Report and photos from Connolly Festival

national | rights, freedoms and repression | news report

Wednesday June 21, 2006 16:26

by Labour Youth

The Connolly Festival took place last weekend on Friday evening and all day Saturday. It was well attended by a large and diverse group of activists. On Friday night the same sex marriage discussion was packed to the brim with the meeting overflowing into the next room. What follows are some quotes and notes on what the different contributors said.

Marie Mulholand :

“More than 10 years ago two female friends of mine lived together in a couple and had a child together, living in London. One of these friends, Deborah, was involved in the Nicaraguan support community and wanted to visit Nicaragua. She drowned over there. Our union (UNISON) worked with Nicaraguan comrades to get the body home. Deborah had been ostracised by her family when she came out. They had had no contact with her since, didn’t know she had a child. When Anne arrived to the airport to the body arriving home, they found out that only the “family” had the rights to the body.

No one was at the ceremony, only her parents, who had ostracised her. It was a horrendous situation. There were no rights for Anne. It was a painful experience for all of us who were gay, it brought home with such force exactly where we stood. The experience never left me.”

Marie Mulholand

Same Sex Marriage
Rachel Matthews McKay (Labour LGBT Co-Chair):

“The time has come for the LGBT community and those in the liberal heterosexual community to fight for our rights. None of us are asking for more rights, just the same rights. I want, when the time is right, to be able to ask my girlfriend to marry me, with all the rights that go along with that.”

“Homophobes don’t just come in the face of religious zealots but as politicians, community groups and even LGBT people themselves who don’ stand up and fight and live up only to stereotypes.
I hope we can all find the courage to be advocates and activists for equality and justice. We should all be calling for the recognition of diversity of individuals and family forms.”

Pro-Choice Activism

Jane Horgan Jones – “A motion was brought to UCDSU Council to fulfil the mandate of information provision. The Welfare Officer refused to provide information. I printed off a sheet with information on abortion services and put it on the door of my office. It was continually ripped down along with pictures of aborted foetus and sign saying “infanticide services here” being put up.”

Boycott Killer Coke

Claire Hall (UK Students Against Coke) explained the complicity of Coke in the murder, kidnap, displacement, etc of trade unionists in Colombia.

US military out of Shannon

Cllr Declan Bree:

“We should be proud of the Labour movement’s role in the Irish anti-war movement and against the use of Shannon airport. In this context there should now be assurance from the leadership of the Labour Party that the end of the use of Shannon by the US military should be a precondition to the entry of Government.”

Rachel Matthews McKay and Terry Connolly of Labour LGBT

Jane Horgan Jones - Education Officer UCD Students Union

Lara Coleman (Colombia Solidarity) and Claire Hall (UK Students Against Coke)

Cllr. Declan Bree

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Comments (7 of 7)

The Irish Social Democrats.

by Cockney Spaniel

Mon Jul 03, 2006 19:32

Well if it is a numerical issue with you Chris, then perhaps you are as well off joining Fianna Fail. After all some would regard it as Ireland's social democratic party after Labour abdicated its role in advocating the desires of the labouring classes during the war of independence. They've a great set of numbers they could show you and have done a lot for the Irish. Sure you know that - your glorious organisation having a historical tendency of heading into coalition with them. But I can understand the amnesia, with concentration on cuddling up to the Blueshirts for coalition this time round clouding the mind. Hot air doesn't mix well with socialist activism Chris, maybe when you grow up and realise LY is nothing but a feeder for the main party you'll understand that constantly patting your own back online is far from fucking endearing.

well mr cowardly anyonmous trot/stalinist/marxist-leninist (delete where appropriate)

by Chris Bond

Mon Jul 03, 2006 19:14

chrbond at gmail dot com

if you can find me a left wing organisation thats bigger and that has done more for the irish people than the labour party i''ll join them, but until then i'll be wating a long time, particulairly if they are populated by narrow authoritarian, dogmatic secterian people like you.

Standard Bearers.

Mon Jul 03, 2006 19:05

That's enough self aggrandizing trollop out of your mouth Chris, if Labour were standard bearers then why the need to dress up its yoof fest with a cartful of anarchists?

Fair play

by Chris Bond - Labour Youth/Democratic Socialists of Americ

Mon Jul 03, 2006 19:00

Chicago, Illinois

Great to hear that the connolly festival was a success, all those who were involved put in a tremendous amount of work, its a good testiment to the fact that the labour party are still the standard bearers of the irish left.

Bree calls on Labour in Government to adopt clear stance on US troops through Shannon

by BS

Thu Jun 22, 2006 12:45

Jun 19, 10:02 am OCEAN FM News

A Sligo councillor is calling on the Labour leadership to make closure of Shannon airport to the US military a pre-condition for Labours participation in the next Government.

Sligo Labour cllr Declan Bree says the leadership of the Labour Party must assure the Irish people that it will be a precondition for Labour's participation in Government that Shannon Airport will no longer be available to the US military for transporting troops to Iraq or for facilitating CIA rendition flights.

He made his comments at the Labour Youth’s Connolly Festival in Dublin at the weekend.

Councillor Bree said that in terms of participating in a coalition government, issues such as taxation, housing and health may be negotiable, but in his view, the issue of human rights is not negotiable.

He said there can be no compromise on matters of principle and defending human rights.

Cllr Bree said the disclosure of figures showing that over 300,000 US troops passed through Shannon airport in 2005 is shameful.

He maintains the failure of the Irish government to take any steps to inspect U.S. aircraft using Shannon is difficult to understand given the mounting evidence of the illegal transport of prisoners by CIA operated planes.

Thank you to LY and all who attended

by Starstruck - Grassroots Dissent

Wed Jun 21, 2006 19:59

88 euro was raised for the Baldonnel anti-war defendants at the Connolly Festival
last weekend.
The three individuals who were heavily fined by the courts and the organisers of that
action would like to thank all those who contributed and also to LY for proposing the collection.
An excellent anti-war workshop was held with some solid and positive suggestions
coming out of it for the near future and the continuing struggle against U.S imperialism
and Irelands complicity in it.
Solidarity!

Second part of report

Wed Jun 21, 2006 16:32

Cormac McMahon an activist with Grassroots Dissent:

Cormac outlined the need for a multifaceted approach to anti-war activism, including direct action. He pointed to the Taoiseach’s assertion that there was no hard evidence of torture flights but pointed out that every time activists attempt to collect evidence the agents of the state stop us, harass us, arrest us and prosecute us with fines against anti war activists unusually high for public order offences.

Shell 2 Sea

Enda Duffy: Labour Youth: “Connolly would be aghast at the breed of market capitalism, but we are still fighting for the freedoms of democratic socialism. The spirit of Connolly lives on in all of us.”

“If Connolly was with us today, he would stand shoulder to shoulder with the Rossport 5”

Tommy Broughan T.D.

“We have been influenced by our comrades in Latin America and their determination to see that the natural resources are used solely for the people.”

“The great achievement of the Rossport Five was that they woke us up.”

Tracey Ryan (Rossport Solidarity Camp): Tracey outlined the 3 main issues in Rossport- health and safety (pipeline - Shell have terrible record with safety around the world) - pollution in Bellanaboy - environmental issues (Broadhaven Bay) and the issue of natural resources.

Furthermore Tracey pointed out that Shell stand to make €6 billion and that the people of Norway will benefit more from this than the Irish people.