This conference addressed the history, experiences and legacy of the Irish Diaspora. This history and experience has, over a number of centuries, had a profound effect on the countries to which Irish people migrated and on Ireland itself. The conference dealt with the experiences and impact of this broad diaspora in different countries and on different continents. There are broad and indeed individual experiences. Ireland and its diaspora have a shared, yet a diverse history, as dictated by circumstances. Its diaspora has become a key resource for Ireland in economic, political and cultural terms, not least as evidenced by its influence on the Irish Peace Process and its contribution to the economic development of the country. The conference saught to give an understanding of this important aspect of our history and the experiences of our Irish and indeed Donegal diaspora. It will addressed the situation of those migrating from Ireland in the present day. It addressed a shared history and pointed to a shared future.
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Tuesday June 4th 2013, Letterkenny, Co.Donegal |
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8.30 – 9.00 |
Sign in & Refreshments |
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9.00 – 9.15 |
Welcome Address & Opening Clr. Frank McBrearty, Mayor of the County of Donegal |
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9.15 – 9.30 |
Conference Overview Mr. Seamus Neely, Manager Donegal County Council |
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9.30 – 9.45 |
Chair Professor Paul Arthur, University of Ulster |
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9.45 – 10.30
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‘Tír Chonaill and Inis Eoghain (i.e. County Donegal) – Some links with the rest of Europe in the 16th and 17th Centuries’ An Dr Nollaig Ó Muraíle, Roinn na Gaeilge, Aras na Gaeilge,Oliscoil na hEireann, Gaillimh |
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10.30 – 10.45 |
BREAK – TEA & COFFEE |
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10.45 – 11.30
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‘The Donegal Irish in Scotland since the Great War’ Professor Tom Devine OBE, Director of the Scottish Centre for Scottish Studies at Edinburgh |
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11.30 – 12.15 |
‘The Venniconian Kingdoms: Donegal’s migratory links to the rest of the North West of Ireland including Ulster Scots migratory patterns’‐ Dr Ian Adamson OBE, President of the Ullans Academy |
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12.15 – 1.00 |
LUNCH |
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Chair Dr Patrick Fitzgerald, Mellon Centre for Migration Studies Ulster American Folk Park |
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1.15 -2.00 |
‘Butte, Montana and the Donegal Connection: McGowan, McDonald, and Boyce in the Mining City’ Professor David M. Emmons, Emeritus Professor of History University of Montana |
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2.00-2.45
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‘The Donegal and Irish Migrant Experience in New Zealand’ Professor Angela McCarthy, Professor of Scottish and Irish History and Associate Director of the Centre for Irish and Scottish Studies,University of Otago, New Zealand. |
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2.45 – 3.00 |
BREAK‐TEA & COFFEE |
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3.00 – 5.00 |
Panel Discussion – Immigration Reform United States Case Study |
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Chair – Frank Galligan Wtiter and Broadcaster |
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Kevin Cullen Boston Globe Reporter co-author of “Whitley Bulger: America’s Most Wanted Gangster” and co-author “Betrayal: The Crisis in the Catholic Church”. Sister Lena Deevy Director Emeritus Irish International Immigrant Centre Boston. Michael Patrick MacDonald Author ” All Souls: A Family Story from Southie” & “Easter Rising: A Memoir of Roots and Rebellion”. Gene O’Flaherty Massachusetts State Representative. Professor Frank Talty Co-Director of the UMass Lowell Centre for Irish Partnerships, for mutual benefit. |
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The Hands of History Project is being led by Donegal County Council under the auspices of the Donegal CDB Peace and Reconciliation Partnership. This project is supported by the Special European Union’s European Regional Development Fund, through the EU programme for Peace and Reconciliation and is managed for the Special EU Programmes Body by Donegal County Council.
For further information on the conference please contact Donegal County Council 074 9373718.