The following is a guest article from a Socialist Republican Supporter of AIA in North America.
“A Spirit of Unrest is Beginning to Manifest Itself:”
After the Rising, Liam Mellows escaped to America from 1916-1920. Based in New York City, he toured around the country, going as far as California and Texas, to give lectures about the importance of the Irish struggle against British rule and how Americans, specifically Irish Americans, should be supportive of their Irish brothers and sisters. Mellows’ lectures were full of fervor and impressed upon the listeners to do whatever they could for Ireland. However, in his private letters to comrades back home, Mellows expressed absolute disdain for the majority of Americans, and American society overall.
In a letter from November 1917 to his brother, Barney Mellows, Mellows, laid out exactly how frustrated he was with what he was being faced with in America. At the time of the writing, he had been arrested for obtaining a false passport, and was held in jail for twelve days. There is a specific section of this letter we will analyze and compare to the current conditions in America.
“Being an Irishman the hate of the B.G. [British Government] pursues me here and at present this tír [country] is the same or worse even than England. The sooner the people of Ireland turn their eyes away from and give up hope of securing their independence through this tír [country] the better. It is all cant, hypocrisy and big talk – bluff from start to finish and can at present be only compared to Russia previous to Revolution. Free speech, action even thought is denied – Bulk of people absolutely out of sympathy with War, but too frightened and intimidated to protest. Draft very unpopular and a tremendous swing to socialism going on but people in hands of employers who are dominated by Trusts and capitalists who have through their large English interests bulldozed this tír [country] into the War. The trusts and capitalists run politics here. The whole system – commercial, financial, legal and social is built on graft. Honesty is an unknown quantity. The bigger the bluff, the greater the man. The greater the rogue, the more wealthy respected and protected. Eng. airgead [English money] like water here. Press largely owned or controlled by Northcliffe hence violently pro-England and bitterly anti-Irish. Papers here print most silly and absurd accounts, not only of Irish but of all news – journalism here accounts to fiction. American people on the whole very ignorant on general topics not only as regards Irish but European and even American affairs. Education here very insufficient. Bulk of Irish and Irish-Americans out of touch with Ireland and Irish ideals. Most of the former cannot conceive present state of affairs at home. They left Ireland when it was rotten and their minds cannot rise above it. General opinion (privately) of Rev. is that we were fools. Small but earnest crowd though who are with us heart and soul. T.P. [nationalist MP T.P. O’Connor who was on a speaking tour of the United States] got no show whatever. Hope to God emigration is finished for this country has been the grave of the Irish race. A reaction on part of the American people is setting in though and a spirit of unrest is beginning to manifest itself. People will take long time to wake up tho. [sic]”
When one reads Mellows’ observations on Americans and what American is currently like, it is hard not to see the similarities and how conditions have worsened since Mellows’ time here. Many parts of his letter seem to read as if they were written in 2022, “It is all cant, hypocrisy and big talk – bluff from start to finish.” Even among American communists who claim Irish ancestry, this is true. They wave the Starry Plough yet mock the Irish language. As an attempt to escape US state surveillance online they use Irish names yet have no idea what the repression is like for their Irish comrades in Ireland. They are unaware that there are Republicans being thrown into prison for their beliefs. There is a disconnect between claiming to be a supporter of the struggle and following through with that support.
“Bulk of Irish and Irish-Americans out of touch with Ireland and Irish ideals” rings so true. Even amongst self-proclaimed Socialist Republicans in America, they have no idea that the 26 counties are still a semi-colony of Britain. They do not comprehend that there is no such thing as the Free State. They are supporters of Sinn Féin, and still uphold them as what they think is the most “radical” party in Ireland. Amongst the masses, no one knows the 6 counties are still under British occupation, let alone about the current conditions of the 26.
However, Mellows did not entirely give up hope. He did recognize with Americans; it was going to take some time. “A reaction on part of the American people is setting in though and a spirit of unrest is beginning to manifest itself. People will take long time to wake up tho.” A century later, and we see this unrest blooming. Anti-imperialism and anti-militarization have never been more popular, even as this is being written during the Russian-Ukraine conflict, the anti-war sentiment is still strong. Anti-militarization coalitions are being created across America, and it is our duty to join and educate about America’s role in Ireland, especially with the semi-colonizing roles of the Shannon airport and the US Border Patrol station in Dublin airport.
Mellows did hit the main issue over the head with his statement of “Education here very insufficient.” Americans are not taught the history of Republicanism in the United States. It is hidden and must be sought out. The Fenians invading Canada through the United States, and the connection between Irish Americans and the Fenians to start this invasion is left out of school textbooks. The Orange Riots in New York City, and the coalition of both recent Irish immigrants and Irish Americans to shut down the Orangemen Parade is forgotten. The speaking tours of James Connolly, Liam Mellows, and Muriel MacSwiney, are all but forgotten except to those who actively seek out these principled Republicans. Bernadette Devlin giving the keys to New York City to the Black Panther Party, is never discussed even amongst those involved in the various organizations that claim to be the descendants of the original Black Panther Party. Even in the Proclamation by President Biden, “Many Irish immigrants arrived on America’s shores to escape the Great Famine.” The history of the Irish genocide is erased, and the blame put on the Irish and not the British who perpetrated it.
Over 100 years, and what can we do as communists to better the American perspective on the Irish Question? It is hard not to be discouraged, when it seems that the only time Americans with Irish ancestry admit they are Irish is when it is St. Patrick’s Day. They order drinks called “Black and Tans,” and the centuries of struggle are forgotten. How do we ignite the flames of Socialist Republicanism within them? When so many with Irish ancestry become police officers, it is hard not to see the oppressed, become the oppressor in America.
We must not give up hope. Socialist Republican supporters in America should continue to educate, agitate, and organize amongst those who claim to be supporters of Ireland. We should conduct talks in Irish American organizations, without the history becoming deradicalized. As Mellows noted, our education in this country is horrific. We must amplify the historical ties between Irish Americans and the Irish, and the support both physically and materially throughout history. We should also reach out to those who do not identify as Irish Americans as well, as the history of Republicanism is full of those who were born in Ireland but who dedicated their lives to the Socialist Republic of Ireland, the biggest names being James Connolly, Liam Mellows, and Constance Markievicz.