The Irish National Caucus, founded by Fr. Sean McManus, opened its office on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. on December 10, 1978 to lobby for Irish justice and peace.

One of its first objectives was to "stop U.S. dollars subsidizing anti-Catholic discrimination in Northern Ireland."

McManus and his Executive Director Rita Mullan met with Sean MacBride (pictured above), the Nobel Peace Prize and Lenin Peace Prize winner, who agreed to act as chairman of the U.S. group in the Republic of Ireland. Thus, the foundation was laid for the MacBride Principles, a set of fair-hiring practices for N.I.

McManus, a Redemptorist priest from County Fermanagh, was arrested in 1971 because he helped a stone thrower escape the police. He moved to the U.S. shortly after.

Mullan, who lost her father and mother to the "troubles," grew up in Belfast. She qualified as a nurse and for a time worked in Little Rock, Arkansas, before moving to Washington, D.C. to open the national office of the Caucus.

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