Full House at the Mill Marks the Rising

25/04/09

Well over 200 republicans gathered in Conway Mill last night [Friday, April 24] to mark the 93rd anniversary of the Easter Rising.

A prominent panel of republican activists discussed the political background to the Rising and the varying elements that made it possible.

The panel included Belfast-based Irish language activist Feargal Mac Ionnrachtaigh, author of Fianna Éireann and the Irish Revolution Damian Lawlor, republican ex-prisoner and éirígí spokesperson Breandán Mac Cionnaith, and former H-Block political prisoner, blanketman and veteran of the 1980 hunger strike Tommy McKearney.

The packed main hall in Conway Education Centre heard from Feargal Mac Ionnrachtaigh how the GAA and the Gaelic League played a central role in reviving both Irish language and Irish culture, which had been virtually obliterated by the British occupation. This cultural revival led to growing resistance to the British occupation and assisted in gaining support for the coming revolution.

Damian Lawor described to the captivated audience the vital role which the Fianna played both in the run-up to and during the Rising. Bringing humour to a poignant evening, Lawor described how the Fianna were central to the military aspects of 1916, providing military training to older Volunteers and playing a key role in retrieving, concealing, and distributing smuggled weaponry and ammunition for the Rising.

The role of organised labour during this period was highlighted by Independent Workers’ Union organiser Tommy McKearney. He described how industrialisation had created the need for organised labour and working class solidarity.

James Larkin and James Connolly united both catholic and protestant workers and mobilised the Irish working class to strike against low pay, long hours, and appalling working conditions. McKearney described to an audience of young and old, the mood of the working class at that time when organised strikes across Ireland took place, including the Belfast Dockers’ Strike of 1907. He also explained the need for the formation of the Irish Citizen Army and depicted the role which 200 trained trade union volunteers played that Easter Sunday and during the Rising, as well as the role of Connolly as an organiser and mobiliser.

Breandán Mac Cionnaith drew the audience back to the Fenian Proclamation of 1867 and discussed the role which the Fenians and the IRB played in organising and mobilising Irish citizens for a revolutionary struggle for independence.

He stressed the importance of looking at 1916 objectively. Breandán stated “...through that study we can see the lessons that have to be learned, and can also see the mistakes that should not be repeated again. And, above all, we should see a commitment to discover a history that has been deliberately hidden from our view, because it’s a history that I believe will equip all of us in the time and the struggle ahead.”

éirígí spokesperson Seán MacBradaigh said: “Friday night’s attendance was greatly encouraging. This meeting and the public meeting to remember the Hunger Strikers in November last year demonstrates that there is still a great appetite among republicans and socialists in Belfast to discuss and learn from important aspects of our history.

“The Easter Rising was the launching pad for the decolonisation of Ireland and, as all the speakers pointed out on Friday, a lot remains to be done to make the radical policies laid out in the Proclamation of 1916 a reality.

“éirígí is committed to playing its part in driving forward the socialist republican project. A complete British withdrawal from Ireland and a social and economic overhaul of how Irish society is organised is the viable alternative that needs to be promoted.”