Clinton, Bill and Hillary
Peacemakers
As major supporters of the Irish peace process, Bill and Hillary Clinton moved mountains. The 42nd President of the United States took the strongest position on Irish issues ever taken by an American president.
In 1994 he granted a visa to Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams, fulfilling a campaign promise and stating "the U.S. cannot miss this rare opportunity for our country to participate in the peace process." Then in November, 1995, President Clinton became the first sitting American president to visit Northern Ireland. He and Hillary were greeted by tens of thousands of people lining the streets in Derry and Belfast. It was the first of several visits that the Clintons made to Ireland. The First Lady would also play a leading role in moving the peace process along. She helped create links between the White House and leaders on the ground, and worked closely with women on both sides of the divide at a time in the conflict when women's voices were hardly heard.
President Clinton's Irish roots are traced through his mother, Virginia Cassidy Kelley, who was the granddaughter of Irish immigrants, "poor Irish farmers," as she called them. The Cassidys are believed to have emigrated from Ballycassidy, County Fermanagh.
In March, 1996, President Clinton was Irish America's Irish-American of the Year.
In March, 2007, Hillary Clinton was named Irish America's Person of the Year.
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