I’ve nothing against the Irish. I cheer on both their football teams when they are playing anyone except England, I like their comedians, I would even like to visit the Emerald Isle someday. It sounds like a lovely place.
However, it amazes me that people in England celebrate St Patrick’s day with such gusto, whilst ignoring our own Saint’s day (St George’s Day, April 23rd).
St Patrick’s Day is big all over the world. There have been parades in some US and Canadian cities for over a hundred years, the one in Boston since 1737. In Chicago they dye the entire river green. In almost every ‘westernised’ country, we have St Patrick’s day celebrations.
Why?
Why do we celebrate the Irish diaspora more than, say, the Scots? Or even the English for that matter? There’s no doubt that Irish people have many fine traits, but don’t the Welsh too? What about Italians? Spanish? They are also beautiful and lovely people, whose nationals now inhabit many, many countries.
I know that many people fled Ireland and moved to America, but actually more Germans did, around the same time, and there are more people of German descent than Irish, in America. Why are there Irish parades and not German ones? (Remember that these parades have been going on since before both wars).
In England, we grew up in the 1980s with terrorist bombs and ‘The Troubles’ on the news regularly. Thousands of people died, in Ireland and in the UK. This is one aspect of Irish history that is difficult for anyone to forget. I appreciate that these days a spirit of mutual cordiality exists between the two nations, and I am happy about that, but to celebrate another country’s saint above our own, especially one with which we have had (something of a) recent conflict? This I can’t understand.
This is not an anti-Irish polemic, just an expression of bemusement as to why the entire world celebrates one nation’s exodus and people above other nations who have equal rights to be celebrated, and yet further bewilderment as to why anyone English would celebrate it at all. A drink to cordiality? Sure, of course. Wearing green and drinking Guinness in England? Piss off.
However, it amazes me that people in England celebrate St Patrick’s day with such gusto, whilst ignoring our own Saint’s day (St George’s Day, April 23rd).
St Patrick’s Day is big all over the world. There have been parades in some US and Canadian cities for over a hundred years, the one in Boston since 1737. In Chicago they dye the entire river green. In almost every ‘westernised’ country, we have St Patrick’s day celebrations.
Why?
Why do we celebrate the Irish diaspora more than, say, the Scots? Or even the English for that matter? There’s no doubt that Irish people have many fine traits, but don’t the Welsh too? What about Italians? Spanish? They are also beautiful and lovely people, whose nationals now inhabit many, many countries.
I know that many people fled Ireland and moved to America, but actually more Germans did, around the same time, and there are more people of German descent than Irish, in America. Why are there Irish parades and not German ones? (Remember that these parades have been going on since before both wars).
In England, we grew up in the 1980s with terrorist bombs and ‘The Troubles’ on the news regularly. Thousands of people died, in Ireland and in the UK. This is one aspect of Irish history that is difficult for anyone to forget. I appreciate that these days a spirit of mutual cordiality exists between the two nations, and I am happy about that, but to celebrate another country’s saint above our own, especially one with which we have had (something of a) recent conflict? This I can’t understand.
This is not an anti-Irish polemic, just an expression of bemusement as to why the entire world celebrates one nation’s exodus and people above other nations who have equal rights to be celebrated, and yet further bewilderment as to why anyone English would celebrate it at all. A drink to cordiality? Sure, of course. Wearing green and drinking Guinness in England? Piss off.
From what I read, the Irish parades started in America as a protest to their poor social status and limits to what jobs they could or could not obtain. So apparently this started a whole, let's get drunk as we activly object to something worthwile, yet this goes back to the whole, if you don't like the say things are in someone else's country, GTFO arguement. Anyway, after thinking about it from last night to now I think that the "holiday" has gone from a day of social protest to a day of social BS, just like most of the other holidays we celebrate
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