DAOINE
Eileen, Daniel agus Diarmuid were the foireann this week, with Orla agus Bróna on their rare days away.
The Ní Fhinnegáin ladies signed our petition and posed for a solidarity portrait also, speaking to us in Irish for a little too. We had a group of Moores sign also!
Among the many who signed our petition were a woman from the Six Counties living in Dublin and two South Africans, separately. The Boers in South Africa were Dutch farmer colonists and the UK went to war with them twice, including Irish men in their armies, of course. The thing is, some Irish fought on the other side too. And even more ironic, perhaps, is that Irish veterans of BOTH sides fought against the UK for Irish independence in 1916.
Another Dutch connection is to the 17th Century Huguenot refugees from France and Holland who settled in Ireland and who gave us the ‘Dutch Billy houses’, of which there is one in Moore Street and the style of facing the gable end to the street (every house in Moore Street and many around Dublin).
So it is a little bizarre to have someone objecting to posters of Patrick Pearse and Tom Clarke, two signatories of the Proclamation of Independence, which we had posted with a sign saying the second was a migrant and the other the son of a migrant. He said it was a political statement of ours which it is, we suppose, but also happens to be true. Our campaign is independent but not ignorant of politics.
Then a man called us ‘wasters’ and compared us unfavourably to those conservationists who took over the renovation of Kilmainham Jail back in the late 1950s and ‘weren’t begging the government to save it but doing something practical’.
Diarmuid explained to him that the Kilmainham site was not owned by a private individual and had been scheduled for demolition, which is why nobody really minded those conservationists taking it over and fair play to them for doing so.
Moore Street however has been bought by property speculators and we did well to prevent demolition of buildings there in 2016 and to blockade the site for six weeks and are far from begging the State but rather demanding conservation of our historical site and conservation of our historical market.
The man would not change his opinion but still wished us well as he went off!
Most people of course are very supportive of the campaign and of our efforts, few as we are and also very opposed to the property speculators and vulture funds. A reminder of the terrible housing situation came to us in one young woman signing who told us that she and two others she shares with have been given notice to quit their accommodation.
Another Rising may be needed …
AIMSIR
The rain held off, buíochas …
UASDHÁTÚ
None yet beyond what we posted last week and the week before that. Share our posts from time to time please to keep people informed.
