After almost half a year of negotiations and political maneuvering, Ireland finally has a government. It’s unlike any that has come before it, and it doesn’t include the party that got the post votes in the last election, Sinn Féin. In this livestreamed podcast, Naomi O’Leary and Tim Mc Inerney answer listener questions with special guests Aoife-Grace Moore, political correspondent with The Irish Examiner, and Darach Ó Séaghdha of the Motherfoclóir podcast.
Is the new government’s policy programme really the greenest ever? Why are people calling this the end of the Civil War politics? Are the Green party falling into a trap, and will Sinn Féin ultimately benefit?
The new coalition is made up of old rivals Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, with the support of the Green party. The new Taoiseach is Micheál Martin, who is supposed to be in office until the end of 2022 when he will step aside to let outgoing Taoiseach Leo Varadkar assume the role.
Watch the video version of this live podcast here: https://youtu.be/E8dnapYnmig
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Young Black people in Ireland have taken to the streets to demand an end to racism and discrimination in the midst of a global uprising inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement. Documentary maker Amanda Adé explores the conversations and momentum for change that is happening in Ireland in the wake of the protests. We hear from Boni Odoemene, the co-founder of the Black and Irish Instagram page, which is unearthing a hidden part of Irish history. The curator of Ireland’s first Black Studies module Dr. Ebun Joseph discusses her research on the nature of racial stratification in Ireland. And Naomi O’Leary and Tim Mc Inerney dig into the complex and interesting crossovers of Black and Irish history, from the dark legacy of empire, to how the US civil rights movement inspired Catholics in 1960s Northern Ireland, to the tearing down of statues.
Protests against Ireland’s controversial system for housing asylum seekers Direct Provision have been re-ignited as demonstrations against racism sweep the United States. We interviewed Bulelani Mfaco where he lives in Knockalisheen Direct Provision centre on the border of Limerick and Clare for our episode on the system published in January. In this bonus episode made specially to thank our Patreon supporters, we publish the full interview with Naomi O’Leary. He tells us about his experience living within the system and why he sees Direct Provision as deliberate marginalisation of migrants and akin to racial segregation.
This bonus content was made possible by the continued support of our patrons! Sign up to support the podcast today at www.patreon.com/theirishpassport and gain access to our whole archive of Halfpint extra content.
For access to our full archive of bonus content, head on over on our Patreon page www.patreon.com/theirishpassport.
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