cow.

"We are actively looking for experienced people and if training is needed we
can arrange courses in milking, hoofcare, scanning and frieze branding.
There are plenty of opportunities.'

Contact Bride and Blackwater FRS, Fermoy, Co Cork 025-32646.
Matching workers _to farmers

The need for full-time skilled farm workers is steady throughout the country
and Farm Solutions Limited, based in Wexford, currently has around 60
skilled workers from Eastern Europe placed on farms.

Manager of Farm Solutions Limited Tom Bermingham matches the needs of Irish
farmers with experienced staff from Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and
Slovakia.

Many of the workers he recruits have third-level agricultural qualifications
and they all have a good command of English.

"We are approached by workers who come into the country themselves, but they
are always interested in short-term seasonal work and many of them work for
cash in the black economy,' Tom said.

"I look for a longer-term commitment and loyalty to the farmer, so I am
careful about selection.

"I interview people in their own country; the type of person I recruit is
the guy who wants to improve his knowledge of modern farm systems and is
enthusiastic about working on farms in Ireland.

"Farmers value the fact that they choose to work on farms.'

Every few weeks Tom travels to Eastern Europe, where he interviews and
selects experienced workers for full-time positions on dairy, tillage and
pig farms. Under the work permit system it took up to six months or longer
to place a worker from Eastern Europe with a farmer, whereas now it takes a
few weeks.

Farm Solutions Limited can be contacted at 054-36222 or www.farmsolutions.ie

Sender: The Irish Diaspora Studies List
From: Patrick O'Sullivan
Subject: Research Fellowships, Irish Studies, Belfast
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Subject: Irish Studies Research Fellowships

Dear Colleagues

Please note that the Institute will be advertising three research
fellowships in Irish Studies, week commencing 30 May 2005 (Ref: 05/W330B)

More information can be found on the Institute's website at
www.qub.ac.uk/iis/for-researchers/jobs.htm

Further details and an online application pack for these fellowships may be
downloaded from the Queen's University website after 30 May:
www.qub.ac.uk/jobs

Please note that application materials are not available directly from the
Institute of Irish Studies.

Any queries should be directed to the University's Personnel Office quoting
the appropriate reference number, Tel: +44 (0) 28 9097 3044

Catherine Boone
Institute of Irish Studies
Queen's University Belfast
Belfast
BT7 1NN
Tel: +44 (0) 289097 3386
Fax: +44 (0) 289097 3388
E-mail: irish.studies[at]qub.ac.uk
Website: www.qub.ac.uk/iis