Another excellent piece. I’d love to see more from this author on 20th century rightist history. I haven’t seen it covered so well before. Who were the British parallels to figures like Forrestal and Joseph Kennedy Jr? It seems awfully depressing that, today, not a single hereditary peer has fallen into a right-wing rabbit hole and used their position to bash mass immigration 24/7.
Very insightful article. From my understanding, American Catholicism was divided between conservative Germans and the Irish who were consistently pushing for liberalization. In spite of this, Irish-Americans frequently produced Father Coughlin/Father Feeney types. I've always viewed their political presence in the US as an extrapolation of this trend, although I could be wrong. Namely a natural predisposition towards liberalization counterbalanced by their constant generation of 'our guys'.
What I can say is that the Irish-Americans who supported the republican cause throughout the troubles didn't seem too fond of the whole socialist thing - they tended to just view it as an ethnic feud which the British were somehow aggravating. You can discount it as apocryphal, but Brendan Hughes supposedly refused an arms donation on account of the Irish-American donors candidly discussing how he could use the weapons to 'kill prods'. Brendan replied something to the effect of the working class Ulsterscots being fellow victims of British imperialism yada yada, the prospective donors just stared at him blankly.
It is important to note that any manifestation of Irish political will is going to be colored by the complexes they've accumulated and the historical circumstances they have been forced to adapt to. Gaelic Ulster (anyone of substance from the south were 'hiberno'-normans and the south is culturally indebted to Ulster anyway) was remarkably conservative, the people were ardent royalists and were extremely religious (all anathema to the J'accuse spirit I know). Doesn't sound particularly shocking, but they were renowned for their obstinate zeal. Following the Flight of the Earls and the collapse of the Jacobite cause, the Irish were adrift. This was until they were scooped up by the Anglo-Irish gentry (descended from supporters of Cromwell) and were converted to their own brand of colonial nationalism created over trade restrictions placed on Ireland and the like. Seduced with promises of emancipation and brotherly love, this soon metamorphosized into the fist-in-the-air-joint-in-the-mouth Irish nationalism we're familiar with today. This change could be attributed to progress, but it is so clearly at odds with the inherent character of Ulster. On that note, the Graham Chapman episode on the Falls was absolutely brilliant.
The Irish-Americans seemed characterised by a nervous desire to assimilate and be accepted as 'real Americans'. Despite the ethnic solidarity between the poorer migrants, the more educated among them (lace-curtain micks in the words of Sam Hyde) appeared desperate to prove that they weren't some sort of seditious fifth-column. This led to them attempting to liberalize the Catholic Church and to distance it from Rome. I suspect this translated into them overcompensating and exaggerating whatever the dominant political consensus happened to be. If they wound up in cosmopolitan Northern cities that were vaguely liberal, they would go full libtard. If they picked up on the whole hawkish WASP ethos you discussed in your last article, then they would adopt this with extra bravado.
Thank you, I had no idea that Joe Jr. was such a force in American politics. I wonder if he was targeted for death as were his brothers and quite possibly John Jr. I remember when John Jr. announced he was considering public office, I said aloud to the air, "Shut up, shut up, shut up, they will kill you." Could be wrong. May the family rest in peace.
A lot of people on the DR think that, because the Klan hated the Irish, and because the Irish supported the immigration of fellow Irishmen, that the Irish had always been a salient of liberal progressivism and "Idea America". It's just not true though.
Being at the periphery of Anglo-American society meant that the Irish had to deal with other pariah folk significantly more than many Anglos. Especially insofar as jobs were concerned, the Irish had to compete with Blacks and Asians, and those Blacks, Asians, and Latinos who migrated to Yankee cities in the mid-20th century were moving into the less prestigious neighborhoods of White Ethnics. As early as the Civil War the Irish instigated the famous Draft Riots of 1863, over Freedmen whose cousins freedom they were being forced to fight for being exempt from the Draft. In the late 19th century the Irish comprised a large swathe of the anti-Chinese sentiment, as they and other ethnics competed with the Chinese for labor. The Irish were largely responsible for most of the race riots of the so-called "red summer" of 1919, and Martin Luther King called Chicago the most racist city in the country.
Don't get me wrong, the Irish have had their faults in American history, but they only really became uber-liberal with the rise of JFK.
Very good. Anti-Irish polemic has gone too far.
Another excellent piece. I’d love to see more from this author on 20th century rightist history. I haven’t seen it covered so well before. Who were the British parallels to figures like Forrestal and Joseph Kennedy Jr? It seems awfully depressing that, today, not a single hereditary peer has fallen into a right-wing rabbit hole and used their position to bash mass immigration 24/7.
One of the best X accounts
Very insightful article. From my understanding, American Catholicism was divided between conservative Germans and the Irish who were consistently pushing for liberalization. In spite of this, Irish-Americans frequently produced Father Coughlin/Father Feeney types. I've always viewed their political presence in the US as an extrapolation of this trend, although I could be wrong. Namely a natural predisposition towards liberalization counterbalanced by their constant generation of 'our guys'.
What I can say is that the Irish-Americans who supported the republican cause throughout the troubles didn't seem too fond of the whole socialist thing - they tended to just view it as an ethnic feud which the British were somehow aggravating. You can discount it as apocryphal, but Brendan Hughes supposedly refused an arms donation on account of the Irish-American donors candidly discussing how he could use the weapons to 'kill prods'. Brendan replied something to the effect of the working class Ulsterscots being fellow victims of British imperialism yada yada, the prospective donors just stared at him blankly.
It is important to note that any manifestation of Irish political will is going to be colored by the complexes they've accumulated and the historical circumstances they have been forced to adapt to. Gaelic Ulster (anyone of substance from the south were 'hiberno'-normans and the south is culturally indebted to Ulster anyway) was remarkably conservative, the people were ardent royalists and were extremely religious (all anathema to the J'accuse spirit I know). Doesn't sound particularly shocking, but they were renowned for their obstinate zeal. Following the Flight of the Earls and the collapse of the Jacobite cause, the Irish were adrift. This was until they were scooped up by the Anglo-Irish gentry (descended from supporters of Cromwell) and were converted to their own brand of colonial nationalism created over trade restrictions placed on Ireland and the like. Seduced with promises of emancipation and brotherly love, this soon metamorphosized into the fist-in-the-air-joint-in-the-mouth Irish nationalism we're familiar with today. This change could be attributed to progress, but it is so clearly at odds with the inherent character of Ulster. On that note, the Graham Chapman episode on the Falls was absolutely brilliant.
The Irish-Americans seemed characterised by a nervous desire to assimilate and be accepted as 'real Americans'. Despite the ethnic solidarity between the poorer migrants, the more educated among them (lace-curtain micks in the words of Sam Hyde) appeared desperate to prove that they weren't some sort of seditious fifth-column. This led to them attempting to liberalize the Catholic Church and to distance it from Rome. I suspect this translated into them overcompensating and exaggerating whatever the dominant political consensus happened to be. If they wound up in cosmopolitan Northern cities that were vaguely liberal, they would go full libtard. If they picked up on the whole hawkish WASP ethos you discussed in your last article, then they would adopt this with extra bravado.
Thank you, I had no idea that Joe Jr. was such a force in American politics. I wonder if he was targeted for death as were his brothers and quite possibly John Jr. I remember when John Jr. announced he was considering public office, I said aloud to the air, "Shut up, shut up, shut up, they will kill you." Could be wrong. May the family rest in peace.
A lot of people on the DR think that, because the Klan hated the Irish, and because the Irish supported the immigration of fellow Irishmen, that the Irish had always been a salient of liberal progressivism and "Idea America". It's just not true though.
Being at the periphery of Anglo-American society meant that the Irish had to deal with other pariah folk significantly more than many Anglos. Especially insofar as jobs were concerned, the Irish had to compete with Blacks and Asians, and those Blacks, Asians, and Latinos who migrated to Yankee cities in the mid-20th century were moving into the less prestigious neighborhoods of White Ethnics. As early as the Civil War the Irish instigated the famous Draft Riots of 1863, over Freedmen whose cousins freedom they were being forced to fight for being exempt from the Draft. In the late 19th century the Irish comprised a large swathe of the anti-Chinese sentiment, as they and other ethnics competed with the Chinese for labor. The Irish were largely responsible for most of the race riots of the so-called "red summer" of 1919, and Martin Luther King called Chicago the most racist city in the country.
Don't get me wrong, the Irish have had their faults in American history, but they only really became uber-liberal with the rise of JFK.