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Home Page > Blogs > News blogs > Periscope > Mayor Bloomberg outrages Irish Americans with 'people that are totally inebriated hanging out windows' comments

Periscope by Niall O'Dowd

Mayor Bloomberg outrages Irish Americans with 'people that are totally inebriated hanging out windows' comments

Posted on Wednesday, February 09, 2011 at 07:52 PM

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In bizarre remarks delivered at a St.Patrick's Parade book launch at the American Irish Historical Society in New York, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said he lived nearby and was used to seeing "people that are totally inebriated hanging out windows" at the Society which is on Fifth Avenue.

Bloomberg's remarks drew some boos from an astonished crowd who had gathered along with Grand Marshal Mary Higgins Clark to celebrate the launch of the book entitled "Celebrating 250 Years of the New York City St. Patrick's Day Parade" by Irish American historian John Ridge,which recounts the 250 years history of the parade.

The American Irish Historical Society, located at 80th Street and 5th Avenue in New York,is one of the oldest Irish societies in America and emphasizes support for scholarship, culture and research.It recently won an architectural award for best renovated building in the city.

Board members were upset at the drunken Irish reference which falls into the usual stereotype of the drunken Irish around St.Patrick's Day.

Many leading members of the Irish community were present,including Irish Consul General Noel Kilkenny, St. Patrick's Parade Chairman John Dunleavy and Director General of the American Irish Historical Society Dr.Kevin Cahill.

Bloomberg's comments were made at the very start of his speech and he continued on in strange vein asking when the parade was being held and commenting it was good it was always on the same day so he wouldn't confuse it with Columbus Day.

Bloomberg has cultivated close connections with the Irish American community and has strong support which makes his comments all the more unexpected. He has been a frequent visitor to Ireland and has advised on economic issues there.

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Starlet | Feb 11, 2011, 02:00 PM EST

Kelly, it is not a game. Suggestion is ask a Rabbi and get to know Jews and Jewish culture. After all, you live on LI. Make some Jewish friends! I dare you!

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Starlet | Feb 11, 2011, 01:57 PM EST

ETAIN don't call me or anyone else an 'anti-semite'. Common meaning is anti-Jewish. As to Kelly, the Hebrew term, Eruv wouldn't apply to you. With an Eruv, Jews would be allowed to carry books for instance on the Sabbath in a 'cut off area.' Every other area they can not carry on the Sabbath. It wouldn't apply to you as you can carry anything on the Jewish Sabbath. There is no need to feel left out. Why don't you actually ask a Rabbi rather than feel left out. Clearly, there is a lack of understanding of orthodox Jewish culture here.

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McNabb1966 | Feb 11, 2011, 10:25 AM EST

"Normally when I walk by this building, there are a bunch of people that are totally inebriated hanging out the window waving," Bloomberg had said Wednesday to laughter and moans from the crowd, according to a transcript of the event provided by his office. He continued: "I know, that's a stereotype of the Irish, but nevertheless, we Jews from around the corner think this."

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maloney | Feb 11, 2011, 09:35 AM EST

Marthaanna..you love the little punk because he likes your herd of illegal aliens you harbor.

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MarthaAnne | Feb 11, 2011, 09:33 AM EST

Kellylongisland, Your comments are despicable and very hurtful to the Jews. OMG! Did you actually WRITE this? "Who was Shylock ? Mr. Bloomberg...you insult a culture? look at your culture. Shylock will always be." Talk about an ethnic slur! You take the cake!

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etain77 | Feb 11, 2011, 08:00 AM EST

It seems from at least one post people still need to be educated on 'semitism' and 'anti-semitism'. This term semite refers to the language and culture of not only Jews, but also Arabs, Turks, Armenians, so get with the program, don't call me or anyone else an 'anti-semite'.

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McNabb1966 | Feb 11, 2011, 06:29 AM EST

@bogsidebunny...The issue is not whether or not there is "truth" to the statement that some Irish people drink to excess but whether or not it's appropriate for the Mayor to endorse a stereotype. It's true, for instance, that there are Italians who belong to the Mafia...but would anyone encourage the Mayor of New York to make goofy Mafia-related jokes and comments to an Italian audience? It's true that there are a lot of fat people out there...but would that "truth" make it OK to tell fat jokes to a gathering of overweight people? There's a lot of unpleasant "truth" out there for everybody but that doesn't absolve the Mayor of poor taste, insensitivity and a clumsy sense of "humor." And he is rightly criticized for it.

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McNabb1966 | Feb 11, 2011, 06:10 AM EST

@Morninghours...Read my post again. I called him a "limousine liberal" - not a Democrat. Because it's really immaterial what party he pretends to identify with at any given moment in time since he's clearly ONLY loyal to the "me, myself and I Bloomberg party." He is a textbook example of the limousine liberal.

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Morninghours | Feb 11, 2011, 02:27 AM EST

McNabb1966 and jdi2269: The fact is that Bloomberg ran for mayor as a REPUBLICAN and later changed to an INDEPENDENT.

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bogsidebunny | Feb 11, 2011, 02:15 AM EST

I don't like Bloomberg........BUT, the truth hurts and I have witnessed the carryon he describes. I see we have a few Oirish anti-semites on the list today. Oirish/anti-semite? What else is new?

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PolinDeB | Feb 11, 2011, 12:42 AM EST

Obviously his advice on economic issues wasn't too good ;0

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kellylongisland | Feb 10, 2011, 11:54 PM EST

Westhampton has always been an I Irish-Jewish place...wierd combo? now...they want to make it completetely Jewish Orthodox....by bringing in this this called the Eruv. The Jews want nobody but Jews...

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kellylongisland | Feb 10, 2011, 11:49 PM EST

Hey mr. Bloomberg..I live in Westhampton...what do you want to say about the "ERUV"? Lets play this game....

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kellylongisland | Feb 10, 2011, 11:42 PM EST

Who was Shylock ? Mr. Bloomberg...you insult a culture? look at your culture. Shylock will always be

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MarthaAnne | Feb 10, 2011, 10:59 PM EST

Being of Irish ancestry, here is my response: Listen, my Irish immigrant friend, who is the only member of his family to have left Ireland (he has been here for 45 years and goes home very frequently), told me, when he did a vacation tour of Ireland, "the drinking is rampant in Ireland". Now, he married an Irishwoman and loves his country (which he left close to age 30, only, and for economic reasons) and HE said that. Here in the U.S., where I used to live (Dorchester, a part of Boston, very Irish), I have to report, as much as I would like not to, that when we had a string of pubs down Dorchester Ave, if you came by at, say, 1 AM, especially on a Saturday, you'd see drunk young men coming out of the pub, hardly able to walk. One day one man was seen lying down in the middle of the block. Maybe Mayor Bloomberg saw something that the Irish and Irish Americans don't want to hear. Maybe they weren't exactly "hanging out of the windows drunk", but, for heaven's sake, he has never shown prejudice that I have heard, and maybe he is just saying that he observes a lot of Irish people drinking an awful lot. On the other hand, I have a lot of brothers and my brothers and my father did not drink heavily at all. But I think that the Mayor knows that not all Irish are drunks. I do admit that it was not at all appropriate for the Mayor to speak of inebriated people when he is doing a formal address to such people as the Consul General of Ireland!!! That was so inappropriate and hurtful.

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