Given the large numbers of individuals claiming Irish heritage living in the U.S. the fates Ireland and America have long been intertwined. This was especially true in 1916 because of the major role that Irish Americans played in facilitating the Easter Rising as well as the potential power that the U.S. government had to pressure the British into making the goals of the Rising a reality and the significance of the impact on public opinion the Rising had in the U.S. America is the only foreign nation mentioned by name in the Proclamation issued by the Provisional Government of the Irish Republic and five out of the seven signatories of that document spent time in the United States. Clan na Gael, the American based sister organization to the Irish Republican Brotherhood, played a major role in the organization and funding of the 1916 Rising. Without the substantial financial support provided by Irish Americans the rising may very well not have been possible. Meanwhile President Woodrow Wilson was performing a precarious balancing act attempting to simultaneously maintain neutrality in World War I despite his apparent pro-british leaning as well as maintain the support of Irish Americans who were a key voting block for his democratic party. The 1916 Rising and in particular the executions of its leaders ignited an undercurrent of support for Irish independence in America. Many Americans came to sympathize with the Irish as they saw their struggle for independence as reminiscent of America’s own struggle against the British, and the executions of the Rising’s leaders served to shock and horrify the American public cementing their sympathy for Ireland.
To this day there remains a significant presence of Americans who are very proud of their Irish heritage and actively celebrate it. St. Patrick’s Day parades are held in cities big and small wherever there is a strong Irish presence. In this year of the 100th anniversary of the Rising many Irish Americans remember 1916 with pride in their mother country and many leaders in America took the time to commemorate the event making various comments about 1916 as an example of a people asserting their independence much like America had done previously. Just as so many Irish Americans a hundred years ago did whatever they could to support the cause for Irish freedom, Irish Americans still today are proud of their roots and feel as though they have a vested interest in the well being of Ireland.
Past (1916)
Woodrow Wilson and the Irish Question
Clan na Gael and the 1916 Rising
The American Public’s Response: Pre-Executions
The American Public’s Response: Post-Executions
Present (2016)
St. Patricks Day Parades in NYC and Chicago
Pearl River Parade
Irish American Views
Current Day Reactions from American Leaders