A Call to Action for Ireland

Leslie A. Koepke, Ph.D.

Presidential Address – part 2

Groves Conference on Marriage and Family

Detroit, Michigan

2007

As we consider the 2008 Groves Conference to be held in Ireland, perhaps we should reflect on this quote: "While we have never had it so good economically, there are good reasons for being very concerned about the direction in which our society is going. Many have more money in their pockets, bigger cars, and can enjoy foreign holidays. But in a society in which home ownership is a key value, today many double-income families with good jobs can only dream of owning their own home; those lucky enough to manage a mortgage have less time with their children as both parents must earn an income, work long hours, and commute long distances. Suicide is the major cause of death of young males aged fifteen to twenty five. Our consumption of alcohol has increased dramatically. Drink-related violence has become a major cause of concern, and binge drinking is the recreation of choice of many schoolchildren" (O’Toole, 2006, p.20).

This is a quotation by Fintan O’Toole in the book Rediscovering Ireland (2006). Now I will admit to being among the first to be swayed by the lilt of the Celtic language, the idea of fairies and fairy trees, to be amazed by the historical, religious and economic magic of the bogs, to want to learn ceili dances, and to drink frothy pints of lager, but it is clear that the "Impact of Globalization on Family Well Being", which is the theme of the 2008 Groves Conference, has had a major impact on each of these sentiments. Why? Three significant forces of change in Ireland have been identified:

1. The Diaspora; 2. the Peace Process; and 3. the economic boon of the "Celtic Tiger."

Fintan O’Toole sums up the Diaspora in this way: "the island of Ireland has a population of approximately 5.5 million people. The global Irish Diaspora that exists is ten times that size. In its scale and duration, Irish emigration to North America, Britain, Australia, and other parts of the old British Empire is remarkable" (2006, p.5). The "real" Irish identity is continually being invented and challenged by its descendants (those on and off of the island) – and by their new immigrants, and it will be an education for all of us to hear how multiple identities in Ireland are being defined.

2. The Peace Process clearly has been an on-going one, but the Belfast Agreement signed on Good Friday, 1998 was a significant mark of progress. One of the goals of the Agreement was to allow individuals to choose which country they wished to be a citizen of (Ireland or Great Britain, or both). Fintan O’Toole writes: "In its framework (yet unfulfilled) include some of the most radical ideas ever embodied in a formal international treaty. They include that sovereignty is open-ended and contingent; that a nation and a state are not necessarily coterminous; that multiple national identities are not just permissible but perhaps necessary; that a nation is not a piece of territory but the active, human search for agreement and consent; and, that what people can live with is more important than what they’re prepared to die for" (2006, pps.6-7.)
3. Finally, Ireland claims international significance for its unprecedented economic boom due to globalization. For much of the 20^th century, the growth of output per capita in Ireland was the lowest among twenty-three European countries. Ireland’s economic performance was far worse than almost every comparable Western European country. It experienced high levels of unemployment, mass emigration, and political corruption. What happened? It started slowly in 1958 with the publication of "The First Program for Economic Expansion", but by early 2000’s Ireland saw a massive exporting of goods that were nearly double the amount of imported goods. In a decade, their unemployment figures dropped by 13 percentage points to rest at 3.9 percent (O’Toole, 2006, p. 8). Ireland is often cited as "proof that right-wing economics – mainly low corporate taxes, minimal government interference, and a determination to attract foreign investments at all costs – works" (O’Toole, 2006, p.12.) Does this massive economic change have a name? Helen Shaw explains "it is frequently referred to as the "Celtic Tiger" – a mythical creature created by an economist, Kevin Gardiner, who used it in a report for his employers, the bankers Morgan Stanley, in 1994. It took just three years for the phrase and idea – that Ireland would be a booming high tech economy – to take off" (2006, p.16). Very quickly everything good - or bad- about the economic take-off (low unemployment, high housing prices, overwhelming lack of staff, low long term unemployment, the large influx of refugees, the loss of manners, and possibly even faith) was ascribed to the Celtic Tiger.

However, while wealth has increased, so has inequality. The Child Care Act of 1991 guaranteed that every homeless child would receive adequate care and shelter. During the years when the Celtic tiger was at its strength, the number of homeless people in Ireland doubled. The cost of private housing soared precipitously. Public housing options, normally a stepping stone to saving up for a home, became a dead end for most families and prevented others from entering. Schools are in drastic need of renovation and repair; adults with disabilities are housed in psychiatric hospitals; poor families hesitate to seek medical attention until an emergency requires it, as they are ineligible for free medical care; the Full Medical Card scheme was not implemented by the government due to lack of resources (McVerry, 2006, pps.18-19.) A boomerang twist in Irish society has also occurred: immigration and racism are major issues of concern in a country whose citizens were often the recipients of such treatment. Ireland has become, for the first time, a place of destination rather than a point of departure. For Irish immigrants who experienced discrimination in the U.S. and elsewhere, it will be interesting to see if their lived experiences can translate into creating a place of greater tolerance and unified identity.

But it is clear: in adopting an American model of economic growth, Ireland has ended up with a social structure that is very similar to the United States. Again, from O’Toole: "The United Nations Development Program’s annual Human Development Report ranks countries not just in terms of raw economic wealth but according to the larger goal of a healthy society. One of its indices, ranking countries for a combination of poverty and inequality, lists how the seventeen most-developed countries are doing. At the bottom, nestled rather uncomfortably together, are Ireland and the United States. Even at the height of the Irish economic boom, one in every four households and one in every five people in Ireland was living in poverty" (O’Toole, 2006, p.13.) So, a paradox exists: Ireland today is successful, wealthy and vibrant. It is the fastest growing economy in the developed world; more successful than at any other time in its history. And yet as one writer states: "we have managed an economy but we have not adequately cared for the most vulnerable of our people" (Peter McVerry, p.19.)

So, perhaps I need to save my five Call to Action statements of tonight and carry them with me across the seas to the Emerald Island. Let it be known: I stand for queer, postmodern families. I stand for having wages that working families can live on. I stand for sensible, developmental, supportive work/life policies. I stand for learning from other countries about how to support working families. I stand for supporting children from all families: queer families, working families, immigrant families; diverse families. I stand for a democratic American where no one is left out.

McVerry, P. Poverty in the midst of prosperity. In A.H.Wyndham (Ed.), Re-Imagining Ireland (pp. 18-20). University of Virginia Press.

O’Toole, F. (2006). The peace process. In A.H.Wyndham (Ed.), Re-Imagining Ireland (pp.206-208). University of Virginia Press.

Shaw, H. What is the Celtic tiger? In A.H.Wyndham (Ed.), Re-Imagining Ireland (pp. 16-18). University of Virginia Press.