It’s St. Patrick’s Day – a celebration of all things Irish in honour of the eponymous patron saint of that Emerald Isle… but also a fine opportunity to remember that Ireland was, arguably, Britain’s first colony: the Anglo-Normans took over as long ago as the 12th century! It’s the place where what would become the British Empire honed its colonisation methods before exporting them worldwide.
These methods include suppressing local religions, dividing communities and using brute force. Britain’s seizure of Irish lands and resources also resulted in the expulsion of native populations. During Ireland’s potato famine in the mid-1800s – which killed a million people and was largely caused by British policies that prioritised export crops – the empire forced many families onto overcrowded and dangerous ships bound for North America. This is reminiscent of the Great Bengal Famine, triggered by Britain taking rice from India to feed its troops – and in which three-million people died of starvation. Prime Minister Winston Churchill allegedly remarked of the horrifying loss that it was “their own fault for breeding like rabbits!”
The Irish were also one of the first groups to be racialised by the British, whose media publications fixated on facial features, alleging they belonged to an inferior race – much like they did with Africans. There was also legislation enacted to stem the flow of Irish immigrants to the UK after the British caused famine in Ireland. This is reminiscent of how Britain and the wider West destabilises Africa but then creates legislation to stop refugees from seeking safety in its territories.
In the spirit of solidarity that Muammar Gaddafi once showed to the Irish liberation forces, we stand with our Irish comrades today. On this St. Patrick’s Day, we celebrate the resilience and unity of revolutionary movements across history and continents. We hope that once again Irish and African revolutionaries can find that common ground.
Sources
https://www.nli.ie/1916/exhibition/en/content/outlineirishhistory/index.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com