Why Ireland needs Irish-America

The new Irish Prime Minster Enda Kenny is in Washington for St.
Patrick’s Day.

He was elected by a record margin as Ireland’s new leader in the Dail (parliament) last week, but he faces a  daunting economic crisis.

It is so bad that, though there was a general election in Ireland on Feb. 25, many young Irish preferred to vote with their feet.

As many as 1,000 a week are departing the shamrock shore, according to the Economic and Social Research Institute, a government-funded think tank.

The effect has been profound. While previous generations emigrated with a weary resignation, this young generation grew up in hope and expectation of never having to leave Ireland’s shores like so many had to previously.

A brief dawn of prosperity forever known as the Celtic Tiger era from about 1998 to 2008 convinced many of the cognoscenti that the good time would keep rolling.

It didn’t, which should be no surprise. Since independence in1921, Ireland has enjoyed perhaps 20 years in total of decent economic times when emigration halted.

The reality is that since the 1840s, half of the people born in Ireland had to leave, as an exhibit at the United States departure lounge of Dublin Airport reminds travelers heading to America.

So now a new generation girds for passage. In the last decade, they have seen their cocooned world implode.

First was the downfall of the Catholic Church, for so long the bulwark of Irish society for good and for ill. Pedophiles on the run and bishops who saw no evil put paid to their dominant position.

Then came the death of the Celtic Tiger, once fat and sleek but destroyed in a wave of property speculation, crony politicians and banks behaving badly.

As the smoke clears the unedifying spectacles of mass emigration and financial servitude once again loom large for the new Irish government, which took over from March 9. As they face the gathering storm, they need to look west and east and south to their Diaspora worldwide to help them overcome the elements.

There are 70 million people of Irish extraction worldwide, according to the Irish government, an incredible footprint for an island of 6 million people North and South.

Of those, 40 million reside in the U.S. when you count those of Northern Irish extraction, according to the U.S. Census.

Creating a cohesive support structure for Ireland among its millions of Irish abroad could make a massive difference to Ireland in the near future.

The role of the Diaspora has been given much lip service by Irish governments, but now at a dire time of need the government needs to reach out like never before.

Irish-Americans, for their part, are incredibly well disposed toward Ireland but lack leadership from Ireland as to how they can reconnect with their ancestral ties.

Many of the ideas of how to accomplish that are not rocket science. Tourism Ireland statistics show that 92 percent of Irish Americans who visit Ireland have a positive experience — an incredible percentage.

Yet, not enough are coming. The two major problems are access and cost. If you live outside the main metropolitan east coast areas and Chicago, it is impossible to find a direct flight. There is no direct service from California or Texas, where large percentages of Irish-Americans live, according to the U.S. census.

More direct flights from America at a cost conducive to passengers flying to Ireland for a round-trip fare of $500 would be an immense breakthrough for Ireland’s tourism industry. Without that kind of access, the tourism industry will always sputter.

Young Irish-Americans need to be approached to make that trailblazing initial trip, which solders their sense of identity to Ireland. There are many successful Israeli government initiatives for young Jewish men and women that could easily be duplicated by Ireland. The long-term benefit would be incalculable.

The creation of dedicated networks of Irish-American leaders in different fields, such as Wall Street, Fortune 500 companies, legal profession, Silicon Valley, politics and life sciences is undertaken by a handful of Irish-American organizations with minimal input from the Irish government.

They need to be far more proactive in seeking out such leaders, who, in my experience are only too happy to be asked for advice, input and are more than willing to share their experience.

At dire times like this, such input could be vital for Ireland in creating the kind of interlocking grid that can draw on the vital experience such leaders have as Ireland seeks to navigate the grim shoals of near bankruptcy. The government and the Irish-American leadership need to make the case loudly for immigration reform. As former Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) stated, an unintended consequence of the 1965 Immigration Act was to end legal immigration from Ireland.

The knock-on effect has been an undocumented Irish community trapped in America with a failing economy back home and the inability of many Irish American organizations across the country to replenish their ranks with new members. The long-term reality of no comprehensive immigration reform bodes badly for Ireland and the future of Irish America.

Finally, the government has taken one positive step with the announcement of a certificate of ancestry for those who cannot legally claim Irish citizenship because their ancestry stretches beyond their grandparents. The incredibly enthusiastic response to that step shows the potential latent in the Irish-American community.

President Reagan once referred to the “mystic chords of memory” when discussing the importance of Irish heritage.

President Kennedy remarked that in the “geography of the heart,” Ireland and America are neighbors. Ireland needs good neighbors like never before in this time. Irish-America, if asked, can be one.

Niall O’Dowd is founder of IrishCentral.com and Irish Voice newspaper and played a major role in the Irish American initiative on the Irish peace process.