The North

By Kathryn
Guest Contributor – ATL Commentators Corner

This weekend begins the countdown to the special day for the Irish in America. A day that I’ve heard began in 1790 in America, but also that a great celebration of this day began in Ireland. A day that showed the honor the Irish Americans have always held and for the Irish people and the beautiful Island where they live.

I’m an American citizen with an obsession for Irish History, particularly the history of the 30 year conflict often called The Troubles. I apologize that I am pretty ignorant when it comes to how the celebration of St. Patrick’s day came to be one of huge parades and close to one million observers in Dublin, and more in New York and Boston. However, there has been the lovely tradition of having a White House celebration that allowed leaders from your countries to talk to American leaders and have a meeting of the minds on what best serves Irish, British, and American policy
I admit that I am an American citizen who came home from my trip to Ireland in 2024 to make sure that my vote against Donald Trump was counted in that election. I am not a fan of Donald Trump and given that I think what he has done to our country is worse than I imagined it could be, I wish I had stayed there. I’m not a fan of our current president (and I so hate to word it that way), but aside from my views as an American, I wish that leaders such as Emma Little Pengally and Taoiseach Micheal Martin had followed Sinn Fein’s example and refused the invitation to the White House for this special day This is a day for the Irish people, and should be a day of respect for the Irish people by Americans and others. Most importantly a sincere atmosphere of respect should take place between Irish and American leaders. I do not believe Donald Trump will show that respect for the Taoiseach and the Deputy first Minister. So let us look at Mr. trump’s record.

First the Trump administration has shown its lack of love for the Irish for making every effort to subjugate those not born in the United States to a subhuman status. We have heard of the case of Seamus Culletin, an Irishman, with a job in Boston and an American wife, who has been in ICE detention for six months. iCE claims that there are only five or sux cases exist involving the Irish. If this were the case each case of Irish immigrants in detention was in the headlines. Statistically it is unlikely that each case involving one group, would have its own headlines. Most cases simply go under the radar. ICE , the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency in the USA, has some professional agents no doubt, yet their reputation has been that of a large force of men and women given 47 days of training with lower standards than those required in 2024. At that, trainees are sometimes allowed field positions even though they can’t pass written exams, even on open book tests; or drug tests, or the physical fitness exams. Many of us assumed that White, European immigrants would be treated better than immigrants from Central and South America, or Africa. However, Mr. Culletin’s description of his treatment shows the same lack of humanity as that shown to darker skinned immigrants. If one were to extrapolate out from immigrants, we can guess how much respect the Trump administration has for the Irish. Yet
America owes so much to Irish immigrants that we should never stop thanking our foremothers and fathers from Ireland and the North of Ireland for and giving us our sense of history. This is how the descendants of the diaspora see our place in the country I live in. Instead, modern day Irish immigrants are treated much worse than those who fled the Great Hunger to the United States. In fact, immigrants are treated worse than a convicted murderer in prison in America. Though there are fewer Irish coming to America now than then, those caught up in the desire to immigrate today are treated like concentration camp inmates when they are apprehended as though there were no greater crime than wanting to live in America and have a good life.
Beyond immigrants there is also the issue of respect for leaders, from this White House. The most troubling example of this administration’s treatment of leaders came early last year with the terrible bullying of Pres. Zelensky of the Ukraine. A man who has risked his life and his family’s lives to fight Russia was berated for not wearing a suit. When it came to treatment of the Taoiseach and Taniste of Ireland, last year, Donald Trump ignored legitimate Irish leaders to spend his time glorifying Conor McGregor an athlete who has also been accused of sexual abuse. If Trump admired McGregor’s fighting career, that is one thing, but McGregor does not come with a clean record and is certainly not the best Ireland has to offer and his snub of the governmental leaders of Ireland should have ended any White House visit of those leaders during the Trump administration.

The Irish Times had an editorial, a week ago Sunday stating that Trump may want the use of Shannon Airport for a launch for his war in Iran. I cannot guess whether he will discuss this, nor would I be willing to state the best course for Ireland. What I can say is that the Trump’s track record for keeping promises is dim. Donald Trump is often described as transactional. I think the best way to put that is that Trump has no use for you, unless he actually has a use for you. During his recent campaign for president, Mr. Trump promised his voters, among other things, that he would bring down costs of basic necessities. He promised this to be accomplished immediately when he took office. But Trump no longer needs his voters, either he is through with the office of President as soon as this term is up, or he will somehow achieve the presidency by non-democratic means. Either way, he no longer needs his voters. His first comments on the concept of cost cutting for the average American was that once prices are high, they are hard to bring down. Since that time he simply says that the economy is altogether better under him with no documentation of that, The average voter can go to the grocery store and see that prices on the same items have not decreased, in fact, without changing any purchasing habits, it is slightly higher. Additionally, his back and forth tariff deals have much more to do with whether he is angry at a government than that tariffs are a good economic measure. One of the highest tariffed countries is Brazil and that is more over his anger that Brazil arrested their former president, Bolsonaro, a man who attempted a coup along the lines of the January 6, actions in the USA, with crimes. The tariff serves no economic purpose for the United States, it is just that he wants to punish Brazil.

Previously, the 6-7 hour trip from Dublin to Washington D.C. has been of greater good for both countries. William Clinton and former Sen. George Mitchell were both instrumental in bringing the parties together for the Good Friday Agreement. Both before and after that agreement was ratified, the St. Patrick’s Day celebration was very useful in making the Agreement work well. And every President has used this event to demonstrate respect for the Irish. Even in Trump’s first term there were guardrails in place to retain normalcy in the St. Patrick’s day celebration diplomacy. This time Trump is served by a cabinet that is unable to do the job assigned to them, or in Marco Rubio’s case (Secretary of State) he is overwhelmed by so many tasks that he can’t provide a good diplomatic environment this upcoming St. Patrick’s day.

Last I wonder why Irish and UK leaders fly to New York to celebrate this wonderful day. It is a time meant for the respect of the Irish People and for the beginnings of the Christian religion in Ireland. I am one of those people in the United States with Irish Antecedents on both sides of my family. With some as far back as under Cromwell, some diaspora and some later. They say now that there are 32,000,000 million American people who are the result of Irish Immigration. Somehow, I think that number is very conservative. Nonetheless, I prefer celebrating St. Patrick’s day in Ireland and I think that Americans get quite a lot out of visiting Ireland on this special day. However, if you want to visit the raucous day where beer is dyed green in American bars (a few of which are called pubs), and the proud parade of the Irish founded New York Police Department, it is very much fun over here as well. However, I think that Sinn Fein has shown the value of Irish heritage by not coming to be ignored, or disrespected by those in Trump’s orbit. Whether it is the Irish or the UK government, respect cannot be counted upon in Washington D.C. at the White House. In fact, some measure of humiliation is more likely than not to occur. If it were my call, I would stay home where I might be able to see parades from either or both countries streaming live.

I’m sure many Americans and many Irish or Loyalist people would disagree with me. This is simply the opinion of one American citizen who thinks about how I may need to emigrate from my own country, preferably to Ireland. A country I love so much. Many Americans disagree with me as well. It is simply my personal belief that Sinn Fein will not regret the decision to decline the invitation.

Happy St. Patrick’s day to all