Irish racism in England

[angell84]

I am shocked. I am half English, half Irish. My Irish mum lived in England for a long time, gave birth to us children there with her English husband, and then moved back to Ireland.

The reason that she always gave me for returning to Ireland, was that, "she could not take the nastiness to her anymore". She described one incident of many to me: she went to my brother's primary teacher in England, and said that he had lost something, he must have been six at the time, and the teacher said to her , "sure what do you expect - he is half Irish".

I always thought of it in an abstract way, I never really understood what she meant. Until I spent quite a long time in the U.K this year.

I was absolutely shocked at the hatred and nastiness, and calling Irish people stupid.

How can it be possible? The U.K stole alot of Ireland's land, committed mass genocide during the famine, eradicated the Irish language,

And yet instead of apologising, many people are going around calling Irish people stupid.

Isn't it nearly unbelievable? It would be like a German going up to a Jew and calling them stupid. That it was their fault , thhat everything happened the way it did.

I am really shocked

Wrt the typical Irish look - I don't know how to describe it, but I agree it exists. Of course not all Irish people have it, and not everyone who looks like that is Irish. But surely you recognise that feeling of wandering through an airport waiting for your plane home, and clocking someone and thinking "you're on my flight"?!

Love holiday people watching and trying to guess where people are from. Most countries have a "look" - not an insult to say it exists, or that someone has it or doesn't.

Wrt the typical Irish look - I don't know how to describe it, but I agree it exists. Of course not all Irish people have it, and not everyone who looks like that is Irish. But surely you recognise that feeling of wandering through an airport waiting for your plane home, and clocking someone and thinking "you're on my flight"?!

Yes, but I don't think that's primarily a matter of colouring, I think it's more posture, body language, microexpressions etc? I can virtually always tell an Irish person in an anonymous urban setting, like on the tube in London, without hearing them speak. And I remember back in my J1 visa days (do those still exist?) when everyone was equally tanned and wearing the same type of clothes, you could tell the Irish people from the Americans purely by their body language. With their mouths closed, so you couldn't check the teeth.

Yes I think that's all a big part of it Fanlights. But I do think colouring is in there too. Not so much hair colour as skin tone - the landscape may be 40 shades of green, but I suspect our typical skin tones are 40 shades of pasty.

Christ almighty, have I just read this right? And nobody has reported it?

you could tell the Irish people from the Americans purely by their body language. With their mouths closed, so you couldn't check the teeth.

I actually couldn't be arsed reporting it myself to be honest. Wow.

@Fanlights is it because they're the ones slapping you on the forehead? Or knocking your teeth out?

Funny that we're so successful the world over isn't it! Teeth and all.

That must really sicken your stomach.

I've always been aware of racism against the Irish, it's horrible, quite shameful.

Used all the time in English
No it is not. I saw it used in English by an English person on Mnet. It is wrong.
Not an Irish person.
Unless speaking an Ghaeilge.
ach amháin má labhraíonn tú an Ghaeilge.
It is like describing your polish neighbour as my Polska neighbour. Silly unless you're polish too.

Christ almighty, have I just read this right? And nobody has reported it?
I know right.
Some of the Irish plaining is hilariously ignorant though hilarious funny too.
How is your fiery red hair freckles and wonky teeth enjoying it. 😜🤔

@EmeraldShamrock I'm like Shane McGowan on speed.......... YEEHAWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Tiddly eiddle diddle doo......... Where's me toothbrush?

Not to worry no one will notice your teeth, they're all drunks anyway, singing funny songs, fighting over the bleeding bodhran again.

I also agree there’s an Irish look.
Interestingly though I’m of predominantly Irish heritage (with some French thrown in) and I’ve been told I ‘look Russian’ on several occasions - so maybe my theory isn’t foolproof
Obviously not everyone looks the same but overall there’s something. But it’s the same for most countries. It might not necessarily be physical appearances but there’s something.
And I think the PP referring to knowing an American vs Irish with their mouths shut was jesting about how lots of Americans seem to have glowing white veneer-looking teeth. I didn’t read that as being anti-Irish.

It might not necessarily be physical appearances but there’s something
You have a point, I can nearly always tell an english person from say a Scottish person on holiday. I won't say how.
And I think the PP referring to knowing an American vs Irish with their mouths shut was jesting about how lots of Americans seem to have glowing white veneer-looking teeth. I didn’t read that as being anti-Irish
I think your wrong as Americans most likely have whiter teeth than the English too.
The Irish had terrible teeth in the past due to starvation. Again I won't go into what caused the starvation.
Its late.

Emeraldshamrock
You probably can.
And yes most Americans probably do.
I’m not ‘anti-Irish’ even if it suits your agenda to try and implicate me as being so

Emeraldshamrock

It’s actually baffling in your quest to try and find something ‘racist’ in my post (where I didn’t aim a single thing at the Irish - I said MOST countries seem to have a bit of a ‘look) that your response was anti-English.
The only one being any level of ‘racist’ between me and you is yourself.

@Pardonwhat I responded to your post. I didn't think for a moment you were anti Irish.
Nothing in your post is anti Irish. Nothing in my post called you a racist.
I said I thought you were wrong to believe the poster was referring to how white Americans teeth are, rather than how shite Irish teeth are.

Emeraldshamrock

My mistake. What, then, was “ I can nearly always tell an english person from say a Scottish person on holiday. I won't say how.” supposed to imply?
The fact you ‘won’t say how’?
It was clearly a loaded comment.

I've reread my posts. I am confused. I know I often miss paragraphs of posts needing to reread.
Nothing in my post is trying to implicate you.

I was being polite. I can tell the English as they are usually louder. 🤦‍♀️

It's been 'Ireland' in Ireland since 1949, Patroclus.
And 'Republic of Ireland' in the UK since that year too.

Successive Westminster governments after the 1937 Constitution came into effect would not use the term Ireland because this term is the name of the entire island, and the UK refused to give an inch in the direction of Ireland's claim to the whole island.

deValera preferred Eire only as an alternative to 'Irish Free State' which was in his view and the view of the Fianna Fail party a constitutional arrangement foisted on Ireland under the Anglo Irish Treaty of 1922. He insisted on the name Ireland for Irish high commissions in Commonwealth countries and in the League of Nations.

The Ireland Act of 1949 (passed by Attlee's postwar government) required that the UK government use the term 'Republic of Ireland' (not Ireland) for Ireland, again to make the point about the whole island vs the 26 county political entity. Since the Statute Law (Repeals) Act of 1981 'Republic of Ireland' is the only legal name the UK government can use for Ireland under British law.

So it might be nice to see either Ireland or Republic of Ireland used instead.

Patroclus Mon 16-Dec-19 20:35:56

Funny that, Math, as you seem to spend the rest of the time on here complaining stupid british people arnt educated about Ireland.

It's very obvious to me that they're not.

I haven't called British people 'stupid', btw, just badly let down by their education system, in particular the very poor approach to the teaching of history.

I missed the teeth comment... But on reading again, I'm inclined to take it as a comment on American teeth rather than Irish.

Oh and I've never heard an Irish person refer to the country as Éire when speaking English. Everyone just says Ireland. Only ever see Éire written in British magazines etc. I remember as a teenager agreeing with my friends that the letters in J17 or similar must be fake because the ones from Irish people always said they were from Éire.

MissConductUS Mon 16-Dec-19 21:13:05
About 1.7 million of them emigrated to the US, including my ancestors

Indeed - my mum's family were affected by eviction, rackrenting and economic emigration during both the 19th and 20th centuries. They went to Australia. My grandparents showed their children the rent book with entries going back decades, and then the documents involved with buying the farm under the Land Acts. One of my grandfather's forbears hung onto her little cabin on the side of a hill only because of help from remittances from Australia. My grandfather's brothers and sister went to Liverpool and Canada, with two siblings going to Australia.

'The Big Book of British Smiles' from The Simpsons.

O wad some Power the giftie gie us
To see oursels as ithers see us!