NY Observer > Irish Republican Army http://www.observer.com/taxonomy/term/27577/feed Articles from Observer.com en What Hillary Did in Northern Ireland http://www.observer.com/2008/what-hillary-did-northern-ireland

The first time I saw Hillary Clinton speak in person, she addressed about 80,000 people. But they hadn't come to see her.

The time was November 1995 and the place was the downtown area of my native Belfast. The Irish Republican Army had called a ceasefire a little over a year before and the sense was building that a real peace might take hold.  read more »

]]> http://www.observer.com/2008/what-hillary-did-northern-ireland#comments Politics Bertie Ahern Bill Clinton Hillary Clinton Irish Republican Army Northern Ireland Mon, 17 Mar 2008 22:56:34 -0400 Niall Stanage 66565 at http://www.observer.com Chuck Schumer, Militant Republican http://www.observer.com/node/31683 Attendees at a raucous event organized by Irish advocates of immigration reform in Washington DC yesterday were treated to the unusual sight of Senator Charles Schumer leading a chant closely identified with the Irish Republican Army.

"Tiocfaidh Ar La!" Mr. Schumer bellowed several times from the stage at the Washington Court Hotel, his right hand 'conducting' the crowd to join in. The Gaelic slogan (pronounced "Chucky Are Law") translates as "Our Day Will Come". Often seen adorning gable walls in nationalist areas of Belfast during the darkest days of Northern Ireland's Troubles, it became so associated with the IRA that it entered popular slang - a "Chuck" or "Chucky" was a person known to support the guerilla group's armed struggle.

Senator Hillary Clinton, like Mr. Schumer, was greeted with thunderous applause when she arrived to speak at the event, organized by the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform. Perhaps wisely, she abjured the more controversial chants. She did, however, gently mock the organizers for presenting her with a 'Legalize the Irish' T-Shirt that, as she held it up before her, revealed itself to be several sizes too big. "I didn't know whether to laugh or cry," Mrs. Clinton said to laughter and applause. "But it doesn't matter because I'm going to be proud to pass it to my husband."

Rep. Joe Crowley was the other member of the New York congressional delegation to address the meeting. Other speakers declaring their support for comprehensive immigration reform included Senator Edward Kennedy, Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL), Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) and former Congressman Bruce Morrison (D-CT).

IRA chants aside, the senior New York senator -- a proud winner of the Briscoe Award for Jewish supporters of the American Irish community -- wandered a number of times onto unfamiliar trans-Atlantic cultural terrain. At one point, he mentioned an unnamed "great song" associated with the Glasgow Celtic soccer team. (Which Mr. Schumer pronounced, jarringly, "Glas-gau Kell-tic.")

After a half-second of perplexed silence, the crowd erupted into a Mexican-style 'ole, ole, ole' chorus which was eventually quieted by a slightly uncomfortable Mr. Schumer. He explained that he had intended his words to be taken as a reference to the anthem "You'll Never Walk Alone."

-- Niall Stanage]]> http://www.observer.com/node/31683#comments Politics Charles Schumer Hillary Clinton Irish Republican Army Washington, DC Thu, 08 Mar 2007 07:00:00 -0500 Observer Staff 31683 at http://www.observer.com TEST: The Troubles Are Over; Now What? http://www.observer.com/node/36108 A small group of New Yorkers are congratulating themselves on helping to make history this month.  read more »]]> http://www.observer.com/node/36108#comments Bill Clinton Ian Paisley Irish Republican Army Joseph Crowley Sun, 22 Oct 2006 20:00:00 -0400 Niall Stanage 36108 at http://www.observer.com The Troubles Are Over; Now What? http://www.observer.com/node/39593 A small group of New Yorkers are congratulating themselves on helping to make history this month.  read more »]]> http://www.observer.com/node/39593#comments Politics Bill Clinton Ian Paisley Irish Republican Army Joseph Crowley Sun, 15 Oct 2006 20:00:00 -0400 Niall Stanage 39593 at http://www.observer.com M.T.A. Officials Fiddle While the World Burns http://www.observer.com/node/39152 Osama bin Laden has never articulated the grim calculus of terrorism as pithily as an anonymous spok  read more »]]> http://www.observer.com/node/39152#comments Politics Alan Hevesi Irish Republican Army Metropolitan Transportation Authority Osama bin Laden Sun, 23 Jul 2006 20:00:00 -0400 Niall Stanage 39152 at http://www.observer.com Martin McDonagh’s Lieutenant: Best Bloody Play I Ever Saw http://www.observer.com/node/38556 It’s great news that Martin McDonagh’s The Lieutenant of Inishmore is to transfer to Bro  read more »]]> http://www.observer.com/node/38556#comments Arts & Culture Ireland Irish Republican Army Martin McDonagh Royal Shakespeare Company Sun, 19 Mar 2006 19:00:00 -0500 John Heilpern 38556 at http://www.observer.com Martin McDonagh's Lieutenant: Best Bloody Play I Ever Saw http://www.observer.com/node/51988 It’s great news that Martin McDonagh’s The Lieutenant of Inishmore is to transfer to Broadway.  read more »]]> http://www.observer.com/node/51988#comments Arts & Culture Irish Republican Army Martin McDonagh Martin McDonaghs Royal Shakespeare Company Sun, 19 Mar 2006 19:00:00 -0500 John Heilpern 51988 at http://www.observer.com A Legacy of Lessons From the I.R.A.'s War http://www.observer.com/node/37450 More than 30 years after firing its first shots, the Provisional wing of the Irish Republican Army h  read more »]]> http://www.observer.com/node/37450#comments Irish Republican Army Margaret Thatcher Northern Ireland United Kingdom Sun, 07 Aug 2005 20:00:00 -0400 Terry Golway 37450 at http://www.observer.com A Legacy of Lessons From the I.R.A.’s War http://www.observer.com/node/37451 More than 30 years after firing its first shots, the Provisional wing of the Irish Republican Army h  read more »]]> http://www.observer.com/node/37451#comments Politics Irish Republican Army Margaret Thatcher Northern Ireland United Kingdom Sun, 07 Aug 2005 20:00:00 -0400 Terry Golway 37451 at http://www.observer.com Debating Whether Murder is Murder http://www.observer.com/node/45306 The Bush administration's plan to try terrorist suspects before military tribunals has inspired thou  read more »]]> http://www.observer.com/node/45306#comments Irish Republican Army Margaret Thatcher Robert F. Kennedy United Kingdom Sun, 02 Dec 2001 19:00:00 -0500 Terry Golway 45306 at http://www.observer.com