Irish-American Month

In the days preceding the attacks in Ireland on the two soldiers, and the policeman, the President of the United States declared March 2009, Irish-American Heritage Month. Reflecting upon the suffering endured by the Irish people during an Gorta Mor, and the resilient nature of the Irish people to overcome hardship, President Obama declared, "NOW, THEREFORE, I, Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 2009 as Irish-American Heritage Month. I encourage all Americans to observe this month with appropriate ceremonies, programs, and activities" (The White House, 2009).

Martin McGuinness and Peter Robinson, once enemies, are now, together going to meet with the new President this week. Three men once separated by violence, and bigotry are meeting together to bring change to the country where their forefathers lived. Are their wishes, and the wishes of the thousands who marched in a rallying call for an end to the violence this week, going to be overshadowed by the hatred portrayed in the window from the past? Or will the changes in the past year in America influence the people of Ireland, like the events in the 1960s did when the marchers for freedom in America were mirrored by the Civil Rights Marchers in Ireland? Tá súil agam sin.