The Irish Immigration Center is celebrating its twentieth anniversary as a provider of services to the immigrant community in Boston – marking the occasion with a dinner attended by President Mary McAleese. The organisation was started in 1989 by a group of Irish immigrants; at the time, there were thousands of undocumented in the city.… Continue reading Irish Immigration Center celebrates 20th anniversary
Author: Noreen Bowden
“Prairies or pampas?”: article explains why emigrants no longer ask
Argentina was once a powerful draw for Irish emigrants, although it is difficult to imagine given the country’s economic troubles today. How did it go from being an economic powerhouse to its current status today? Alan Beattie in the Financial Times documents the decline in a comparison of the policies pursued throughout the nineteenth and… Continue reading “Prairies or pampas?”: article explains why emigrants no longer ask
“All it will take is a good job” – NZ journalist tells emigrant’s story
The New Zealand Herald carries an interesting article on the Irish economy that has some particularly moving words about emigration. Journalist Ruaridh Nicoll tells the story of Michael Dermody, a 25-year-old Kilkenny man bound for Perth, Australia. Dermody tells the journalist, “A couple of years ago, I might have known two people in the whole… Continue reading “All it will take is a good job” – NZ journalist tells emigrant’s story
Can an Irish passport save the day?
Today’s Irishman’s Diary in the Irish Times offers a fresh take on the utility of an Irish passport, with Tom Clonan’s surprising story of what happens when an Irishman, a Saudi, an Iranian and an American go for a walk on a bustling day in Istanbul. Read the story on the Irish Times website.
“I Only Came Over for a Couple of Years” records experience of London Irish
Yet another oral history project detailing the experience of elderly Irish emigrants has come to your correspondent’s attention. “I Only Came Over for a Couple of Years”, a documentary that was completed in 2005, is now available on DVD from the Irish Studies Centre of London Metropolitan University. The film is a collection of interviews… Continue reading “I Only Came Over for a Couple of Years” records experience of London Irish
Ireland’s Hidden Diaspora examines abortion trail
“Ireland’s Hidden Diaspora: The ‘abortion trail’ and the making of a London-Irish Underground, 1980-2000” by Ann Rossiter tells the story of the London-Irish women who have supported many of the Irish women who have travelled to Britain for abortions. The book, which was launched in Dublin on Wednesday by Senator Ivana Bacik, is an oral… Continue reading Ireland’s Hidden Diaspora examines abortion trail