OF ‘WETBACKS AND WILD BISON’

By Peter Stevens
February 27, 2014

Peter Stevens

BY PETER F. STEVENS
BIR STAFF
Once, the Boston Irish knew what it was to be “wetbacks.” Of course, the epithets that hateful, narrow-minded Nativists and “Know Nothings” of the 1840s and 1850s employed to deride Irish immigrants were “Paddies, Bridgets, and Papists,” but in the lexicon of prejudice, those terms were, and are, interchangeable because of one ironclad trait – spiteful and willing ignorance.

Mass. Cultural Council honor for BC faculty’s Jimmy Noonan

By Sean Smith
February 27, 2014

Sean Smith

Jimmy Noonan, a faculty member in the Music Department and Irish Studies Program at Boston College, is the recipient of a $10,000 Massachusetts Cultural Council Artist Fellowship award. The fellowships “recognize exceptional work by Massachusetts artists across a range of disciplines,” according to the MCC website. “These highly competitive awards provide artists crucial validation among their peers and the public. They catalyze artistic advancement and pave the way for creative innovation of enduring cultural value.”

For 60 years, Rita O’Shea Chaplin has been teaching Irish dance, and building a ‘family’ along the way

By Sean Smith
February 27, 2014

Sean Smith

BY SEAN SMITH
SPECIAL TO THE BIR
It’s a dead-of-winter Saturday, but things are quite lively inside the German International School Boston building in Brighton where some three dozen students of the O’Shea-Chaplin Academy of Irish Dance are going through their paces.

Heartbeat of Home’ sweeps Irish dance into new millennium

By R.J.Donovan
February 27, 2014

R.J.Donovan

‘BY R. J. DONOVAN
SPECIAL TO THE BIR
“Heartbeat of Home” could rightfully be called “Riverdance” for the new millennium, taking Irish dance to the next level. When the exuberant production makes its East Coast debut at the Citi Wang Theatre from March 26 to April 6, Boston audiences will be among the first to see the show The Irish Mail on Sunday dubbed “jaw dropping.”

Prayer for our union: ‘Give love a chance’

By Ed Forry
February 27, 2014

BY JAMES W. DOLAN
SPECIAL TO THE REPORTER
The president is at the podium as the applause subsides. He looks across the array of faces before him, a gathering of many of the most powerful people in the country, and he speaks.
“Ladies and gentlemen I come before you today with a different message. Not what you would expect at this forum where normally you hear a litany of problems and proposed solutions. I am one of a long line of presidents who have delivered those easily forgotten messages.

Our Irish heritage – an inspiring,yet tragic, story about a mystery chair

By Joe Leary
February 27, 2014

Joe Leary

BY JOE LEARY
SPECIAL TO THE BIR
As we celebrate the feast day of St. Patrick, the patron saint of our Irish heritage, it is natural to reflect on the lives of our ancestors, their sacrifices that brought us to Boston, and the later sacrifices they made to make a life for themselves and those who followed them.
I hope you will forgive me; this is a very personal story.

Newsnotes around & about Boston's Irish

By BIR Staff
February 27, 2014

BIR Staff

He made many friends in his years here, doing poetry readings and participating as a valued member of the local community. He was a popular figure at many area universities, including Bridgewater State and Boston State, where he developed close and lasting friendships with students and faculty.

The Month of St Patrick: Parades, concerts & more are everywhere!

By BIR Staff
February 27, 2014

BIR Staff

ST. PATRICK’S DAY PARADE LISTING
Sat., March 8, 2014
Cape Cod – Yarmouth at 11a.m.
Route is about 2 miles long. Parade starts at Long Pond Drive and Route 28 in South Yarmouth. Continues west on Route 28, over the Parker’s River Bridge, ending at Route 28 and Higgins Crowell Road/Berry Ave. capecodstpatsparade.com.

Sun., March 9, 2014

Hub’s O’Brien leads delegation to Limerick, Belfast

By Bill Forry, Editor
February 27, 2014

Bill Forry, Editor

Belfast tour: Caption: Special Rep. Drew O’Brien, right, toured Belfast Metropolitan College with members of a delegation of US investors last month. Photo: Michael Cooper Photography Belfast tour: Caption: Special Rep. Drew O’Brien, right, toured Belfast Metropolitan College with members of a delegation of US investors last month. Photo: Michael Cooper PhotographyBoston’s own Drew O’Brien — a longtime aide to Secretary of State John Kerry — is forging new bonds between the US government, the Republic of Ireland. and Northern Ireland through his role as a State Department representative focused on diaspora communities around the world. O’Brien recently returned from his second visit to the Republic and Belfast in the last year. Both trips were focused on encouraging US investors to consider new opportunities across the pond.

There’s only one focus in Ireland this month

By Ed Forry
February 27, 2014

BY JUDY ENRIGHT
SPECIAL TO THE BIR
The headlines and focus for the month of March belong to Ireland’s patron saint and the many festivities that will be held in his honor here and in Ireland. Head for Dublin and you can enjoy the annual St. Patrick’s Festival from March 14 to 17 with numerous events including an Irish craft beer and food market, walking tour, funfairs, music and street performances, and a parade at noon on the 17th with marching bands from all over the world.

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