Rose of Tralee in Ridiculous Racist Row
Monday August 18, 2008
Ireland's very own beauty and talent contest, the Rose of Tralee, is just around the corner. And has this year come to prominence thanks to a row involving racist comments aimed at the inclusion of Belinda Brown, the London Rose. Now the Rose of Tralee has always been a contest that dared to thread the thin line between the unashamed celebration of "Irishness" and blatant paddywhackery. But apparently "Irish" needs to be better defined - Belinda Brown being of both Antrim and Jamaican heritage.
While none of the organizers seem to have a problem with her mixed heritage, several Irish men and women have taken offence. And loudly voiced their objections on a white supremacist website (to which I will NOT link, thank you).
Apparently Belinda is only masquerading as an Irish coleen in the eyes of the contributors. And "Irish" in their opinion should mean "of pure Celtic blood". Erm, well ... there go a few thousand years of history. Some people more reasonably insist that "being Irish" is more of a state of mind anyway - with the original indigenous population having been replaced by Celtic invaders, which later merrily mixed their genepool with that of Anglo-Norman invaders as well as Scottish, German and French immigrants plus some survivors of the Spanish armada. And that was before massive immigration from Asia, Africa and especially Eastern Europe even started. "Pure Celtic blood" would be about as common in Ireland as white ravens. And let us not analyze the "diaspora" for this.
This row comes at a curious time, when most of Ireland seems to be swooning as soon as the Irish ancestry of the US presidential candidate is mentioned. And I am talking Barack Obama here, maybe not your typical, leprechaun-like Irishman with pale skin, red hair and a merry glint in the eye. Then again who am I to pontificate, not being of Irish stock myself? Maybe it's my German background ... coming from a nation that took racism to unequalled extremes may influence your outlook on these things.
So, more power to the Rose of Tralee organizers for their color-blindness and their broad, sensible interpretation of "Irish". And good luck to Belinda Brown in the contest.
While none of the organizers seem to have a problem with her mixed heritage, several Irish men and women have taken offence. And loudly voiced their objections on a white supremacist website (to which I will NOT link, thank you).
Apparently Belinda is only masquerading as an Irish coleen in the eyes of the contributors. And "Irish" in their opinion should mean "of pure Celtic blood". Erm, well ... there go a few thousand years of history. Some people more reasonably insist that "being Irish" is more of a state of mind anyway - with the original indigenous population having been replaced by Celtic invaders, which later merrily mixed their genepool with that of Anglo-Norman invaders as well as Scottish, German and French immigrants plus some survivors of the Spanish armada. And that was before massive immigration from Asia, Africa and especially Eastern Europe even started. "Pure Celtic blood" would be about as common in Ireland as white ravens. And let us not analyze the "diaspora" for this.
This row comes at a curious time, when most of Ireland seems to be swooning as soon as the Irish ancestry of the US presidential candidate is mentioned. And I am talking Barack Obama here, maybe not your typical, leprechaun-like Irishman with pale skin, red hair and a merry glint in the eye. Then again who am I to pontificate, not being of Irish stock myself? Maybe it's my German background ... coming from a nation that took racism to unequalled extremes may influence your outlook on these things.
So, more power to the Rose of Tralee organizers for their color-blindness and their broad, sensible interpretation of "Irish". And good luck to Belinda Brown in the contest.
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