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Periscope by Niall O'Dowd

The Gathering not a scam but an opportunity -- Gabriel Byrne right on culture, wrong on The Gathering

Posted on Wednesday, November 07, 2012 at 07:08 AM

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Notre Dame fans arrive in Ireland among thousands enjoying what Ireland has to offer

First of all let me say that Tourism Ireland and The Gathering is a sponsor in several of our publications but I am trying to be as objective as possible about Gabriel Byrne’s recent comments calling The Gathering a scam.

I don’t believe that it is a scam but I do believe Gabriel has it right in several other comments he made about how the concept of the Diaspora is treated in Ireland.

Let me deal with The Gathering concept first. I know the people who came up with the concept originally, men like John Concannon of Irish Tourism and Tim O’Connor former Consul General in New York, and their advocacy for the importance of the Irish abroad is both far seeing and genuine.

I saw it working in the Notre Dame game in Dublin and the Tip O’Neill clan gathering in Buncrana, Donegal, both of which I attended in September.

Twenty-five thousand Notre Dame fans traveled to Ireland and got an overwhelming welcome from Irish people throughout the island. Sure, there may have been cynics about the whole enterprise, but the genuine welcome went very deep with the Notre Dame fans.

The Tip O’Neill gathering which I spoke at was more what the nuts and bolts of The Gathering is about. The former speaker of the house traced his ancestral roots to Donegal and the extended O’Neill family came in en masse, about 80 in all.

The locals joined in for a weekend that was poignant, fun and deeply meaningful for the O’Neills.

Read more: Actor Gabriel Byrne slams The Gathering as ‘a scam‘ aimed at gullible Americans

It was precisely the kind of targeted event, drawing on a local connection across the country, that The Gathering is intended to be.

Last year we at Irish America Magazine hosted our first Hall of Fame event in Wexford, right on the Quayside where Patrick Kennedy set off for America in Famine times. Our main honoree was Don Keough, former president of Coca Cola, whose great grandfather made the same trip from that exact spot.

To walk that quay with him, to visit the famine ship replica, was a deeply spiritual moment for him and the locals could not have been more welcoming and more informative about his ancestor’s journey.

That is what The Gathering promises to be to me, a series of events across the island of Ireland where locals draw on the genuine local historical record and reach out to their separated brethren across the Atlantic or indeed in England or elsewhere.

Where Byrne is correct is in his criticism of what happened to the cultural outreach from Ireland. Culture Ireland set up an extensive cultural program of Irish events across the United States.

Byrne served as cultural ambassador for two years and did his damnedest to expand the cultural footprint of Ireland over here.

Then the Irish government abruptly pulled the funding, ending the experiment long before it should have.

Byrne is also right that the return to roots of so many Irish Americans is a deeply spiritual journey and that there are some misguided Irish who scoff at the whole business.

They display an incredible ignorance of the ties that bind across the centuries for two countries that are inextricably woven together through emigration.

But I don’t think those folks who sneer make up the majority, no more than some gombeen politicians who see the Diaspora through dollar signs and little else do.

The Gathering is a step in the right direction in my book, not a scam, but an opportunity.

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molliepmac | Nov 09, 2012, 05:09 AM EST

bonjouryall; Dont be put off.Do go to Tara! Before you go read about why the Irish built a motorway through the landscape - which should be a World Heritage Site( when other routes were available for the road). There is plenty of information on the internet about Tara and the M3 motorway. Do try to visit nearby Newgrange and Knowth when you are there.

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WoundedKnee | Nov 09, 2012, 02:53 AM EST

Kinvara ("Most of the Jobs in the Irish tourist industry are held by Irish people"): In every hotel stay I have made in Ireland in the last few years, the folks at reception have not been Irish, the shuttle bus driver has not been Irish, the waiter/waitress in the restaurant has not been Irish, the guy serving drinks in the bar was not Irish, the chambermaid was not Irish... So where were all the hidden Irish working in these hotels? The answer is that they aren't there, and that you're a liar. Even hotels in areas of huge unemployement (such as Dublin Airport´s Hilton, right beside a big working-class community) prefer to hire foreign workers from a thousand miles away rather than the young Irish men and women on their doorstep. Anyone who visits Ireland in order to support Irish workers is a fool. The hotel & restaurant sector and vast other areas of the economy are dominated by foreign settlers.

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WoundedKnee | Nov 09, 2012, 02:36 AM EST

Bonjourall: You´'re wasting your time visiting Tara. Th Irish built a highway right thru it.

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bonjouryall | Nov 08, 2012, 08:58 PM EST

Even if it's jacked up, the country is still cheaper than France. Don't know if I can make it next year as a result of more expenses this year and belt-tightening next, but I'll try. I want to see the original Tara plus the museums in Dublin. I've made two trips already but with only one day in Dublin.

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Seanmor | Nov 08, 2012, 05:32 PM EST

A few questions come to my mind about the gathering of 2013 in Ireland: (1) Do they include the whole Irish nation, or merely the part of the country which is under the control of the Dáil? (2) Are New Yorkers who pasrticipated in the St. Patrick's Day parades of '83 and '85, which were bycotted b the government in Dublin, welcome to these gatherings? Are new York residents whose 'nationality' applies to All Ireland acceptable tourists at the gatherings? Na Gael san Oileán Mór a bhfuil Gaeilge mheasartha maith againn, am mbeidh cead againn dul thar ais go hÉirinn i gcóir na "gatherings? I'd greatly like an official answer to the above questiona, le bhur dtoil.

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molliepmac | Nov 08, 2012, 01:52 PM EST

kinvara7. I might be 'the type of person' Gabriel Byrne refers to. You are clearly not aware that the diaspora have supported Ireland down the years not just materially but defending the Republics 'good name' often at their own risk of ridicule through very hard times since the State was founded. There has always been a huge amount of goodwill towards Ireland. The Irish diaspora in the UK ( before we were labeled 'Plastic Paddies' )used to buy Irish produce, butter, cheese meats even though it was more expensive than English Danish etc. Do the Irish at home 'buy Irish'? With regard to tourists travelling from Uk by ferry. Irish Ferries crews are almost all Latvian. What a great introduction for new tourists - no great Irish welcome there. Did you protest a few years ago when they sacked the Irish crews to employ cheaper labour? I did. Who in the UK can afford Irish whiskey at £20 a bottle when Scotch is £12? I do agree that the diaspora should be more involved in heritage issues however recent experience over the M3 through the Tara landscape shows that our views are not welcome. Diaspora labeled " busybodies from abroad with leprecaun ideas" by Meath councillors. No they have a failed motorway the AA roads head said recently 'its so empty you could almost take off from it'. We knew it was the wrong route for the motorway the short Orange route being better but we were told that it was what the people of Ireland wanted. I am sorry but I think Gabriel Byrne is right Ireland is out of touch with the diaspora and sadly unaware of their contribution over the last 150 years. ( David McWilliams is the exception)

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kinvara7 | Nov 08, 2012, 12:48 PM EST

The Irish economy needs consumers; the creation of jobs in Ireland requires consumers. The Diaspora (like most of the Irish at home) will point the finger at the government of the day, but any government can only do so much. Jobs are created by businesses and businesses are created by meeting the demands of consumers. Ireland has a small population but the Irish Diaspora is quite large. However, does the Irish Diaspora consume enough Irish products? Does the Irish Diaspora help create a demand for Irish products in other countries and thus help create sustainable jobs in Ireland? Or does the type of person who Gabriel talks about just buy a bottle of whiskey for Christmas? And then expect a great deal of thanks for that act? If the Irish Diaspora is serious about wanting to improve the Irish economy and to create sustainable jobs, then the least it can expect to do is buy Irish products on a regular basis, and create a wider demand for same. By way of example: Scotch continues to dominate the US market. Sales of Irish whiskey are increasing, but the Irish Diaspora needs to ask itself: why, in a country where the Irish are so numerous, has it taken so long to see this trend develop and to what extent is it down to the marketing strength of a French company rather than the interest of the Irish Diaspora? Whiskey is one example there are many others.

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kinvara7 | Nov 08, 2012, 12:44 PM EST

@Woundedknee: Most of the Jobs in the Irish tourist industry are held by Irish people. The rest are all taxpayers. The health of this industry impacts on the wider community. As regards what Irish Americans should care about, I think they should care about the Diaspora beyond America as well as Ireland, and I think they should do a better job of representing themselves rather than feeling so put-upon. They should also examine what responsibilities (as well as rights) they think they should have if there is going to be a real ‘bridge’ between the Diaspora and Island of Ireland.

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Searlit | Nov 08, 2012, 12:40 PM EST

BrianO, try opening your heart, that usually makes people feel generous. People are very aware that when they go anywhere, even their local markets that they need to spend their money to support the economy. The bottom line, though, for most people is that it feels good to help other people.

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CitizenWhy | Nov 08, 2012, 11:45 AM EST

Other than her my only source on the gathering is a Clare Facebook page. People on the page seem genuinely enthusiastic about Gathering plans and events in Clare, worked out by a local Clare committee, not by Dublin. So this article is right to emphasize the local nature of The Gathering. There often is too much emphasis on Dublin and official and government organizations. Clare for one has done a marvelous job on history and ancestry resources, many on the web. Other counties are working to catch up or surpass Clare, and the local gatherings in counties will help to spur these efforts. Overall a good thing though of no appeal to me.

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BrianO | Nov 08, 2012, 11:35 AM EST

The gathering is a marketing attempt from the Irish tourism bureau, good for them as that is their job. The problem will be to get tourists to spend money in these uncertain and depressed times. I will wait for better days and protect my family from the upcoming deep recession that is on the horizon.

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WoundedKnee | Nov 08, 2012, 11:00 AM EST

Frosty38: "They have found better jobs one of the Managers told me." That manager told you a lie. Don´t be so gullible when you visit Ireland. The Irish found "better jobs" but nearly 15% of the population is unemployed and thousands leave every month? Use your head.

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WoundedKnee | Nov 08, 2012, 10:55 AM EST

Kinvara--Why should Irish Americans worry about creating jobs in the Irish tourist industry, when most of those jobs will be held by Poles, Russians etc? Get real.

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Murph46 | Nov 08, 2012, 09:29 AM EST

Is there anyone out there that doubts airfare,B&B,car rentals,petrol,food prices won't get jacked up?

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kinvara7 | Nov 08, 2012, 09:14 AM EST

“What if the diaspora was organised enough to submit some serious comment on how Ireland is being run.” Why isn’t the Diaspora organized enough to do that? That’s one of the questions I asked below. In the meantime, one issue that materially impacts many people in this country is the issue of jobs, and maintaining to tourism trade is important in this regard. The Irish Diaspora needs to coalesce into a more meaningful group. That is the responsibility of the Diaspora not ‘official Ireland’. Organizing the necessary funds to support one of their own in the next Presidential race in 2018 is a good place to start as it gives some shape to things and a deadline of sorts. I support giving the vote to Irish citizens (as opposed to the Diaspora) living abroad. However, I think that those who CAN pay, should pay a SMALL nominal amount when and if they choose to vote, and that that money should go towards supporting projects that benefit ALL Irish people, be it in areas of heritage conservation and research etc. I believe that if an organized Diaspora came forward with ideas and proposals that communicated a desire to accept some responsibilities as well, then there would be quicker change. The first meeting of the constitutional convention will take place on December 1st, in Dublin Castle. If a meaningful Diaspora group isn’t taking part and making submissions, then who is to blame? Anyway, have a good one in Mexico and watch the old Tequila consumption!

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