Posted by Jim on April 1, 2022
 A Letter from Ireland The Patriots Who Walk With Us a Chara, Easter is a reflective period for Irish Republicans to remember our patriots and to recommit to the cause of Irish Unity. I have been invited to speak at this year’s San Francisco Easter Commemoration. Martin Kenny TD will travel to Toronto and Mairead Farrell TD will speak at events in New York, Long Island, and Philadelphia. I hope to meet up with Mairead in Philly. Events are also planned in Chicago and other cities. These events are only made possible by the dedication of local activists. The Philadelphia event was to be anchored by Robert (Bob) Dougherty. I’d met Bob once in person before Covid. We remained in regular contact over the past two years as he organized successful Easter and Hunger Strike Commemorations. Last week we were back and forth about this year’s commemoration. He was excited to host Mairead and keen to sort out arrangements. I was looking forward to catching up with him in person to thank him for all his work. I will never get the chance. Bob died suddenly and unexpectedly last weekend. I only knew a small fraction of his life, that of an Irish Republican activist. I was impressed. Physically a big man, he was unassuming in his activism. He believed in what he was doing and he got it done. The reward for Bob was knowing that he had honored the memory of generations of Irish Patriots. He was not solely focused on the past. He worked tirelessly for the Irish Political Prisoners Children’s Holidays project. Bringing kids to the US as conflict raged in Ireland. These children are now adults with kids of their own. The transatlantic friendships they created continue a generation later. The sudden loss of Bob and his pride in the Easter Commemoration got me thinking. At Easter, Irish Republicans honor those who gave their lives for Irish Freedom. Maybe we should also celebrate those who live their lives for the same cause. Those who give of their time and skills day in and day out. Those who get on and get the work done. Victory will not be secured solely by the sacrifice of the few but by the actions of the many. I offer my condolences to Bob’s wife Leslie, two children Christine and Mary Kate, and his granddaughters Maeve and Saoirse. I am sorry that I did not get to thank Bob in person, but I will remember him at the Easter Commemoration in Philly. This Easter I will think of and be thankful for the patriots who walk with us. Have a great weekend, CiaránCiarán Quinn is the Sinn Féin Representative to North America Sinn Féin Poised for Historic ElectionOn May 5th there will be an election in the North of Ireland, and it could be a historic event.Since the partition of Ireland, a unionist has always held the top post. But change is coming. In the latest poll, Sinn Féin has a 6 point lead over its largest Unionist rival, the DUP.If these polls hold, the Vice President of Sinn Féin, Michelle O’Neill would become First Minister.With your continued support, we can make history.Donate to Friends of Sinn Féin to help win this election.  “The end is nigh for Northern Ireland as we know it, and unionists can blame themselves,” writes Susan McKay.  “Northern Ireland is coming to an end, and unionists, having nowadays only themselves to blame, are plummeting through history, desperately seeking the security of the homeland they are convinced their forefathers built for them.” So writes author, journalist, and filmmaker, Susan McKay in a recent opinion piece in The Guardian. She adds, “A rude awakening is coming and panic has set in. And so it is that Jeffrey Donaldson MP, the DUP leader, and, reluctantly, one of its candidates as an MLA, finds himself sitting miserably on lorry-pulled trailers at poorly attended anti-protocol rallies in the main streets of small towns in unionist heartlands. He has his Orange sash with him, lest anyone doubt his loyalty – and plenty do, for paranoia is the prevailing condition at these events. The Orange order is once again trying to unite the unionist family. What is being opposed is not just the protocol – it is the Good Friday agreement..  A Letter Reference from James Connolly Turns Up in The US Richard Dalton was a member of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union. Blacklisted following the 1913 strike and lockout, he was forced into emigration. Planning to move to Scotland in search of work he asked his union comrade James Connolly for a letter of introduction.Connolly obliged and wrote the reference on July 23rd, 1915. When Dalton arrived in Glasgow, the letter opened the door into Dockers Union where he was given a pound and a Union Badge.He had found work with the help of his friend James Connolly.A year later Connolly, tied to a chair was executed by a British Army firing squad as a leader of 1916 Rising.Richard Dalton treasured the letter and always kept it safe. A reference like no other. The story would have been lost to posterity but for our good friend Todd Allen who saved the letter and brought it to the US. |