In his piece dated June 12th, Michael McDowell suggests that Sinn Féin’s aspiration to be a political chameleon is concealed by its hard left socialist ideology, echoing James Connolly’s perspective. He insinuates that, regardless of whether it is ‘hard left’ or ‘socialist’, an alleged political lineage from Connolly is distinctly questionable.
It’s pretty common for modern-day Irish political figures, not all being ‘hard left socialist theorists’, to connect with Mr.Connolly. To illustrate, members of the Labour Party routinely highlight that Connolly was a co-founder. Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern even invoked the memory of Connolly during the official commemoration of the 1916 Rising, held in March of this year. Similarly, SIPTU, Ireland’s biggest trade union, takes pride in Connolly’s contribution to its predecessor, ITGWU. Going through Oireachtas debates of late, we find Connolly being praised by members of various political parties such as Labour’s Annie Hoey, PBP’s Paul Murphy and Bríd Smith, Fianna Fáil’s Jim O’Callaghan and Eugene Murphy, and Independents like Sharon Keogan and Victor Boyhan, just to name a few.
Dublin bears the mark of Connolly, with the healthcare facility and railroad station named in his honour, not to mention his public memorial positioned between Liberty Hall and the Customs House. Clubs named after him can be found as far away as Charlotte, North Carolina, and Edinburgh. At one point in 2016, even the Brown Thomas department store commemorated Connolly and his fellow Rising leaders in their window displays. The Irish public’s familiarity with, and the broad mention of Connolly in political and cultural arenas suggest that any connection between Sinn Féin’s ideology and Connolly might be less alarming than what Senator McDowell anticipates.
Yours sincerely,
Alan Eustace
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Marino, Dublin 9.