Kevin Marshall's America
Erin go bragh!
St. Patrick’s Day began as a Catholic observance in honor of – who else – St. Patrick, the most recognizable patron saint of Ireland. Legend has it that he drove all of the snakes out of Ireland, although some research suggests that the term “snakes” may have actually been a euphemism for Druids and other pagans.
A traditional Irish family. Notice how tentative those smiles are, as if immediately after the picture was taken a humongous argument broke out. That's what makes them so traditionally Irish.
Over the years the holiday has taken more of a secular turn in the mainstream and become a day of celebration of all things Irish. The image of the Leprechaun dancing a jig around a pot of gold has displaced crotchety ol’ St. Patrick yellin’ at those blimey pagans, and the wine representing the blood of Christ has been replaced with lukewarm green beer. There are still many die-hard Irish Catholics that observe the holiday for its intended purpose as a day for reflection of past mis-deeds, sacrifice, shame and guilt. Which is to say they treat it just like any other day.
It is also one of those rare days (the other example being Super Bowl Sunday) that elicit movements to make the day after a federal holiday so that people don’t have to drag themselves to work the next morning. To that I can only say that if you know ahead of time you have to go in to work and still drink yourself to the point of not being able to wake up the next day, that’s on you. It’s not the United States Government that has a drinking problem.
New York State government, on the other hand? Sick, self-destructive, abusive to loved ones, a chaotic lifestyle, constantly broke, late with paying its bills, issues of personal identity, and unable to manage its day to day affairs. Yep, our State government is the prototypical alcoholic.
Which brings us to the crank file.
The Irish are known to hoard their potatoes and swim around in them like Scrooge McDuck and his money bin from "Ducktales."
For me, there’s something disconcerting to me as an Irish-American about the manner in which this holiday is observed and presented. Firstly: yes, alcohol is engrained in our culture, just as it is in so many others. On the other hand, there is a perception of Irish as out-of-control rowdy alcoholics who are prone to self-destructive behaviors and acts of violence that becomes exacerbated on this holiday. Lost in this is the fact that we also have a great cultural history, particularly when it comes to our writers. We should also be recognized for our perseverance and loyalty, particularly when it comes to the potato. So loyal are the Irish to their beloved vegetable that when the crop died, rather than change their diet they starved themselves. On the suggestion that they eat something that doesn’t involve or include potatoes, they proudly exclaimed “No! I’d rather DIE.”
Unfortunately, the mainstream focuses their attention on the darker side of our culture. Even in areas like ours, where the Irish population resides in abundance, we are given the short end of the stick. Oh, how nice it would be if we celebrated and observed the accomplishments of local Irish-American greats like longtime State Legislator Jack McEneny (one of the only politicians I’ve ever known whom I would say was genuine to his core) and Pulitzer Prize winning author William Kennedy. Instead, we celebrate the accomplishments of Bobby O’Dell, who last year wore a beer helmet for twenty-four consecutive hours in observance of the holiday, or Crazy Jim McGinty, the fightingest fighter that ever fought in a fightin’ Irish bar.
The other thing that bugs me is how comfortable non-Irish folks get with wearing green plastic hats, shamrocks, and slogan-heavy t-shirts without having any real knowledge of my people’s culture, history, or attitude. I mean, think about it. Isn’t it a bit odd that people who aren’t Irish walk around with t-shirts, stickers, and other adornments that read “Kiss Me, I’m Irish”? Beyond being a straight-up lie, if I walked around in a t-shirt that said “Say it loud: I’M BLACK AND I’M PROUD,” I don’t think I’d get the same reaction.
Oh well. There’s not much I can do about it, and while these things bug me they don’t greatly offend me. My people are known for our sense of humor about ourselves, and as such I take it all in stride. Another important trait is our incredible guilt, especially those of us that are Catholics. We’re far more concerned about what we’ve done to upset our loved ones and God to spend too much time worrying about our culture being exploited or misrepresented.
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On a final note, to those of you that will be celebrating the holiday: please be safe. If you’re going to drink, please do so responsibly. If you’re not going to drink responsibly, please do not drive and/or have a designated driver available.
Also, two great services are providing free cab service. If you’re in Troy, look for the “Netters Fund” display or ask your bartender about it and you’ll get a cab free of charge (at participating locations). Throughout the capital region, you can call the law firm of Martin, Harding & Mazzotti at 1-800-LAW-1010 for a free ride home all night long.
Regardless of how you go about it, don’t drink and drive. Because if you do, I’ll come and find ye and bust yer lip wide open, ya basterd! *breaks bottle*
Sorry about that little outburst. I couldn’t help it. I suppose it’s just the Irish in me.
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20 Responses to St. Patrick’s Day: A Shameful History
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STALK ME
Great article. I am Irish all over my family tree, but I could not agree with you more. You point about the Irish “stuff” vs. the “Im Black and Proud” t-shirt is right on point. I can do you one better. I was once in an Irish bar (in another city) where the place was decorated, as one woudl expect, with all things Irish. The group I was with included a past grand marshal of this city’s St. Patrick Parade. This gentleman, a good friend, got on the topic of illegale immigration and honest-to-God said “And besides the ilegal part, have you seen their parades and restaurants. They have all their Guatemalan, and Mexican, and Dominican flags all over the place. Be happy you are in this country and show pride in our culture.”
I’ll leave it everyone to find the hypocrisy in that statement themselves.
Thanks for your feedback, Tim.
Based on our personal history both on and off the island, it’s always ironic and ridiculously hypocritical when one of our own is openly discriminatory or racist.
Don’t get me started about St. Kevin’s Day currently celebrated on June 3th.
How can we honor anything Irish when they had a famine because potatoes stopped growing. They’re surrouned by how much water? :D
Keith… I think you missed the boat on that one… *sigh*
Being predominantly Irish and German and English, I identify more with my Irish heritage. It absolutely DISGUSTED me the things I saw downtown this weekend. Puddles of vomit, vandalism, a bullet hole in a bus shelter!!!! and the funniest part is as you pointed out.. a good majority of these people are totally unaware of the purpose of St. Patrick’s Day. The only reason it’s so big over here in America (something I don’t understand!) is because of the sterotype of the Irish and drinking.. so these morons think to themselves “wooohooo I’m “Irish” I can drink allllll dayyyy and allll nighttttt woooooooo!” idiots. It’s absolutely mortifying. And don’t even get me started on that Kegs and Eggs business.. whoever came up with that idea should be shot. Bet the hospitals and the police and fire squads had a grand old time dealing with the nonsense that went on. These days.. people are so irresponsible it’s pathetic. This was a great article! Thank you! (good to know I’m not the only one!)
Keith,
That was the problem, toooo much wet & cold. Rotted crop in the ground!!! Might see it here this year. Lest we forget history, we might go hungery.
When was the last time you saw your food growing, now mostly in China or Chile. Wait for the next spike in jet fuel, if the lead & arsenic don’t get us first.
I agree w/ Kevin, lately in all things, we seem to be celebration the weakest links, not the best of us.
Happy St. Pat’s to all.
I have never been a fan of St. Patrick’s Day in the US, for many of the same reasons you list. In Ireland the focus is on going to Mass to honor the Saint’s day. I am always amazed at the number of Americans who claim some Irish roots but who can’t explain the importance of Easter 1916, have never heard of Wolfe Tone, and can’t tell you a single story about Finn McCool.
Great article. I like the bit about being ridiculously hypocritical, which in my mind makes the statements even funnier because they are so over the top.
I grew up listening to the tales of Finn, my grandmother would read them to my brother and I, and then I would wonder why no one else knew any of these great stories.
Its good to be Irish and have a genetic disposition to good humor though. Now I need to go find a church to feel guilty about being happy.
May everyone have a good day of giving and charity.
Kevin, I don’t know how interested you are in historical, non-fiction reading, but I have a really good book about the Irish Potato Famine and Irish immigration. It’s a bit long, but really goes into depth, and is very eye-opening.
I think what someone said above is partly true – people have started to identify this holiday as a drinking holiday because they associate Irish with drinkers. However, I think a lot of people just look for any excuse to drink excessively and get away with doing moronic things they normally wouldn’t do. However, then it seems like the HOLIDAY perpetrates the stereotype. A vicious circle. But you can not deny that the people who belong to the local Irish heritage groups, and go walk in the parade, always plan to do so rip-roaring drunk. That’s not helping the situation you describe here.
I also want to give one of my Indian friends props for the tee-shirt she came up with this weekend. “Kiss me – I’m Brownish” She avoided the hypocrisy, but had fun with it.
I also wanted to let you know that I’m 1/8th Irish, so feel free to kiss me!
For anyone interested in the historical aspect, check out the websites below. I traveled to Armagh, the city in Northern Ireland where St. Patrick built his first church, and discovered there are 2 churches, with the non-Catholic one occupying the original site.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Patrick
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Patrick's_Cathedral,_Armagh_(Roman_Catholic)
http://www.stpatricks-cathedral.org/history.asp
Or as I like to say, “I’m not Irish, kiss me anyway!”
I am equally disgusted with the celebration of St. Pat’s day but I find you all to be a bit off the mark. Although St. Patrick is the Pope’s appointed Patron Saint of Ireland but he also committed genocide (yes you heard me) against our Irish ancestors. How did Ireland become Catholic? St. Patrick killed everyone who refused to convert (i.e. chasing the snakes out of Ireland). Under English rule the Irish also lost their language and were some of the first subjugated people in the world to be forced to convert from subsistence agriculture to cash crops (i.e. potatoes). It was in fact English rule that led to the potatoe famine and the refusal of English government and landlords to allow anything else to be planted in Ireland that caused such massive starvation. Not the refusal of the Irish to plant anything else.
The celebration of St. Patrick’s day as we all know it in the states was never an Irish holiday. Most christians seriously observed Lent back in the day meaning they fasted from sun up till sun down from Fat Tuesday to Easter Sunday. The Pope excused the Irish and their ancestors from fasting during lent after over a million people starved to death in Ireland during the potatoe famine. He figured they went hungry enough. At the time the US was the only area of the world where several christian cultures were mixed together in one big pot. People began to notice that the Irish kept on eating, drinking, and dancing all through Lent while they went hungry and prayed. St. Patrick’s observance day fell right in the middle of Lent and so people began observing St. Patrick’s day as a break from Lent. A time where they could “party like the Irish” meaning eat all day, drink, and dance. Celebrating St. Patrick in Ireland is really no different than celebrating any other Catholic Saint.
I am also equally disgusted with how the Irish are now portrayed on St. Pat’s day. I will not attend the parade in Albany. This year although I avoided the parade @ all costs I was not able to avoid the nonsense that ensues as a result of said parade and everyone’s misconseption that celebrating St. Patrick’s Day is an excuse to become completely beligerant. My neighbors & Albany home owners were jumped by 5 male college students because they calmly asked to leave them to leave their property after breaking a window. There were students randomly passed out on the side walk outside of my home. A drunk girl walked into another neighbor’s home w/out permission, harrassed her children who were home alone at the time, and refused to leave.
I’m jealous. People tend to get nervous whenever we Germans have a parade. It also gets pretty awkward when you start screaming “FOR ZA FOSSERLAND!” when you’re not German or in Germany.
I used to actually boycott St. Patrick’s Day. Then I learned that a lot of old friends were coming to visit their families on parade weekend, so I’ve turned it into a reunion weekend. Still, what every one is saying about downtown Albany? Completely true. What a mess that was, we’re never going to bring the niece down there again. We actually watched a guy try a choke some one, who was too drunk to defend himself.
Don’t get me wrong, I love beer. I love how the Irish love beer. But have you ever been to a real Irish pub? (You don’t need to go to Ireland to find it) It’s a bunch of pale people, with half drained pints, talking the night away. No one is chugging their beer, there’s no such thing as an ‘Irish Car Bomb’ (at least not in the sense we know it as). It’s all talk and storytelling.
When we get to the stereotype of “Irish being alcoholics,” well. Yes. That’s a very sad, sad part of our history, one we can’t ignore. Some of it is unlucky genetics, but really it comes from the ‘No Irish Need Apply’ days. These unemployeed Irish Catholics, with a million kids at home, could only spend the day at the pub. When they came home, they took the frustrations of unemployment out on their wives. This is a thing we shouldn’t forget, but we shouldn’t glorify it either.
Albany is incredible for Irish history (and our German history too!) and it’s a shame that no one looks into it further, particularly when we have so many living scholars who can share their knowledge with us.
One note: Be careful with treatment of the potato famine! The potato is not indigenous to Ireland, it only one type of potato was imported by Spain. The English were exporting all of the other goods, such as grain, so the Irish had no choice but to consume potato. The potato blight only hit that specific potato breed that year, and it wasn’t just in Ireland. The blight hit all over the world. Other countries just had the option of going, “Oh. Bad crop. Let’s eat another potato.” The Irish weren’t so lucky. The English, instead of providing assistance, continued to export the grain. If you were lucky enough to live on the coast, you could fish. But every one else, as we know, starved.
…even after all that, the Irish love their ‘taters. I met some off-the-boat Irish who got all excited that some one brought potatos for a BBQ. I said, “Don’t you think you’d be sort of mad at the potato?” To which they gasped, glared at me, and said “It wasn’t the potatos fault.”
I just took the dogs out for a walk and saw a group that was bar hopping that included 2 latinos in green t-shirts and an asian girl dressed like a leprechaun. Yeah i think its pretty safe to say that people have lost sight of this holiday. The only thing better is when i see people who i know are atheists mainly b/c of their disdain for organized religion out “celebrating” st. patricks day.
your article disgusts me particularly your mocking of the potatoe famine, to say we’d rather die then eat anything else is a shocking and disturbed statement, the simple fact is that there was nothing else. you are not irish, never make any such claim.
What? Too soon?
By the way, the 19th Century called; they want their comically overstated self-righteousness back.
I didn’t realized that Dan Quayle was an actual irishman.
Dan Quayle! Haha. I had ALMOST forgotten about that! Nice catch Jason. Kevin, great post.
I’m not Irish at all(more like Polish, Dutch and Russian), but my fiance is 95%…I have learned so much about Ireland and your history, culture and traditions. He feels the same way you do about St. Patrick’s Day; too much mainstream garbage to bother even trying to celebrate it the “right” way.
@an actual Irishman- so if he were Irish, then it’d be ok? I’m 25% Irish so is it ok if I leave this comment under 140 characters?