Irish-American History

Lesson 8: Famine Amnesia

Looking Forward

However, I have found , on my travels , that there is a strong Irish presence all around the world. There are people who are proud of their heritage and who work to revitalise the language, and preserve our culture. I took the phrase ‘ surplus population ‘ from John Mitchel , where he said , ‘The potato blight and consequent famine, placed in the hands of the British Government an engine of state by which they were eventually enabled to clear off not a million , but two millions and a half of the ‘ surplus population’ – to preserve “law and order ”in Ireland ’ (10).

I included this in a song which echoes the pride the Irish have in their roots irrespective of where they may be.

We are Irish

We are Irish and we’re proud of it
Forced into emigration
A politician’s scheme
To move a surplus population
Without a voice
We had no choice
Except to flee starvation
But in our hearts Ireland’s still our home
We’ve been chased through Hell to Connaught
We’ve been shipped to Botany Bay
Every job there is we’ve done it
As we’ve passed along the way
In every corner of this planet
We have had our parts to play
But in our hearts Ireland is our home
Our seed cast upon the tides of time
Came back a hundredfold
From those who left without a dime
Came back a stream of gold
In songs and story ,verse and rhyme
Where’er our story’s told
The Irish show
Their hearts are still at home.(11)

Learning what I have about the catastrophe caused in Ireland by An Gorta Mor and the floods of our people from the country over an extended period has made me more aware of the sacrifices made by generations of Irish people and more aware of why as a race, the Irish respond with charity to crises world –wide with unsurpassed generosity. I am proud that agencies such as Trocaire , Gorta and Concern continue to support troubled areas of the world and was delighted to write the song , Bridge the Gap to support Concern’s efforts in raising relief funds for a famine in Somalia in 1992

Bridge the Gap

Bridge the Gap , can’t you hear the people cry
All that they ask , don’t let another day go by
Don’t let it pass , they need the help of everyone
As Mothers cry , children die one by one
So play your part, help feed the starving of the world
Let’s make a start by setting out to save one soul
Deep in your heart , although the problem is worldwide
You know the greatest journey starts out with one stride
So Bridge the Gap , and feed the starving of the world
Stop the Famine trap from catching thousands every day
Don’t let is pass , they need the help of everyone
Stop Mothers’ tears and Childrens’ fears ’neath the blazing sun(12)

I firmly believe that Emigration saved our country. The Great Hunger was a terrible disaster but should provide a focal point for all of our people, wherever they may be, to recognise the unity the nation felt . People abroad supported those at home , sending ‘Money from America’. Once groups had established themselves , they provided havens for new waves of emigrants to settle more quickly into the New World.

There are still many things to discover about the period under discussion. People are still unearthing journals of families who travelled to North America during the 18th and 19th Centuries. It is a rich harvest , constantly providing new stories to be read and helping with our general understanding of the period. The handbill for the Lady Caroline inspired me to look more closely at my own environment.

If I have stimulated anyone to look more closely at theirs I will feel vindicated. Also , I would be delighted if some of the 50 million ‘Irish’ in North America are encouraged by what they have learned to make the return journey to Ireland.

'Now new generations still follow the quest
To search out their roots and lay old ghosts to rest
As they fly in their planeloads seeking North South and West
To find the spot that their forefathers fled.(13)

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