Irish history

The fact that the Irish national bourgeoisie did not lead the national movement in 1916 and after did not inhibit them from from creating a thickly mythological account of Irish history as a nationalist, or ethnic-sectarian, heroic and unrelenting struggle for freedom.

In power after the war of independence and the civil war, the Irish bourgeoisie cut back on the elements of a welfare state that had been developed in the old United Kingdom.

Workers in the Free State faced a world of economic stagnation. In Clare the farmers were the new aristocracy, even though there were poor farmers in the west.

Normally socialists would welcome a republican demonstration against the British monarchy. When the protests against the Queen's visit to Dublin are led by groups such as Republican Sinn Fein, the 1986 split off linked to the Continuity IRA, more needs to be said though. The Queen's visit sums up a number of things. At one level, the mere possibilty of a visit by the (unelected) British head of state to the Republic of Ireland reflects the Good Friday Agreement "peace process" in the North. To some extent, it also flows from the myriad connections between Britain and Ireland both in the past...

Sean Matgamna commented on the 75th anniversaty of the Easter Rising in Socialist Organiser (a forerunner of Solidarity ), no. 482, 11 April 1991. By their heroes shall ye know them This year’s markedly muted celebrations in Dublin to mark the 75th anniversary of the Easter Rising, and of the martyrdom before the British firing squads in Dublin and on the gallows in Pentonville Jail of the founders of the Catholic Irish state, reminded me how starkly people, classes and nations may change their heroes. From Lenin to Yeltsin is a long way down... The descent from Wolfe Tone to Ian Paisley is...

Leftists are protesting against plans to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the "Glorious Revolution" of 1688. In fact the left should celebrate the 300th anniversary, and we can do it without in any way adopting the viewpoint or the politics of the Orange Order. Click here to download pdf .

Introduction When Margaret Thatcher's Tories outlawed "secondary" or solidarity strikes, they knew what they were doing. The solidarity strike had defeated the ruling class again and again throughout the 1960s and 70s. When they come out in sympathetic strike, workers act on behalf of interests not directly or narrowly their own. This is class action far more advanced than mere sectional trade-union action. Implicitly, and sometimes openly, it challenges capitalist rule in society. That is why the Tories, the Labour leaders and most trade union officials hate the idea of the sympathetic strike...

It is true, as the leader of the biggest political party in the new Dail, Enda Kenny, boasted, that the 26 Counties Irish state has had a revolution by way of the ballot box in the 25 February general election. Sort of. The outgoing government party, the party that has been the main party of government, the main party of the Irish ruling class, in the 79 years since it formed its first government in 1932, Fianna Fail, has had a crushing defeat. It lost 57 of its 77 seats. Fianna Fail has had an electoral meltdown like the one that, for a while, the British Labour Party looked like it would get...

Rioting has ceased in Belfast, but cases of intimidation of workers by Orange hooligans are still occurring. In the shipyards and docks Catholic workers are still being driven out. Non-Catholic clergy are making strenuous efforts to restrain such intimidation. They visit areas where intimidation occurs and seek to restore tolerance. In the South the pogroms have also ceased. Labour and other bodies have passed strong protest resolutions. Three hundred families burn out and from 500 to 700 workers deprived of employment - those are the nett results of the Belfast pogroms. Rioting has ceased and...

A collection of articles and responses from Workers' Liberty 8, October 1987. Including Scottish devolution, the question of banning the Orange Order and a letter on Zionism and Israel by Tony Greenstein with a response from John O'Mahony. Click here to download pdf .