AIMSIR
Bhí sé cuíosach fuar ach tirm on our 496th Saturday as we headed for our 500th Saturday on the street, from September 2012 when the weekly campaign table was first placed on the street.
DAOINE
Bróna, Orla, Deirdre agus Diarmuid were the foireann today and both the traditional stalls and the private tent-market were doing well, which one of the traditional street traders ascribed to it being the week after the Muslim feast of Ramadam.
The street was lively, which is good to see but signatures on the petition were coming slowly. Every day on the street is different in some way and you can never tell how it will be for sure. We had at least two visitors on their way to Palestine solidarity events, Liam Shorthall all the way from Clare and Damien from the Independent Workers’ Union.
A couple of racist remarks this week: one who declined to take a leaflet or sign the petition, saying it wasn’t worth saving because “it’s not Irish anymore”. Not the point but actually a number of stalls and shops are Irish-owned and the market has always had people of migrant backgrounds working in it, including people selling meat, ice cream and fish and chips. Ironic too that it was the day before the feast of St. Patrick, one of the patron saints of Ireland and who was, of course, a migrant.
And if it were not for people of migrant backgrounds the market would be long gone since probably 80% of the trade of the traditional stall holders is to them (while most indigenous deserted the stalls for the supermarkets).
A man with family signing the petition said something negative about “the Ukrainians” but Bróna pointed out to him that her stepmother was Ukrainian and the discussion went no further.
We notice these kinds of remarks but they represent a tiny minority of those who come to our stall. We continue to uphold the tradition of welcoming to our land anyone who wants to join with us and we point out that of the Seven Signatories of the 1916 Proclamation, no less that two were the sons of migrants while another two were migrants themselves.
EILE
This was in the midst of Seachtain na Gaeilge and Troy’s Butchers in Moore Street had posters in the shop promoting a focus on speaking Irish at this time and erected a big panel with translations of many Irish cuts and types of meat in their shop.
We always have some Irish language spoken around our stall and occasionally a poster or two but that Saturday we broadcast it on to the street also with: “Slánaigí Sráid an Mhúraigh! Slánaigí ár n-oidhreacht! Ná lig dóibh í a leagadh!”(“Save Moore Street! Save our heritage! Don’t let them knock it down!”).
Our group is heading for its 500th Saturday on the street. In September 2014 Bróna Uí Loing, Vivienne Kelly, Diarmuid Breatnach and Mel Mac Giobúin met to begin a weekly presence on the street with a campaign table, leaflets and petition sheets.
YOU CAN SUPPORT US by sharing the information in our posts from time to time and signing and sharing our on-line petition.
