Irish Women Activists Trilogy: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn

Elizabeth Gurley Flynn
speaking at a silk workers'
strike in Patterson, New Jersey,
1913  Wikimedia Commons

Elizabeth Gurley Flynn
Wikimedia Commons

By Adrian McGrath

Editor's Note: This is the second of a trilogy on Irish women activists. Find the first article on Mary Harris "Mother" Jones here.

Elizabeth Gurley Flynn: The Rebel Girl (1890 to 1964)

An example of child labor in 1914 in North Carolina.
Nannie Colson, 11 years old, earned $3 per week
as a "looper" in the clothing factory
Library of Congress, Wikimedia Commons

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, working conditions in industrialized Europe and America were often brutal and dangerous. The laws offered little protections for workers then; and capitalism -- although successful in many ways -- was typically unbridled, exploitative, and hostile towards workers. It was a difficult time for the working man, and women and children had few rights and protections. When economic times got rough, workers became desperate.

Because of these dreadful conditions, some political activists became more extreme, seeking solutions out of the mainstream. Some became socialists or anarchists. Others followed the new philosophy of the day proposed by Karl Marx -- Communism.



Today we know Communism is a totally failed system. It made lofty promises such as the ability to create "a workers' paradise." It had idealistic slogans like, "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs." It asked the workers of the world to unite for they had nothing to lose but their chains.

Garment Workers' strike in Chicago, 1910
Wikimedia Commons

In reality Communism, where ever it appeared resulted in oppression by a new ruling class -- the Communist Party elites -- who simply replaced the old ruling class of Capitalist elites.

Communism where ever it appeared -- in Russia, China, and elsewhere -- resulted in tyranny and a loss of civil liberties, including a loss of fundamental freedoms such as freedom of speech, the press, and of religion. Furthermore, it failed to accomplish its main objective -- economic justice for workers.

Nevertheless, considering the terrible oppression workers lived under in the early 20th century, some economic and political activists tried socialism and communism as a solution to their problems. One such activist was Elizabeth Gurley Flynn. Her heart was in the right place; but her solution was wrong.

Eventually nicknamed "The Rebel Girl" because of her revolutionary ideas, fiery speeches, and political activism, Elizabeth Gurley Flynn was born in New Hampshire to Irish immigrants. Her mother was Annie Gurley from Galway, Ireland; her father was Thomas Flynn from County Mayo, Ireland. In typical Irish fashion, she was a rebel. There was even a song about her called "The Rebel Girl; and this was the name of her autobiography too.

Lawrence, Massachusetts textile workers strike in 1912
State militia with rifles and fixed bayonets against unarmed
striking workers, led by the IWW  Wikimedia Commons

Her Irish father instilled upon Elizabeth the importance of rebelling against tyranny by teaching her Irish history. Elizabeth once wrote that "when one understood British imperialism, it was an open window to all imperialism." Elizabeth thus developed a hatred of oppression in general, in a sense, comparing any oppression, political or economic, to the oppression Britain forced upon Ireland for centuries.

She became knowledgeable of Irish history, and came to believe that each generation of her ancestors had played a role in a rebellion against British tyranny in Ireland. She saw herself as a continuation of Irish rebellion against oppression, anywhere and everywhere.

When the family moved to the Bronx in New York, her father, Thomas Flynn, became active in socialism and politics. He, along with Elizabeth's mother, taught their daughter about these topics.

Because of the family's poverty and the awful conditions workers lived under then, socialism was seen as the best solution to the problem. Instead of having the means of production owned by a few big shot capitalists, the means of production should be controlled by the people, or the state which in theory represented the people.

Elizabeth came to believe, as she later stated, that "scientific socialism made it clear that it was not a poor man's fault if he was out of work." She felt people could be poor because they simply did not want to exploit their fellow man or woman, the way capitalists did.

Workers of the Lane Cotton Mill in New Orleans,
Louisiana from 1913, original photo by Lewis Hine,
from the Library of Congress and Wikimedia Commons.
Note how young some of the workers look.

Elizabeth began to educate herself on politics by reading on the subject including the works of Peter Kropotkin, a Russia political activist who believed in anarcho-communism; and she extended her education to feminist politics. She developed impressive public speaking abilities, and in fact made her first public speech at the Harlem Socialist Club at only 15 years of age. Her topic was "What Socialism will do for women."

(Here is a youtube link to a reproduction of a speech she gave in Union Square in New York City in 1914. This is related to the Tenement Museum in New York City.)

"Rebel Girl"
Elizabeth Gurley Flynn making a speech,
circa 1910
Photo from the Library of Congress and
Wikimedia Commons

An interesting anecdote about Elizabeth states that a Broadway producer once proposed to make her an actress. She had such a tremendous public speaking ability and commanding stage presence, he figured crowds would love it. But Elizabeth refused saying she did not want to act; she wanted to speak ... her own words.

She was electrifying as an extemporaneous speaker and motivator; some people compared her to Saint Joan of Arc. She was clearly very intelligent and became a first class orator. She did not, however, graduate from high school, leaving Morris High School in the Bronx. She regretted this move later but nevertheless continued to educate herself.

Elizabeth married J.A. Jones in 1907, an activist with an economic political organization called the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). She and her husband had two sons, one of whom died shortly after birth; and the other son only lived to be 30. Despite being in love, her marriage also did not last. We must wonder to what extent these tragedies affected her later behavior.

Flynn worked for the IWW and continued to make rousing speeches against capitalism and advocating workers' rights and women's rights. She fought for economic rights for laborers as diverse as garment workers, textile workers, restaurant workers, and coal miners. He relationship with the IWW became strained over time, however, for various reasons. (IWW members were nicknamed "Wobblies.")

Amazingly, in 1920 she played a key role in creating a new political and legal organization -- the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). She is recorded as being one of its founders.

She was a strong advocate for the women's right to vote (which became American law with the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution in 1920) and was an advocate for the legalization of birth control (which was not legalized even for married couples in the USA until the US Supreme Court decision of Griswald v Connecticut.) In this way Elizabeth showed that she was way ahead of her time, anticipating fundamental societal, political, and legal changes in America.

Flynn was involved in many workers' strikes and was arrested several times for various reasons relating to her activism, which were always non-violent, though very vocal.

In 1936, however, Elizabeth made a critical move in her life; she joined the Communist Party of the USA. This radical move resulted in her expulsion from the leadership of the ACLU. In 1940 she was removed from the governing board.

Elizabeth Gurley Flynn at the Patterson
Silk Workers Strike, 1913
Wikimedia Commons

Elizabeth became a journalist for the newspaper of the Communist Party USA called the Daily Worker. In 1942 she even ran in an election for Congress, but she lost. She did, however, get almost 50,000 votes.

Elizabeth was arrested in 1951 under the Smith Act, for advocating the violent over throw of the US government, largely because of her membership in the Communist Party. She was not involved in any violence, just accused of "advocating" a violent overthrow.

Despite the argument that she was exercising her right of free speech, protected under the US Constitution's First Amendment, she was found guilty and sent to jail.

Elizabeth served two years at a federal prison at Alderson, West Virginia. She considered herself to be a political prisoner and wrote an account of her experience called The Alderson Story: My Life as a Political Prisoner.

When she got out of jail, she simply picked up where she left off. Elizabeth made speeches and advocated Communism. She ran for public office, for New York City Council, and lost.

Flynn became the chairwoman the Communist Party USA in 1961 and traveled to the Soviet Union. In 1964, however, at age 74, she died while visiting the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

Cover page to sheet music written
for a song called "Rebel Girl"
about Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, 1915
Wikimedia Commons

The Russians held a state funeral for her in Moscow, and reportedly 25,000 people attended. Her remains where sent back to the USA, and she was buried in Chicago. (Here is a link to a video of her state funeral in Moscow.)

It is interesting to note that Elizabeth donated her belongings (consisting mainly of personal items like books, clothes, and some furniture) to another Irish American woman activist (the third subject of our trilogy) named Dorothy Day, the founder of the newspaper Catholic Worker.

Dorothy and Elizabeth became friends in New York around 1910, and both shared an interest in helping the poor and the working class. Elizabeth would send needed supplies sometimes to help Dorothy at the Catholic Worker House, a social services center Dorothy operated in New York.

Dorothy Day, though a socialist, found salvation for the poor through Catholicism, charity, and spiritual aid, while Elizabeth advocated Communism.

Dorothy Day, friend of
Elizabeth's and head
of the Catholic Worker
House, journalist and social
activist, 1916
Wikimedia Commons

Interestingly, among the many noteworthy people Elizabeth befriended during her life's work in activism were the Irish revolutionary and socialist James Connolly, who was executed by the British in the famous Easter 1916 Rebellion in Dublin, and also Mary Harris "Mother" Jones (the first woman of our trilogy on women activists.) She also knew John Reed, the Harvard-educated, socialist journalist, who wrote about the Bolshevik Revolution in his book Ten Days that Shook the World (and who was portrayed by Warren Beatty in the film Reds.)

How can we asses the life of Elizabeth Gurley Flynn? Different people will see her in different ways, of course. As for me, she was clearly an intelligent and talented person who initially and generally advocated for good causes -- workers' rights, equal rights, women's rights, and social justice. She was right in that social and economic reforms were definitely needed at that time.

She was misguided, however, to think socialism would solve the economic problems of the poor. And she was tragically mistaken to join the Communist Party and be fooled into believing that Marxism, Leninism, Stalinism, or any ism that sprang from the communist philosophy could do anything but result in more tyranny and more oppression.

We need only look to the many millions of innocent people who died under Communist regimes to see the tragic error Elisabeth made. Some historians believe the number of people who were killed under communism to be around 100 million.

Despite the mistakes Elizabeth made in her life, she was a remarkable woman; and a study of her life (with both the good and bad things she did) is worthwhile.


Sources and Further Reading: See wikipedia.com's article on Flynn; "The Story of the Rebel Girl" by Benjamin Silverman at socialistworker.com; speech by Elizabeth with the Tenement Museum at youtube  ; Weekly Comment: The Irish of Labor History from irishamerica.com 

Irish Women Activists Trilogy: Mary Harris Jones, "Mother Jones"

Mary Harris Jones,"Mother Jones"
Photo from Library of Congress
and Wikimedia Commons

By Adrian McGrath

(Editor's Note: The Irish, it seems, have always been involved in politics. This is almost certainly the result of 800 years of occupation and oppression in Ireland by a foreign and hostile power. For 800 years Great Britain occupied Irish lands and oppressed Irish people, mainly for religious and ethnic reasons. But there were other reasons, including economic ones. The British exploited Ireland and its people for money and the equivalents of money.

It is no wonder that the Irish produced over the centuries not just rebels for a political cause, but rebels with an economic cause.

James Connolly, Irish Rebel and
socialist who was executed
by the British after the
Easter 1916 Rebellion
Photo from Wikimedia Commons 

Many Irish men became famous for struggling for economic justice, not just for the Irish, but for all people. We can think of James Connolly  who fought in the bloody 1916 Easter Rebellion in Dublin who also was an advocate of socialism and economic equality.

We can think of men who advocated economic justice by the pen rather than the sword such as Eugene O'Neill, the Irish American author of famous plays about people who lived on the fringes of life. (See more about Eugene O'Neill at my article on him.)

Eugene O'Neill,
Irish American playwright and
Nobel Prize recipient who
wrote about social injustice
Photo from
  Wikimedia Commons
and Library of Congress

But it was not just Irish men who advocated and took great risks for economic and social justice; it was also Irish women.

IrishAmericanJournal.com will now look at three Irish and Irish American women who took a stand against overwhelming odds and faced great difficulties to help other people in need. The next three articles, a trilogy, will be about Irish women activists and the impact they had not just on the Irish but on all people worldwide. We will examine Mary Harris Jones (Mother Jones), Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, and Dorothy Day.

Women have always played a major part in Irish and Irish American history. There are many more fine examples besides these three above; but it is hoped that by studying the lives of these three significant women, readers will be encouraged to learn more about the subject.

The article below is about Mary Harris Jones, a school teacher, an advocate for proper child labor laws, and a labor organizer who became famous and beloved as "Mother Jones." The next will be about Elizabeth Gurley Flynn -- a feminist, a socialist labor leader, and a leader of the political union called the International Workers of the World. The third and final article will cover the life of Dorothy Day, a founder of the Catholic Worker newspaper and social activist who was praised by Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis.)


Mary Harris Jones, "Mother Jones"

Mother Jones, circa 1912
Photo from Library of Congress
and Wikimedia Commons 

Mary Harris was born in the city of Cork in Ireland in 1837.
Her parents were poor Irish Catholic farmers who rented their land. She and her family fled Ireland for North America when she was young because of the potato blight and the Great Hunger (Potato Famine of 1845 to 1850.) The horrors of the Famine forever scarred the psyche of Mary Harris. One million Irish people died of starvation and disease in Ireland from 1845 to 1850, while another one million sailed away into permanent exile from Ireland. Most, like Mary's family, eventually came to the United States. (Read more about the Great Hunger at my article here.)

Skibbereen, Ireland during the Great Hunger
(Potato Famine) Illustrated London News, 1847
by James Mahony from Wikimedia Commons

In permanent exile Mary first lived in Canada and was educated in Toronto. After completing her schooling in her early 20s, she moved to Michigan and worked as a teacher in a Catholic convent school. She eventually moved on, first to Chicago and then to Memphis, TN. In 1861 she married a man named George Jones who was a labor leader.

She and her husband had four children, but tragically the husband and all the children died from an epidemic of yellow fever in Memphis. Mary had abandoned teaching and began making dresses and women's clothing for a living, eventually moving back to Chicago.

Tragedy again fell upon Mary when in 1871 the Great Chicago Fire destroyed her dress shop and home, as it destroyed much of the city.

The Great Chicago Fire of 1871
which destroyed the home and dress shop
of Mary Harris Jones
Photo by Currier and Ives, Wikimedia Commons

Much like the story of the Irish philanthropist in New Orleans (also discussed on this blog, see Margaret Haughery), Mary Harris Jones, instead of being destroyed by tragedy, responded by doing positive things for her community.

She became a member of the Knights of Labor and advocated for fair treatment of workers. She led strikes and put herself into dangerous situations when riots occurred sometimes mixed with violence and police brutality. She eventually joined the United Mine Workers and advocated for a fair wage.

It is significant to note that some labor protests at this time became very dangerous and even deadly, such as the Haymarket Riot in Chicago in 1886. At Haymarket, Workers protested police abuse and advocated an eight-hour working day. A bomb was thrown from the crowd at the police; the police opened fire; and there were many casualties. Such was the nature of protest in those days.

The Haymarket Riot in Chicago in 1886.
Workers were demanding an eight hour working day
Photo from Harper's Weekly and Wikimedia Commons

Mary Harris Jones seemed to have a philosophy of social justice which had a mixture of Christian beliefs from her Roman Catholic background (indeed, her brother became a Catholic priest) and socialism. She became active with the Socialist Party of America. She was in fact one of the first organizers of the Industrial Workers of the World, a Leftist political/economic labor organization and union.

Mary would organize protests made up not just of striking men, but also of their wives and children. This made the protests very strong and persuasive. But it was also in keeping with Mary's strong belief in the importance of the family unit.

Child workers at a cotton mill in 1911
Photo from the Library of Congress and
Wikimedia Commons/Creative Commons

The elites of society and their political representatives, of course, feared and detested Mary Harris Jones. One politician, a district attorney called Reese Blizzard, who strongly opposed Mary called her "the most dangerous woman in America." Mary was on trial in 1902 before this man after being arrested for disregarding a judicial decree which banned a strike for miners in West Virginia.

Interestingly, Mary was not an advocate for the women's right to vote. Rather she stressed workers' rights and fought for laws protecting the working class -- composed of men, women, and children. Some suffragettes criticized her for not openly supporting the women's vote.

Children working in a textile mill in
Georgia in 1909, instead of going to school
Photo from the Library of Congress
and Wikimedia Commons

Mary, as a big supporter of the family unit, always included protecting the rights of children as well as adult workers. In 1903 she famously led a protest march from Philadelphia to Long Island, NY to the home of President Theodore Roosevelt to bring awareness to the problems facing working children. This was called the "march of the mill children."

Children as textile workers in Georgia, 1909
Photo from the Library of Congress and
Wikimedia Commons

By the late 1890s, now with national and international fame, Mary Harris Jones became known openly as "Mother Jones," partly because of her age, being over 60, and her demeanor. She treated the working men she represented as a mother treated her children. She also supported humane child labor laws which allowed for children to go to school rather than go to work at an early age.

Children in a workers' protest in New York City
in 1909. The sign says "Abolish Child Slavery" in English
and in Yiddish. Photo from Wikimedia Commons and
the Library of Congress

In 1912 Mary participated in a strike in West Virginia. The United Mine Workers were literally at war with a force of private security guards controlled by the mine owners. Fights and gunshots were involved. Mary was arrested and charged with attempted murder. Although she was given a long sentence from an ad hoc military court, of questionable legitimacy, she was let go after about three months. She had developed a case of pneumonia while being under arrest. This incident resulted the an investigation by the US Senate.

It was common at that time for some large businesses, like coal mine companies, to hire virtually small armies of armed security guards who roughed up striking workers.

Mother Jones by this time had become a simultaneously beloved and despised well-known figure. She had been arrested time and again and appeared in court time and again because of her advocacy for social justice.

She was loved by the working class and the oppressed, and she was hated by the ruling class. She was once denounced in the US Senate as the "grandmother of all agitators."

Mother Jones lived an incredible life -- born in impoverished and occupied Ireland, a survivor of the Great Hunger (Great Famine) in Ireland, a woman who lost her husband and four children to an epidemic, a woman who lost her career and home to the Great Chicago Fire, and a woman denounced by powerful politicians as "a dangerous woman" and "grandmother of agitators," but a woman who was heroic, caring, and bold who significantly influenced American society and American history.

As a true Irish Rebel, Mother Jones lived by her own war cry -- a mix of religious mercy from her Catholic upbringing and boldness from her troublesome Irish nature. Her motto was: "Pray for the dead and fight like Hell for the living."

Mary Harris Jones, "Mother Jones," lived to be 93 years old and left a significant impact on all labor movements since her death in 1930. She is buried in the Union Miners Cemetery in Mount Olive, Illinois.

Mother Jones lives on as a hero who spent her life trying to help oppressed workers and poor children and create a more civilized society.

Note: There is today a magazine in the USA named Mother Jones. It is named in honor of Mary Harris Jones. See more about it here and its discussion of Mary's life and works.


Sources and Further Reading: Mother Jones magazine, discussion of Mary Harris Jones' life and works; Wikipedia article on Mary Harris Jones. 

"No Irish Need Apply"

Original lyric sheet for the song
"No Irish Need Apply" 
Female version of the song
by Kathleen O'Neill, 1862
Photo from the Library of Congress 
and Wikipedia Commons 

By Adrian McGrath

The Irish, especially Irish Catholics, were terribly discriminated against and oppressed in their own land of Ireland when it was forcibly occupied by the British Empire for 800 years. There were a series of British laws which denied equal rights to Irish Catholics from the Statutes of Kilkenny in 1367 AD to the Penal Laws of the 17th, 18th, and early 19th centuries.

The British political statesman and philosopher Edmund Burke once described the Penal Laws as, " ... a machine ... of impoverishment and degradation of a people and the debasement in them of human nature itself, as ever proceeded from the perverted ingenuity of man."

Irish immigrants were often insulted and depicted in
"respectable" publications in 19th century England and
America as drunken apes, prone to violence
Photo from Wikipedia Commons,
by Thomas Nast from Harper's
Weekly, 1871

Then in the 17th century, Oliver Cromwell invaded Ireland. He killed many Irish civilians, forced others into homelessness and destitution, enslaved others sending them as forced labor to the Barbados in the Caribbean, and drove the rest to the less fertile lands west of the Shannon River to a region called Connacht. This was known in Irish history as "To Hell or Connacht." (See more about this at my article on the Great Hunger and oppression here.)

A representative of the Young Ireland Party,
depicted as a gorilla and called Mr. G.O'Rilla in
the English political magazine called "Punch"
from circa 1850. An example a blatant bigotry against
the Irish. Photo from Wikimedia Commons 

But the worst oppression was yet to come. From 1845 to 1850 the potato crop in Ireland failed. A fungus destroyed the only source of food available to most Irish peasants. There was an abundance of other food in Ireland, but it was controlled by the British who denied it to the starving Irish. One million Irish starved to death in their own country and another million sailed away to permanent exile to other lands, mainly to the United States.

Photo from Wikimedia Commons.
A starving Irish woman, Bridget O'Donnel, and her children
as depicted in 1849 in the publication Illustrated London News.
This is a scene from the Great Hunger (also know as the
Irish Potato Famine). There was plenty of food in Ireland, but it was
controlled by the British overlords who would not share it with the Irish.
One million Irish people starved to death when their only food source
-- potatoes -- became diseased and rotted away. Another one
million Irish sailed away mainly to the USA.

As a result while today there are about 5 million Irish living in all of Ireland, there are about 40 million Americans who claim Irish ancestry. The United States has become the new homeland of the Irish people. In addition to the USA, Irish emigrants also went to Canada, England and Scotland, and Australia -- where they also faced discrimination.

Today, and especially since the election of President John F. Kennedy, the Irish are fully integrated into American society. But they were not welcomed at first. There was much anti-Irish and anti-Catholic sentiment in America in most of the 19th and early 20th centuries. 

Advertisement from the New York Times, 1854, which
says, "Also, young man wanted, from 16 to 18 years of age,
able to work. No Irish need apply." Photo from
Wikimedia Commons.  

Irish immigrants were discriminated against in employment, housing, and in society in general. Signs saying "No Irish Need Apply" or "NINA" were common in many large American port cities in the 19th century.

Political cartoons in prominent newspapers depicted Irish Catholics as animals, especially as apes, and as violent drunkards. Bigoted people saw the Irish Catholics as too foreign, untrustworthy, troublesome, and followers of an alien religion. Many publications printed political cartoons and news stories that were blatantly prejudicial, insulting, and hateful against the Irish.

In response a song came about telling the story of an Irish immigrant's reaction to this prejudice. The first version was of a male immigrant, but later there was another version for a female immigrant. A male Irish immigrant was often derisively referred to as "Paddy," and a female was called "Bridget."

In the mid 1850s (the exact date is uncertain), a man named John F. Poole wrote the lyrics to a song named "No Irish Need Apply." It was published by H. De Marsan in New York. (See more at the Library of Congress.) It tells the story of an Irish immigrant, newly arrived in America and eager to go to work. But when he arrives at the place of employment, he is told by the boss, "...you are a Paddy, and no Irish need apply." The song goes on until the Irishman decides to "persuade" the boss to hire him and never say "no Irish" again.

In 1862 a new version was published but the main character was an Irish woman who emigrates to England or America. She faces the same form of discrimination as the Irish man in the original song. The author of the song was purportedly a second generation Irish American named Kathleen O'Neill, although this is not certain. It was published in 1862 in Philadelphia by J.H. Johnson.

Here are the lyrics to the first stanza of the song "No Irish Need Apply." You can find the rest at this link.

"I'm a dacint boy, just landed from the town of Ballyfad,
I want a situation: yis, I want it mighty bad.
I saw a place advartised. It's the thing for me, says I;
But the dirty spalpeen ended with: No Irish Need Apply.
Whoo! says I; but that's an insult -- though to get the place I'll try.
So, I went to see the blaggar with: No Irish need apply."

And here are the words to the first stanza of the female version of the song. Find the rest here. Also at the Library of Congress.

"I'm a simple Irish girl, and I'm looking for a place,
I've felt the grip of poverty, but sure that's no disgrace,
'Twill be long before I get one, tho' indeed it's hard I try,
For I read in each advertisement: "No Irish need apply."
Alas! For my poor country, which I never will deny,
How they insult us when they write: No Irish need apply."

Original lyric sheet to the female version
of the song "No Irish Need Apply"
Photo by the Library of Congress 

Both of these songs became popular and helped address this issue of unjust discrimination. It is no accident that they appeared around the time of the American Civil War.

Irish in the Union Army in the American Civil War, circa 1862.
Most likely the 69th New York Regiment, taken in Virginia.
Photo from Wikimedia Commons and Library of Congress. Over
150,000 Irish were in the Union Army and 30,000 were in the
Confederate Army during the war, 1861 to 1865.

Many thousands of Irish immigrants served in the Confederate and Union Armies and proved their courage and loyalty to America. About 30,000 were in the Confederate Army; and over 150,000 were in the Union Army. More than anything else, the service of Irish in the American Civil War, especially in the Union Army where most of the Irish were, set the Irish immigrants on the road to acceptance as loyal and respectable American citizens.

A final thought: The only good thing that can come from such a history of persecution and discrimination is that perhaps the Irish people, and maybe all people everywhere who care about human rights, will be more sensitive to issues of prejudice and intolerance and treat all people, regardless of their background, fairly and with justice and compassion.



Sources and Further Reading: Library of Congress "No Irish Need Apply" original manuscript song sheet; Wikipedia's article on Anti-Irish Sentiment; Georgetown University article on the song. Here is a link to Don McLean's version of "No Irish Need Apply," performed live in Ireland, at youtube.com.

Who is St. Patrick?

St. Patrick Cemetery, Number 1
in New Orleans
Photo by Adrian McGrath

By Adrian McGrath

There is an old church in New Orleans on Camp Street named after St. Patrick. He is the patron saint of Ireland who converted the Irish people from paganism (Druidism) to Christianity in or about 432 AD.

There is a cemetery on Canal Street in New Orleans named St. Patrick Cemetery, Number 1. There is another cemetery, also in New Orleans and also on Canal Street, named St. Patrick Cemetery, Number 2.

St. Patrick Cemetery #2,
in New Orleans
Photo by A. McGrath

And there is still another cemetery in New Orleans named St. Patrick. This is St. Patrick Number 3, and it is on City Park Avenue.

There are numerous parades for St. Patrick's Day in New Orleans. In multicultural New Orleans everyone celebrates March 17th. Some parades go through the old neighborhood called the Irish Channel, and others go through the French Quarter and the suburbs.

Some parades are typically Irish; others are multicultural.  One includes the Italians/Sicilians -- who celebrate St. Joseph Day on March 19 -- and another includes the Islenos, who are people with an ancestry in the Canary Islands of Spain. The Islenos immigrants originally settled in fishing villages just south of New Orleans. In reality, in New Orleans, St. Patrick's Day is celebrated by people of all ethnic backgrounds and all religious beliefs.

Entrance to St. Patrick Cemetery #1
on Canal Street in New Orleans, LA, USA
Photo by A. McGrath

There is even a street in the city named St. Patrick Street -- not far from the St. Patrick cemeteries -- and a playground by that name too.

St. Patrick Cemetery, Number One
on Canal Street in New Orleans, Louisiana
Photo by Adrian McGrath

New Orleans is about 4300 miles from a place called Downpatrick in Northern Ireland (or the North of Ireland, if you prefer). There is a graveyard at a cathedral there which is said to be the final resting place for St. Patrick who died on March 17, 461 AD. The exact resting place for St. Patrick is disputed, however.

So, why is this man who lived 4300 miles away and 1557 years ago remembered in a city, New Orleans, so separated from him in time and space? And for that matter, why is St. Patrick remembered in other cities and countries around the World?

The day for St. Patrick was remarkably celebrated in Antarctica too. No kidding. See this story about a St. Patrick's Day celebration in Antarctica.

And St. Patrick's Day was even observed in outer space where an Irish American astronaut, Dr. Cady Coleman  , played an Irish tune on a flute and sent holiday greetings from the International Space Station orbiting planet Earth.

American Astronaut Dr. Cady (Catherine) Coleman
sends best wishes for St. Patrick's Day from
the International Space Station, while playing
an Irish flute and a tin whistle, given to her by
the Irish band The Chieftans. She is floating with the
musical instruments in zero gravity while orbiting planet Earth.
Photo from NASA and Wikimedia Commons

Quite amazing, yes. Although St. Patrick's Day -- his Feast Day which is actually observed on the day he died, March 17 -- had been recognized for centuries by the Church, the first officially recorded St. Patrick's Day celebration in America happened in the Spanish colony of Florida in 1600. That Spanish colony had an Irish priest or vicar named Ricardo Artur (or Richard Arthur) who made the St. Patrick's Day celebration happen. 

The largest St. Patrick's Day parade in the world today is not in Ireland but in New York City. This New York tradition began in 1762 by Irish soldiers who were then in the British Army. Not to be outdone by the British Army, George Washington celebrated St. Patrick's Day with his soldiers during the Revolutionary War. (See my article on this.)

So why has St. Patrick and his Feast Day been remembered with such affection throughout the centuries by so many people? What did St. Patrick do?

Stained glass of St. Patrick
in Cathedral of Christ the Light
in Oakland, CA, USA
Photo from Creative Commons/
Wikimedia Commons, Flickr, Sicarr

The story begins, oddly enough, not in Ireland, but in ancient Britain. His original name was Maewyn Succat, not Patrick; and he was Roman, not English, despite being born in Britain.
(Maewyn later took on the Latin name Patricius, which in English is Patrick.)

Many of the details of St. Patrick's life are uncertain today, and much remains a mystery. We do know that he came from a fairly well-to-do family of Roman citizenship and that his parents were Christians. He was born in the early 5th century AD and may have lived in his early years in Scotland. 

The river dyed green for the Irish
for St. Patrick's Day in Chicago, Illinois, 2009
Photo from Wikimedia Commons and Mike
Boehmer, Chicago/ Creative Commons

The world in those days was still dominated by the Roman Empire, but it was in decline in the West. The eastern empire thrived from Constantinople, but the West fell to barbarian invaders in 476 AD. In the time of St. Patrick, Rome still existed; but the world was changing. Rome was no longer officially a pagan state but had been Christianized under Emperor Constantine.

Nevertheless, paganism prevailed throughout much of Europe. Ireland had not been conquered by Rome, although Romans did visit it somewhat and named it Hibernia, the winter land. 

US President Barack Obama and Irish Prime
Minister (Taoiseach) Enda Kenny celebrate
St. Patrick's Day at the White House, 2012.
Pres. Obama and Mr. Kenny both have on
green ties and green shamrocks. St. Patrick's
original color was blue, but green
eventually won favor as the symbol for Ireland.
Photo from Wikimedia Commons

Most of what we know about the life of Patrick comes from a book he wrote called Confessio. (See more about the book here.) In it St. Patrick describes his life and his work as a missionary. 

When he was only 16 years old, Patrick was kidnapped by Irish pirates and taken back to Ireland as a prisoner and sold as a slave. He was forced to work for a wealthy Irish chieftain as a shepherd tending to his flock of sheep. (Yes, it had an uncanny symbolism, did it not?)

Stained glass of St. Patrick
Kilbennan, County Galway,
Ireland, St. Benin's Church
Photo by Wikimedia Commons.
Creative Commons, Andreas F. Borchert

Patrick was a prisoner and slave for six years. During that time, although he had not been particularly religious prior to his enslavement, he developed a strong belief in prayer. His Christian faith sustained him during his captivity.  

He escaped somehow and made his way by ship back to Britannia and was reunited with his family. It was said that Patrick was advised by a mysterious voice during a dream on how to make his escape. Was this the voice of God?

After he was back home, Patrick decided that he would become a Catholic priest. He studied for the priesthood and became a missionary. But he had another dream. This time, in the dream, he received a letter called "The Voice of the Irish." In the dream he heard the voices of Irish people asking him to return to Ireland and teach them about Christ.

The fountain in front of the White House
in Washington DC dyed green in honor
of St. Patrick's Day, 2011. Green is the Irish color.
Photo from Wikimedia Commons and US Government

Patrick eventually became a bishop, and in 433 AD he traveled back to Ireland. In the land where he was once held as a slave and labored as a shepherd, he returned as a Catholic bishop and missionary who would lead a new flock, the Irish nation from paganism to Christ.

By using no power but his remarkable powers of persuasion, his will power, and his faith in Jesus, St. Patrick built churches and converted thousands upon thousands of the Irish people. He told the Irish about the life of Jesus and delivered the Gospel to them. 

St. Patrick's Day Parade in New York City,
on 5th Avenue, 1909
Photo from Wikimedia Commons, Library of
Congress, Bain News Service Collection

St. Patrick lived and worked in Ireland as a missionary, usually in a state of poverty and with great physical hardship for almost 40 years. Although there were other Catholic missionaries to Ireland, it was Patrick who was responsible ultimately for turning the Irish away from Druidism to Christianity.

St. Patrick, it was said used the shamrock -- a three leaf clover with one stem -- to explain to the pagans the complex and seemingly contradictory concept of the Blessed Trinity. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were like the three leaves on the shamrock which were connected by one stem forming one shamrock leaf. Like the Celtic harp, the shamrock became the very symbol of Ireland, perhaps greater so because of its religious ties to St. Patrick.

There is a popular story that St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland. Of course, Ireland did not and does not have any snakes. What this story most likely means is that St. Patrick drove away the belief of the Irish in paganism and replaced it with a faith in Christianity.

St. Patrick truly did great things and did so in a humble and caring way. He never used force or threats to convert the pagans. He only persuaded them through the power of love -- the love of the words of Jesus.

Evidence of St. Patrick's devotion to the teachings of Jesus is this prayer which he wrote called "Christ Be With Me." There is no doubt that these were not mere words to Patrick because it was the power of Christ that sustained him when he was just a boy being held as a prisoner and worked as a slave. 

St. Patrick devoted is life to helping the very people who had enslaved him find salvation through Jesus Christ.

From "Christ Be With Me" written by St. Patrick:

"Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me.
Christ on my right, Christ on my left, 

Christ where I lie, Christ where I sit, Christ where I arise,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me, 
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks to me,

Christ in every eye that sees me, 
Christ in every ear that hears me.

Salvation is of the Lord. 
Salvation is of the Christ.

May your salvation, Lord, be ever with us."

St. Patrick died in a place called Saul, Downpatrick, in the North of Ireland on March 17, 461 Anno Domini. 

The spirit and message of St. Patrick's live on centuries later in Ireland, in New Orleans, in Antarctica, in New York, in Washington DC, in a space station in orbit around planet Earth, and where ever and when ever people of faith travel throughout the Universe -- not just the Irish people, but any and all people who hear the healing power of the words of Christ -- or simply follow his example -- by which St. Patrick found Salvation. 

Sources and further reading:

"This Day in History: March 17, 461 Saint Patrick Dies" by the Editors at history.com; Wikipedia.com, article on St. Patrick.
For St. Patrick's prayer, "Christ Be With Me," see here and here. Wikipedia article on St. Patrick's Day in the USA 

What Foods did the Irish Eat in Old New Orleans?

Red Beans and Rice with Andouille and Ham
with a French Bread Pistolette
Photo by Adrian McGrath

By Adrian McGrath

What foods did the Irish eat in New Orleans after they emigrated to that major port city on the Mississippi River? The Irish had been coming to New Orleans, Louisiana from the city's earliest days since the 1700s. But they came sporadically, and the early immigrants had some means in that city which was originally controlled by France. They were not poor and uneducated. 

The French city changed hands, going to Spain and then back to France. Napoleon Bonaparte gave it to the United States under the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 when Thomas Jefferson was president.

Unlike the rest of the American South which was mainly Anglo-Saxon and Protestant, New Orleans was Catholic -- as was south Louisiana in the French Cajun country. As a major port New Orleans attracted people from around the world. French, Spanish, African (most held as enslaved persons, although there were some Freemen-of-Color and Freewomen-of-Color), Native American Choctaws, Germans, Italians, all made up the multi-cultural gumbo that was New Orleans. 

But there was another group of immigrants who came en masse. The Irish, and mainly Irish Catholics, came again to New Orleans in the 1830s through the 1850s. These Irish were different from the few Irish who had arrived earlier. These Irish were mainly poor and uneducated. They came in the 1830s seeking political freedom from oppression in their homeland which was occupied by Britain, and they came for work to survive. 

These Irish were typically discriminated against in work with signs like "No Irish Need Apply" -- a common thing in the major cities on the US East coast.

Some of these Irish found employment, albeit very difficult and dangerous, digging the New Basin Canal from the shores of Lake Ponchartrain, north of the city, to the business district of New Orleans. Thousands of these Irish immigrants died from diseases and exploitation while digging this canal through hot, humid swamps infested with wild animals and mosquitoes which carried deadly yellow fever.  (See more about this at my article on the New Basin Canal.)

Monument for the Irish who died digging the
New Basin Canal of New Orleans in the 1830s
Photo by A. McGrath

The living conditions for these Irish workers was atrocious. They had no medical care to speak of and very poor food as they were several miles from the central city. The only supplies they got were from the company store which took advantage of them and had inadequate cooking facilities.

Another wave of Irish immigrants came during the Great Hunger or Potato Famine from 1845 to about 1850. (Read more about this at my article on Coffin Ships.)  A million Irish people starved to death when the potato blighted, despite the fact that there were other types of food in Ireland besides potatoes. But all the food and the lands were controlled by the British who let the Irish starve to death or flee Ireland, mainly for America, in dangerous and disease-filled Coffin Ships. 

We should be thankful always for the food we have today when we consider how our ancestors suffered horribly and died by the thousands upon thousands in those horrible days.

These Famine Irish immigrants were not discriminated against because of religion, as New Orleans was a Catholic city historically; but they were nevertheless considered outcasts by both the old established Creoles (descendants of the French and the Spanish) and the newer Anglo-Americans who came after the Louisiana Purchase.

By the time of the 1850s, a notorious group of bigots called the Know Nothings actively discriminated against the Irish and were involved in political movements to suppress Irish immigration.

The Union Fleet captures New Orleans
during the American Civil War, 1862
Photo from Wikipedia

With the American Civil War, Irish immigration to the city reduced and more and more Irish arrived in Northern ports like New York, Philadelphia, and Boston. 

Eventually, however, the Irish made a home in New Orleans and began to assimilate. Because of their outstanding service as soldiers in the American Civil War, they gained respectability and advance up the social ladder becoming policemen, firemen, businessmen, journalists, lawyers, and politicians. (See my article on the Irish in the American Civil War, for more.)

Yes, all of this history is quite interesting; but since we are talking about New Orleans, a city where food is practically a religious experience, the question remains: What did the Irish eat? What foods did they cook at home?

I looked far and wide; and much to my surprise, I found the answer in a book written under the auspices of Franklin D. Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration (WPA) created during the Great Depression in the 1930s. It was part of a special writers' program of the WPA, Louisiana Writers' Project. (More on this book in a moment, let me finish the historical setting first.)

Most of the early Irish in New Orleans lived in a neighborhood near the Mississippi River called The Irish Channel a few miles up the river from the Vieux Carre or French Quarter which was the heart of the city. Originally, it was outside of the city limits and was a poor neighborhood or a working class neighborhood. 

No one really knows how it got its name. Some suggested when it rained, the poor drainage made the steets there resemble water channels. Others said the Irish were "channelled" into that area -- new Irish simply followed where earlier Irish immigrants stayed. Still another explanation was that as immigrants arrived by river boat on the Mississippi, they went down a side waterway, or channel, into that neighborhood. But, no one really knows.

It had shotgun houses (a unique style of small houses in New Orleans which were long and thin) and a number of rough-house bars -- one was called the "Bucket of Blood." (You get the idea.) Yes, on the waterfront, with lots a bars, drinking, and a few fist fights. Like something right out of a play by Eugene O'Neill.

The neighborhood was mainly Irish then but had people from other ethnic groups living there too. They did not always get along. Today the neighborhood is no longer mainly Irish, but is African-American and Hispanic. But the history of the Irish is remembered very well by, among other things, a popular St. Patrick's Day parade which still goes down Magazine Street.

St. Alphonsus Church, the Irish
Church in the Irish Channel
of New Orleans
Photo from Wikimedia and Nolabob

But the Irish Channel also had a very fine Catholic church called St. Alphonsus, which is still there. The Irish went to it. The German immigrants went to St. Mary's Church which was across the street (and still is), and the French went to Notre Dame church which was down the block a bit (but is no longer there).

The book I mentioned above is called "Gumbo Ya Ya: Folktales of Louisiana," complied by Lyle Saxon, et al. The name is a reference to a French Louisiana term for a type of "coffee klatch" (Kaffeeklatsch) where people get together socially, have coffee and nice conversation and everybody talks at the same time. 

There on page 61, I discovered my long-sought answer which discussed the Irish Channel neighborhood in the old days. The chapter on the Irish Channel said the Irish had large families and ate healthy but simple food. The book said that Irish in the Channel, as it is often called for short, ate "... stews, corned beef and cabbage, potato pancakes, red beans and rice ... during most of the week." The book went on to say that on Sundays, people -- if they had the money -- would eat roast chicken or turkey.  

Some pretentious people would sometimes put a turkey near the home's front window so the neighbors would notice the bird and be impressed. Other poorer people would pretend that they had enough money to buy turkey by sticking turkey feathers -- which they may have found in a garbage can or acquired somehow -- halfway into a shopping bag so that the neighbors could see the feathers as they carried the bag home (which actually contained no turkey). They had to keep up appearances.

Now as to the foods. I have earlier written about most of these. You can find my article on Irish Stew here. 

A bowl of Irish Stew
(Photo by Adrian McGrath)

You can find my article on Corned Beef and Cabbage here.  

Corned Beef and Cabbage (Photo by Adrian McGrath)

And you can find my article on Irish Potato Cakes here.
They are sort of like potato pancakes.

Irish Potato Cakes
Photo by Adrian McGrath

And, by the way, I earlier wrote about the Irishman, Lafcadio Hearn, who wrote the very first New Orleans Creole Cookbook that was ever published in the English language. The others were in French. In his book he gave recipes for Irish Stew and Stewed Irish Potatoes, which he said was a breakfast dish.

Lafcadio Hearn, 1889
Photo Wikipedia

His Irish Stew mainly consists simply of mutton or beef, potatoes, onions, stewed down with water and served with rice. (Rice is to New Orleans what potatoes are to Ireland.) See Hearn's book, La Cuisine Creole.

This leave us with just one last stone to turn over. What is traditional New Orleans Creole Red Beans and Rice?

Ah, this is the sacred cow of New Orleans food. Although the Crescent City is famous for many wonderful dishes like jambalaya, gumbo, muffulettas, fried shrimp po-boys, Crawfish Etouffee, fried catfish, Shrimp Creole, Stuffed Artichoke, and on and on ... the most essential New Orleans dish is Red Beans and Rice.

Red Beans and Rice with French Bread
Photo by Adrian McGrath

It is eaten by the wealthy, the poor, and everybody in between. There are as many ways to make it as there are cooks in New Orleans. But mainly it consists of red kidney beans; white rice; "The Trinity," which in New Orleans is green pepper, onion, and celery; garlic (of course!), and unless vegetarian, some type of meat, such as sausage, ham, or pickle meat (a type of Creole seasoned pork).

I never give precise recipes because I think people should concoct their own based on their own likes and needs, but I do give a general idea.

Here is my general idea on my version of New Orleans Red Beans and Rice, which would have been and still is a popular meal in the homes of all people from New Orleans including the Irish.

Uncooked, red kidney beans
Photo A. McGrath

Get some dry red beans and sort them, removing any foreign debris, then soak them in a bowl of water for about an hour or more, even over night if desired. This removes some of the gas. Then drain and toss out the old water.

Put the beans in a pot on the stove (or use a slow cooker) and add chopped up Trinity -- green pepper, also called bell pepper, onions, and celery. Add enough fresh water to cover this, usually about six to eight cups of water per pound of beans. Add Creole spice. If you do not have this, try mixing salt, black pepper, a little bit of cayenne (not much because it is hot), garlic powder, onion powder, parsley flakes, and paprika.

You may add some butter optionally. Then add, precooked, the meat you wish. I use chunks of ham and sliced Andouille sausage, a type of Creole French sausage. Can you add Irish sausage and Irish bacon? Yes, of course, why not? It is your recipe.

Bring it all to a boil, then set the fire on low. Cover the pot and cook for about two hours or more on low. Smash up some of the red beans with a spoon on the inside of the pot to thicken the juice. Add water as needed. Be sure to stir now and then to prevent sticking.

Serve it with chopped green onions on top in individual bowls. Have French bread on the side or corn bread. Or Irish Soda Bread. See my article on that here.

And there you have it. That is what the Irish ate in New Orleans, and they still do the same today. I eat these things on a regular basis.

Bon Appetit.


Sources and Further Reading:

Wikipedia article on Irish Channel, New Orleans;  La Cuisine Creole by Lafcadio Hearn, Pelican Publishing Co. 1967; Gumbo Ya Ya: Folktales of Louisiana by Lyle Saxon, Robert Tallant, et al. 1945, 1987. Pelican Publishing.