OCTOBER 2002
www.celtic-connection.com
Page 23
LETTER FROM NEW YORK
Undocumented Irish Facing Increased Pressure
With the pressure increasing on the undocumented Irish community in the United States as the result of tighter immigration laws, and the fallout from the September 2001 attack on the country, funds to support the various Irish immigration centers around the country is urgently needed.
The Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Brian Cowen, recently announced that funding for the coming year by the Irish Government will be USg300,000.
He was in New York recently to address the United Nations General Assembly and he told delegates that Ireland is still committed to providing 0.7 percent of its GNP for overseas development assistance. In other words, Ireland, now the eighteenth richest country in the world, will allocate hundreds of millions of dollars to countries less well off.
The Irish Government's own task force called "Task Force Regarding Immigrations," has concluded that current funding for immigrant advice groups and agencies falls far short of what is needed. Instead of thousands, Irish immigrant centers in the United States are in desperate need of millions of dollars to help out.
The present situation of Irish immigration in the U.S. differs greatly from other popular emigrant destinations, most notably Britain and Australia. Here in the U.S., a disproportionate number of Irish immigrants are undocumented, and in many cases, denied access to the kind of finan-
.' jam
By JOHN
If FITZGERALD
cial, legal, and welfare resources that are taken for granted by citizens or legal permanent residents.
Caught in the squeeze-play, tougher immigration laws, and growing attachments to their adopted homeland, these undocumented Irish will over time inevitably become more dependant on the services of the Irish centers.
With the heavy demands on the centers now, they will not be able to provide sufficient services with grants that fall far short of the needs.
The present funding covers 13 centers and the budget is being distributed among them. Two of the centers are in New York City, two in Boston and two in Phila-. delphia. One center is located in San Francisco, one in San Diego, an immigration center in Washington, along with another center in Seattle.
In the report, the task force notes that the current funds allocated are far short of what is needed to effectively run the Irish centers in the United States, Britain and Australia. Since the first center was opened in 1990, the Irish Government has donated 3.6 million dollars to help the centers but the world has changed dramatically since the Nineties.
Tough times lie ahead for the undocumented Irish in the United States and they need all of the help possible.
•
Who are the Allies and Where is the Enemy?
All of us who live or work in the greater New York area are familiar with the increased role of security in public and private facilities everywhere. Closed off or barricaded streets and buildings are common sights all over. In many places, access is limited to one degree or another. There is also a greater display of security personnel from cops to soldiers to private guards.
Some of it is understandable but lots of it is questionable. In an effort to display a high security image, we may be opening ourselves up to disaster. Who makes up all this security? Who are all these people? Should we feel more secure just because someone decided to give these people a uni-. form and a badge and perhaps a gun?
The September 2001 attacks are often compared to the attack on Pearl Harbor but one year later, the two histories are very much different.
One year after Pearl Harbor, one million American troops were deployed around the world fighting a clearly identified enemy and in the company of their allied friends. Today, Americans are not sure who their allies are and cannot find the enemy.
(Continued from page 22)
cracker with Canada playing fast open football. With fine defensive work, they contained the NAB team in the opening half and trailed by just three points at the interval, 0-2 to 0-5. In the second half, Canada pulled within two points but late goals sealed victory for the NAB.
The second clash between the NAB and Canada, in the Semi-Fi-nal, was a one-sided affair and the game was over as a contest by half time, with the score NAB 3-5 Canada 0-0. Canada fared better in the second half outscoring the NAB 3-1 to 0-7, but the NAB ended up easy winners on a final score of 3-12 to 3-1.
The women's football tournament was far less competitive than the men's competition as the Australasia squad was in a different class to the rest of the competition and won most of their games by big margins. They handily defeated London in the final after London had defeated the NAB in the semi-final by three points.
The week-long tournament came to a close with an awards banquet in Croke Park that was attended by GAA president Scan McCaguc, president-elect Sean Kelly, members of the international dimension committee as well as the participating players and team officials.
In Memory of James Vincent Creegan
James Vincent Creegan died September 14, in the battle with cancer at his home in Acme Washington. He was born March 13,1931 in Portland, Oregon to Matt and Mary Creegan of Ireland and Portland.
Creegan attended Holy Rosary Grade School, Columbia Prep, and the University of Portland. He served as a pilot and captain in the Marine Corps. Upon leaving the corps, he worked in the Pacific Northwest for the cold storage industry as a specialist and top salesman for 30 years.
During these years, he had great delight in belonging to the Portland Rose City Rainmakers. He loved lively conversations, singing, playing the piano, and reading everything he could. For several years, he was the morning talk show host for radio station KKEY in Portland, Oregon. At one point, he became president of the Alumni of the University of Portland. He most recently worked for the Acme General Store where he made many friends.
James Vincent Creegan was also devoted to the promotion of Irish culture and the traditions of Irish dance. He enjoyed building the dance floors for Irish dance competitions and championships in the Pacific Northwest.
He is survived by his wife, Kathryn and their daughter, Maire, who attends the University of Portland; his older children, Terry Creegan of Belle Vernon, Pennslvannia, Catherine Mary England and Laura Elizabeth Webster of Spanaway Washington: six grandchildren; Matthew and Michael Creegan, Michele England-Warsou, Matt England, Katie and Patrick Webster, and one great grandchild, Kansas Alyssa Warson.
A memorial service was held in Acme, Washington on September 28 at noon and a memorial Mass at Christ the Teacher at the University of Portland in October. His life touched the hearts of many people and we will all miss him. In his own words, "May the Good Lord take a likin' to you, but not too soon" and "May God hold you in the hollow of his hand." In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the James Creegan Memorial Scholarship Fund of the University of Portland, telephone: (503) 943-7395.
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