As an organization formed in 1836 to combat attacks by bigoted nativist against newly arrived Irish immigrants and the Catholic Churches they attended, the Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) are saddened to see a return of that same prejudice in the recent vandalism of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver, Colorado. The spraying of swastikas, messages of stereotypical bigotry, and the desecration of objects of veneration are proof that the anti-Catholic bigotry of the 19^th century ‘Know Nothings’ still as adherents in 21^st century America.

Yet amplifying our outrage over this wanton attack on our faith is the knowledge that this is the third attack on this same church since July and one of 25 incidents of hate targeting Catholic churches in Colorado since February of 2021. The attack at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception and other Churches in Colorado are themselves only a small subset of a rising wave of anti-Catholic hate crimes which are plaguing our nation.
The Ancient Order of Hibernians ask, “Where is the outrage” that our elected official and the media should be expressing as representatives of the broader community? We are incredulous that if a house of worship of another faith was attacked three times in as many months that local officials would not be rushing to microphones to denounce it and pledging resources to stop the spread of such hate. The AOH is in disbelief of local news reports which state “(Denver Police) Investigators will look into whether this was a bias-motivated crime.[1]” We ask if the painting of swastikas and other slurs on the wall of a house of worship are not the very definition of a bias crime than what is? 

Finally, the AOH is disgusted that one News Reporter appears to attempt to palliate the attacks by speculating a motive relating to “the Catholic Church has been in the headlines in the past few years,” without offering any correlation between those headlines and the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception or any of the other churches under attack.[2]. The generalization of the misdeeds of a few to justify the hate of an entire class is the standard operating procedure of bigotry.

The constitution of the Ancient Order of Hibernians calls on its members “To accept and support, without prejudice, the concept of free expression of religious practice for the people of the world“, and that includes our own Catholic faith in America. We call on our elected officials at all levels of government to end the prejudicial double tier of outrage where attacks against one faith are met with appropriate and rightful outrage while the very same deeds, when perpetuated at a Catholic Church, are trivialized or worse, met with the sounds of silence. We reminded them of the Roman legal maximum ‘qui tacet consentire videtur,’ ‘He who is silent is taken to agree“. There should be no agreement and, therefore, no silence for the acts of hate committed against any house of worship. It is time to end the sliding scale of outrage dependent on which faith is targeted. 

[1] “Denver cathedral vandalized; police investigating, searching for suspect”, https://kdvr.com/news/local/denver-cathedral-vandalized-police-investigating-searching-for-suspect/

[2] See Denver7 Video accompanying “Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Denver vandalized”, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/cathedral-basilica-of-the-immaculate-conception-in-downtown-denver-vandalized/vi-AAPlVSp

In response to the recent media frenzy concerning reports that a poll has found the Notre Dame Leprechaun Mascot and the nickname ‘Fighting Irish’ offensive, the National Anti Defamation Chair of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the largest Irish American Organization in the U.S., has issued the following statement:

It is with a mixture of disbelief and despondency that the Hibernians read today headlines “Notre Dame leprechaun considered offensive, according to survey” in multiple newspapers and media outlets. This media-manufactured controversy stems from a poll conducted by a T-Shirt printing company that allegedly concluded that the Notre Dame Leprechaun logo and the nickname of “Fighting Irish” are offensive.

The AOH cannot help but question why major news outlets have suddenly bestowed upon Quality Logo Products Inc. of Aurora, Illinois, the gravitas of the Gallup poll. It is also noteworthy that Notre Dame finished fourth in the survey, yet it is the focus of the headlines. When has 4^th place ever been accorded such notoriety? Sadly, this “controversy” seems to have more to do with a strategy by some media outlets to prioritize titillating headlines over the story’s substance (or lack thereof) to garner mouse clicks, retweets, and shares than any actual outcry of offense.

Sadly, it appears that some seek to weaponize the Notre Dame Leprechaun as part of the continuing debate over sports team names and mascots.  Lost on these misguided individuals is that unlike depictions of Native Americans, the Leprechaun is a mythical creature, not an alleged archetype of a group of real human beings. The Leprechaun is a beloved figure of Irish folklore, not history.  As to the sobriquet “the Fighting Irish,” most accounts trace it back to the early days of Notre Dame’s sports program when anti-Catholic sentiment in America was high. The fight against such hate is a fight well worth fighting, then and now, and it is a nickname to be proud of.

It is disappointing that the media is chasing claims of offense concerning Notre Dame’s mascot as illusory as the Leprechaun’s crock of gold while ignoring the clearly defaming items that can be bought at Amazon and other retailers; items with phrases such as “Irish Today, Hung Over Tomorrow” or “Kiss Me I’m Irish, Drunk or Whatever.” Those items are truly offensive, no survey from Quality Logo Products Inc needed . 

The Ancient Order of Hibernians, America’s Largest Irish Organization, once again note, that Amazon continues to peddle prejudice for profit in selling merchandise that demeans and denigrates the Irish and Irish American. In a year when the Irish American community is again being asked to to forego their traditional St. Patrick’s Day celebrations out of respect for the health and welfare of the broader population amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, we find the sale by Amazon of items with the phrase “F(expletive) St. Patrick’s Day” inexcusably tone-deaf and insensitive. 

This is just another example of a long and continuing pattern of diversity duplicity by Amazon regarding the Irish. Besides shirts with “F(expletive) St. Patrick’s Day,” Amazon also sells hundreds of items with the phrase “F(expletive) me I’m Irish.”

Another search on Amazon returns a list of 180 items with the phrase “Irish Girl Wasted” and “Yes, I’m an Irish Girl, I Speak Fluent Drunk.” Is it not the definition of an oxymoron for Amazon to sell these demeaning items while simultaneously claiming to advocate for respect and empowerment for women in the tech industry? Amazon continues to sell hundreds of other products denigrating those of Irish Heritage with messages such as “Irish Today Hungover Tomorrow, “Irish, Drunk, or Whatever, ” and “Drink Till You’re Irish. “

As our society attempts to address the challenge of divisiveness in the 21st century, the continued sale by Amazon of merchandise perpetuating the negative ethnic-based tropes and stereotypes of the 19^th is callously irresponsible.

Amazon has already established ample precedent in removing items that other communities have found offensive. Currently, over 8,000 people have signed a petition asking Amazon to remove its “F(expletive) St. Patrick’s Day” and other defaming merchandise targeting those of Irish heritage.  We ask why Amazon is deaf to the Irish American community’s call for the basic courtesy of equal respect and colorblind when the target of the hateful stereotypes they are selling is green?

It is with shock and profound sadness that the Ancient Order of Hibernians learned of the senseless attack upon Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Ocala, Florida on Saturday, 11 July as parishioners were preparing for mass. According to police, a man crashed a minivan through the front door of the church and then ignited an incendiary device/accelerant causing a fire that resulted in extensive damage to the building. By the grace of God, all those who were in the church were able to evacuate safely, but there can be little doubt that this was a direct attack against those who were seeking to peacefully celebrate their Catholic faith. We commend local authorities for their speed in apprehending the suspect. 

The Hibernians are appalled at the conspicuous lack of national news coverage, particularly among the national broadcast networks, surrounding this blatant attack. The absence of national reporting concerning such an egregious attack against a Catholic church is at stark variance with past coverage of similar despicable attacks against other faiths. This absence of coverage is particularly glaring given that this attack is only the latest in a wave of wanton destruction targeting Catholics including the vandalism of a Catholic church in Boston, a Catholic school in New York and the ongoing investigation of a fire that destroyed the historic 249 year old San Gabriel Mission and over the same weekend.  

The Hibernians ask why such an outrageous attack targeting Catholics is less worthy of reporting than an attack on a house of worship of another faith or a public institution? The News Media needs to take accountability for its apathy and blatant double standard and the creation of a shameful “hierarchy of outrage” in which hate targeting Catholics is not “newsworthy”. 

We would remind National News editors of the Latin legal maximum “qui tacet consentire videtu” (silence implies consent); their silence on the rising tide of anti-Catholic violence is shameful.

Amazon continues to hypocritically talk about embracing respect for all heritages and diversity while peddling prejudice for profit. Currently on Amazon there are 142 Items for sale with the phrase “Irish Livers Matter”. One of the items is even labeled “Amazon’s Choice.”

This is in addition to numerous items emblazoned with “Irish Lives Matter”, but certainly “Irish Livers Matter” plumbs new depths of defamation, there is no uninformed or misguided positive spin or nuanced interpretation one can put on “Irish Livers Matter”; it insults two heritages for one low price.

The hypocrisy of Mr. Bezos’ publicly virtue signaling on Amazon’s policy of respect and diversity while continually peddling prejudice for profit is cynically hypocritical. The Hibernians have repeatedly reached out to Amazon concerning their defaming merchandise, most recently concerning their sale of a “(F*** St. Patrick’s Day “shirt, including a petition with over 5.000 signatures, only to be ignored. The sale of the “Irish Livers Matter” shirt is just another example of Amazon’s diversity duplicity.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos once stated, “diversity and inclusion are not just good for business, but simply right.” Those words ring contemptuously hollow when Amazon chooses to sell “Irish Livers Matter” merchandise.

• Currently, Amazon is selling an item labeled as a “F*ck St Patrick’s Day Shirt.”  Amazon describes the item as a “Funny Luck St. Patrick’s Day Gift.” 
• As of my writing, Amazon currently sells 130 items with the phrase “F*ck Me, I’m Irish.”    A similar search replacing “Irish” with several other races and ethnicities returned ZERO results.
• Hundreds of other items defaming Irish Americans have messages such as  “Irish Today Hungover Tomorrow“, “Irish, Drunk, or Whatever“, “Drink Till You’re Irish“
• In response to concerns from other ethnic groups, Amazon has removed other items that were deemed offensive.

We ask you to please consider signing the below letter to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.  On submission, it shall be sent to his e-mail and Amazon customer service.  It is time to end the charade of “selective diversity and tolerance”.   As Irish Americans, we ask not to be treated better than anyone else, but we should not accept being treated worse.  All heritages should be shown the same level of respect.

Currently 9060 people have signed the petition, please join them by signing and sharing!

Brothers, we are about to enter the month of March, a month when we celebrate the contributions of the Irish to our Nation and the World and remember our Patron Saint St. Patrick, a man of faith, compassion, and humility who created a light from Ireland that illuminated the world in the Dark Ages and continues to shine. We have a lot to be proud of; we have a lot to celebrate.

Unfortunately, many see our holiday as having no more depth than a pint of green beer, a green bacchanal combining the worst elements of Halloween and a college kegger. The only green others see is the greening of the till by exploiting stereotypes and tropes to make a quick buck at the cost of a noble Heritage. The typical battle cry of this lunacy is “Everyone is Irish on St. Patty’s Day”, an excuse to engage in irresponsibility at the cost of someone else’s reputation

You brothers all by your dedication to our faith, heritage and charity represent what it truly means to be Irish American. In typical Irish fashion, you get “the good work” done throughout the year and are too busy doing it to brag about it.

Unfortunately, this dedication means in many of our communities that the only time the broader community actually sees the Hibernians is during our St. Patrick’s day celebrations. It is in recognition of this fact that we ask as you participate in these activities to remember you are an ambassador for the Order and our heritage.  We can only influence the behavior of others, but we can take responsibility for ourselves. When parading with your Division dress as though you have pride in your membership and heritage, perhaps consider business casual rather than the jeans. Leave the face-paint to the kids; it is a testament to the wonder of their innocence, they can pull it off. Leave the “Cat in the Hat” headgear to the guy who dances with the lampshade on his head at the party. Perhaps wear your Division shirt or jacket and promote the Order rather than a multinational beverage company, or worse yet, items that violate our oath by “caricaturing and defaming the Irish People.” Before anyone says, “It is just a shirt,” ask yourself why shirts are given out as part of every major marketing effort? Because they are proven ways to get a message out, make sure yours sends the right one.

Let us march in pride of Commodore Barry, the Irish Brigade, Nelly Bly, Anne Sullivan, and countless other Irish American men and women, and specifically those in our own family history. We are not “once a year Irish” but 24×7 Irish Americans who take time out once a year to celebrate.

We often quote the saying, “To be Irish is a blessing, to be a Hibernian is an honor.” Let us appreciate the blessing; let us live up to that honor.

On 3/17 at 12:16 PM the GOP twitter account tweeted a mug shot of candidate “Beto” O’Rourke taken during a 1998 DWI arrest wearing a photoshopped green top hat and shamrock and a caption “Please Drink Responsibly.”  The tweet then states “On this St, Paddy’s Day [sic] a message from noted Irishman Robert Francis O’Rourke.” 

Such a scurrilous, stereotype laced  attack is more in keeping with the 19th century “Native American Party”, aka “The Know Nothings”, then the party of Lincoln who wept when he kissed a regimental flag of the Irish Brigade in honor of the sacrifice that so many sons of Erin had made in America’s Civil War.  This offensive meme is nothing more than a 21st-century version of the scurrilous anti-Irish cartoons of Thomas Nast.  As America’s oldest and largest Irish Catholic organization, founded in 1836 in response to anti-Irish bigotry, the Hibernians had hoped that the days when a candidate’s Irish ancestry would be used as a campaign fodder were confined to the dark past; that today American political debate focuses on the issues, not the ancestry of a candidate.  Sadly, this toxic tweet from the GOP proves we were optimistic and premature in our beliefs.

The Ancient Order of Hibernians suggests that those responsible for this exercise in prejudice for political ends read the President’s recent proclamation of Irish American Heritage month.  The Hibernians ask that the Republican National committee denounce this tweet defaming Irish Americans and their heritage, censure those responsible and offer a clear and unambiguous apology to the Irish American community.

Here comes St. Patrick’s Day, and with it a wave of green-clad, likely intoxicated, Irish potato-eating Philadelphians and (plenty of) suburbanites.

Such a negative stereotype-laden, trope-ridden statement seems more in keeping with the sentiments of the nativist who burned Catholic Churches in early 19th century Philadelphia than 21st century America. Ironically, this exercise in defamation is published in parallel with another article in the same issue entitled  “Philadelphia’s Politics Among the Most Partisan and Intolerant in U.S.“. The hypocrisy of Philadelphia Magazine lecturing on intolerance while themselves engaging in their own form of demeaning ethnic profiling is rife.

This odious statement defaming Americans of Irish Heritage becomes even more outrageous when one considers that it was likely reviewed and approved by a Philadelphia Magazine editor(s) before publication. We pose a simple question to the editors and management of Philadelphia Magazine: if a writer was to submit a similar article trading in prejudicial clichés regarding another ethnic community would they for a second consider publishing it? If the answer is no then why do the publishers of Philadelphia Magazine think it is appropriate to reprise the offensive stereotypes of Thomas Nast when it comes to the Irish? The Hibernians do not seek that the Irish be treated better than anyone else, but we will not accept them being treated worse.

It is appalling that these statements defaming Irish Americans should come from a magazine allegedly representing Philadelphia, a city where so many Irish Americans made their mark. Ms. Should Sasko and the editorial board should take a walk to Independence Hall where 9 Irish Americans signed the Declaration of Independence. That foundational document was edited by the Secretary of the Continental Congress Charles Thompson, and immigrant from Derry, printed at grave personal risk by John Dunlap an immigrant from Tyrone and first read to the public by Col. John Nixon, a descendant of an immigrant from Wexford. In front of Independence hall stands the statue of Commodore John Barry, an immigrant to Philadelphia from County Wexford, a hero of the American Revolution and the first Flag Officer of the United States Navy. Philadelphia Magazine should be ashamed for denigrating a community that has played such an important role in the history of Philadelphia and our nation.

The Hibernians call for Philadelphia Magazine and Ms. Sasko to issue an unambiguous public apology to its readers and the Irish American community.

“As an organization founded to combat religious and ethnic bigotry, the Hibernians applaud Amazon’s recent decision in response to the request of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) to remove items deemed offensive to Muslim Americans; no one should profit from defaming any person’s heritage or religion. We are, however, perplexed that Amazon continues to ignore, similar earlier complaints made by the Hibernians concerning items offered for sale by Amazon which similarly denigrate people of Irish Heritage.

A search today of the Amazon site returns over 1,000 items that perpetuate the offensive defaming stereotype of conflating being Irish with drunk, 802 results are listed as “Prime Eligible.” A sampling of the items listed include:

• Irish “Surprise! I’m drunk” Shirt
• “St. Patrick Day Shirt Everyone Loves A Drunk Girl”
• Irish “Drunk-O-Meter” Shirt (a shirt depicting a gauge with progressively higher levels of intoxication, the maximum reading being “Irish”)
• “Kiss Me I’m Irish, Drunk or Whatever” Shirt
• And perhaps most despicably an “Irish I Were Drunk” Baby Cotton Long Sleeved Bodysuit

The Hibernians have repeatedly contacted Amazon concerning their sale of items such as these that perpetuate defaming stereotypes of Irish Americans and promote the dangerous practice of binge drinking; both of which would appear to be clear violations of Amazon’s sales guidelines. We cannot be as magnanimous as the CAIR spokesman who graciously attributed some of the offensive items they identified, and which Amazon pulled, to “companies just slapping (Islamic text) designs on everything without even thinking about it.” There is no benign interpretation of merchandise with the sentiment “I may not be Irish, but I can drink like one”; its defaming message is clear and overt. Items promoting denigrating Irish stereotypes should be pulled from Amazon in the same spirit of dignity and respect that Amazon has accorded other heritages.

The Hibernians request Amazon to halt the sale of items that denigrate Irish Americans. We note that Amazon actively promotes itself as a leader in 21st-century technology. It is, therefore, both ironic and inappropriate that it should still seek to profit from the discredited anti-Irish prejudices and stereotypes of the 19th century. “

Today Brothers we live in our own dark times. Our Church has been weakened by a small minority who betrayed the trust given them and the laws of God and man.   While we pray for the victims and support their quest for justice, we must never forget and support the many, many more servants of God who keep the faith, spread the Good News, tend the sick, and reach out to the marginalized. Let us as a gift this Christmas give them our support and be vigilant against those who would seize upon and generalize the reprehensible actions of a few not in a sincere quest for justice but as confirmation of their pre-existing prejudices.

We sadly also see efforts by some to deny and denigrate our Irish and Irish American cultural experience. Some would encourage us to take our Irish heritage “out of the window” of our day-to-day lives; bringing it out only once a year in March as an excuse for a bacchanal. The history of Irish Americans is an inconvenient truth that upsets some agendas, and some despicably deprecate and defame it rather than acknowledge it. We are the descendants of a small country who through most of its history knew poverty, hunger, and oppression. Ireland is a country whose chief export was its sons and daughters. Yet, those sons and daughters have changed the world out of all proportion to the size of our homeland. We should never feel reluctance in expressing our pride in where and from who we came from.

As we approach Christmas, let us be thankful for the gifts we have already received: our Faith, Heritage, and this Country. For the New Year let us resolve to resist the attempts of those who would seek us to hide or deny them. May they forever burn bright as a candle in our hearts.

Nollaig Shona Dhuit.

In response to a message from the Hibernians, Walmart Vice President Preston Bottomy in an email confirmed the removal of the offensive items.  Mr. Bottomy went on to state that “(Walmart) is initiating a process to prevent similarly offensive products from surfacing in the future; please bear with us as we work through that process” and in the interim reaffirmed Walmart’s commitment to removing any other offensive items that should be found.

Per AOH National Anti-Defamation Chair Neil Cosgrove “We commend Walmart for once again acknowledging our concerns and the concerns of the broader Irish American community.  We note and appreciate the difficulty of policing third party vendors who must bear the true accountability of producing and trying to profit from products denigrating Irish Americans and promoting the 18th century prejudice of the anti-Immigrant “Know Nothings”.  We have reached out to Walmart over the past three years and they have always acted in a thoroughly professional and responsible manner in removing these offensive products when brought to their attention.  Walmart has been an example of corporate responsibility that we would wish other retailers would emulate.”

We could all wish for more temperate speech from both sides of the aisle in discussing our national issues.  That we are having a debate over the body of a brave fallen American soldier concerning what was/was not said in a condolence call on his death in his country’s service is a sad testament to the current state of our country.  However, spurious charges of racism only contribute to the climate of divisiveness and cheapen the evil of true racism. That MSNBC should promote the serious accusations of racism without fulfilling its basic journalistic responsibility to check the facts is deplorable.  A cursory examination of facts would show that the metaphor of “empty barrels making the most noise” has a long and egalitarian history; it was used by Shakespeare and Jonathan Swift (though Swift being Irish must, by MSNBC reasoning, be a closet racist).  I would point out that perhaps Congresswoman Wilson and MSNBC may also wish to consult St. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians for another variation of General Kelly’s metaphor “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.”  Do Congresswoman Wilson and MSNBC think St. Paul was a racist?  Perhaps he gets a pass for his family coming from Tarsus as opposed to Tyrone.

This would all be an exercise in linguistic and historical trivia if MSNBC through their commentators O’Donnell and Reid had not decided to “double down” on Congresswoman Wilson’s absurd claim of racism and offer as “substantiation” that General Kelly was an Irish American from Boston.  As Congresswoman Wilson purported to do, I checked the dictionary and looked for words that describe the belief that person actions are predetermined by ones ethnicity.  The word that came back was “Racism”. Of course apologist will be quick to point out that MSNBC’s remarks cannot be prejudicial; after all they have the imprimatur of Lawrence O’Donnell of Boston.  I will remind them of the response of the English icon Sir Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, when accused of being Irish by virtue of his birth in Dublin; “‘Being born in a stable does not make one a horse.”

We note with grim irony that in years past the Hibernians have drawn to the attention of MSNBC multiple instances of unambiguous bigotry for which no reference to a dictionary is required, merchandise with phrases such as “Everyone Loves a Drunk Irish Slut”.  There has always been a conspicuous silence form MSNBC and its commentators twitter feeds on such defaming and misogynistic statements; perhaps because there is no political capital to be made in denouncing them. It is interesting to note that MSNBC commentators have frequently denounced profiling, except apparently when it is engaged in by their commentators concerning Irish Americans from Boston. It is hard to imagine that the scurrilous generalization of “Irish Catholic neighborhood(s) where women were bullied, not honored” would not draw the outrage of MSNBC if the subject was any other than Irish Catholics and the commentator other than MSNBC’s own Joy Reid. We wonder if Ms. Reid made such a sweeping disparaging generality replacing “Irish Catholic” with any other ethnicity/religion would she not be immediately taken to task and denounced by MSNBC management.

Racism is a serious charge, it should not be cheapened or use flippantly as a mere rhetorical device as has been done by Congresswoman Wilson without risk of blunting its inherent evilness. As to the hypocrisy of MSNBC backing up claims of racism while engaging in their own brand of bigotry; they owe all Irish Americans, and specifically those from Boston, an apology.

Neil F, Cosgrove
National Anti Defamation Chairman, Ancient Order of Hibernians.   

New City, New York – 10/26/16

The Ancient Order of Hibernians wish to acknowledge and commend the response of Jeopardy! and the show’s host Alex Trebek in acknowledging and responding to concerns over perceived defaming remarks targeting individuals of Irish heritage during the 10.18/16 show.

Per National Anti-Defamation Chairman Neil F. Cosgrove …

“On the evening of 10/21/16 as the National Anti-Defamation chair of the Ancient Order of Hibernians I received a call from Mr. Alex Trebek of the show Jeopardy! regarding the comments he had made during the contestant interview section of the show aired on 10/18/16. At that time, Mr. Trebek queried contestant Shannon Dilmore on his Irish connection given his first name of “Shannon”. Mr. Dillmore stated he had visited all 26 Counties of the Republic of Ireland and has hill walked all of its highest peaks. It was at this point Mr. Trebek asked Mr. Dillmore “Were you sober when you did it?”.

Given the sad history of the negative stereotype of “Drunken Paddy”, a creation of bigotry and a tool of marginalization used to justify imperial policy in Ireland and discrimination in America, many Irish Americans understandably took offense to this comment. Multiple members of the Ancient Order of Hibernians reached out to me as the National Anti-Defamation Chair to express their indignation. Our Hibernian Oath calls us to “not countenance any performance that may reasonably be interpreted as caricaturing or debasing the Irish people, whether in public or in private, in song, recitation or story, on the stage or on the screen”. In fulfillment of that pledge, the Order issued a statement condemning the comment by Mr. Trebek and called for an apology.

In our conversation, Mr. Trebek stated his interview comment was never intended to draw any inference between inebriation and the Irish character. He stated the point of departure for his comment was strictly the contestants’ youth and that young men of all backgrounds usually take on unorthodox challenges as the result of dares in the company of other young men while good naturedly carousing. Mr. Trebek stated it was strictly in this context that he meant to frame his remark. However, Mr. Trebek stated, and we give him great credit, that he went back and reviewed the tape of the interview. He noted while viewing the playback that when he asked the question he did so with a lilt in his voice which he volunteered could be construed as emulating an Irish brogue. Mr. Trebek stated while it was never his intent to offend anyone, in viewing the tape he certainly could see how the comment and the delivery could combine to give a connotation he had never intended to convey and for that he was truly sorry. Mr. Tebek stated that the show in question had been taped months before and that Jeopardy! production is currently in hiatus making an on-air apology not possible; thus he was reaching out to personally express his regret for the unintended offense.

We commend Mr. Trebek for taking the time to listen and respond to our concerns. It would have been very easy for the show’s producers to ignore the issue or have an anonymous staffer give a carefully nuanced statement dismissing the issue. The fact that Mr. Trebek reached out personally to express his regrets for the unintentional offense given we believe betokens his sincerity as well as his integrity.

It is a rare person indeed who has not at some point said something inappropriate and given offense where none was intended. In taking the time to offer a personal apology, the regard which Mr. Trebek and Jeopardy! are held has been justified and we commend them both for acknowledging and rapidly seeking to make amends.”

New City, New York – 10/19/16 – The Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH)

The Ancient Order of Hibernians condemns the outrageous comments made by host Alex Trebek on the episode of “Jeopardy!” which aired on 10/18/16. During the contestant interview section, Mr. Trebek queried contestant Shannon Dilmore on his Irish connection given his first name of “Shannon”. Mr. Dillmore stated that he has visited all 26 Counties of the Republic of Ireland and has hill walked all of its highest peaks. It was at this point that Mr. Trebek took it upon himself to ask Mr. Dillmore “Were you sober when you did it?”

We are sure the Jeopardy research staff can provide voluminous material to Mr. Trebek and the show’s producers documenting the bigoted history behind the cliché of conflating Irishness with Drunkenness. As a show that prides itself on its educational value, specifically as regards children, we find such an insensitive and prejudiced remark by the public face of Jeopardy inexcusable. We question if Mr. Trebek would utter such a defaming remark if the target was another heritage. We note the sad irony that the show’s creator Merv Griffin was himself an Irish American; Mr. Trebek who makes a comfortable living off of Mr. Griffin’s legacy should be ashamed for defaming the heritage Mr. Griffin expressed great pride in.

The Ancient Order of Hibernians calls for Mr. Trebek and “Jeopardy!” to immediately issue a full and complete on-air apology to the Irish community for his crass, denigrating remark. We also ask our membership and members of the broader Irish American community to contact “Jeopardy!” Productions at (310) 244-8855 to express their anger at this defamation targeting people of Irish heritage and demand an on-air apology by Mr. Trebeck.

6/1/2016

The Ancient Order of Hibernians Calls on Mayor Tom Bates and the City of Berkeley to Actively Investigate and Prosecute Rental Discrimination Targeting Irish Students

New City, New York – 6/1/2016 – The Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) calls on City of Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates to investigate charges of discrimination by landlords of his city against Irish students solely on the basis of their ethnicity and prosecute where found to exist to the full extent of the fair housing law. The AOH further calls on Mayor Bates and the city of Berkeley to issue a clear, unambiguous statement condemning this prejudice targeting people of Irish ethnicity.

Per AOH National Anti-Defamation Chairman Neil Cosgrove:

“We are deeply troubled by multiple reports of rental discrimination in Berkeley, California targeting Irish students. We find it inconceivable that in 21^st century America landlords are still permitted to engage in the discriminatory nativist practices of the 19^th targeting people of Irish ethnicity. That Irish Students traveling to America to work, broaden their experience and reinforce the close historical ties that exist between our two nations should encounter the modern form of “No Irish Need Apply” signs is simply unacceptable and an embarrassment to all Americans. That this despicable practice is occurring in a city named after Bishop George Berkeley of County Kilkenny is an irony beyond the imaginings of Jonathan Swift.

Compounding this reprehensible behavior, it is reported that the landlords in question attempt to justify their despicable actions by perversely citing the tragic deaths last year of six Irish students when a balcony collapsed in Berkeley. One callous landlord had the temerity when denying a rental application to an Irish student to advise that “she should stay away from balconies”. Extensive investigation has shown that the death of those innocent victims was caused by shoddy construction, poor maintenance and lax building inspection practices; that nothing the victims did, nor the fact that they were Irish, contributed to the disaster that caused their deaths.   To attempt to justify bigotry against their fellow Irish students by the exploitation of their tragic deaths is a further slander against their good names and utterly contemptible. 

The Hibernians ask the simple question of Mayor Bates and his administration: would such blatant profiling be tolerated in Berkeley if the students were from the Middle East? Would these discriminatory renting practices be allowed to continue if the student were from Africa, Asia or South America? We would sincerely hope not. Why then are they acceptable in Berkeley when they target students from Ireland?   We note that Mayor Bates has in interviews stated he is aware of the disturbing charges of discrimination in his city and stated ’It’s something that I definitely need to look into’. We are disappointed in Mayor Bates passive, noncommittal response which are not appropriate to the seriousness of the matter; the intolerable, corrosive nature of bigotry should precipitate a more active reaction and be a priority irrespective of who is targeted”

There is no room in the America of the 21^st century for bigotry no matter who the target is.

• “Straight Outta F*ck It Let’s Drink” St. Patrick’s Day Triblend T-Shirt
• “Kiss Me I’m Irish Or Drunk Or Whatever” St. Patrick’s Day Baseball Sleeve Shirt
• “St. Patricks Day Good Day to Get Drunk” Juniors 3/4 Sleeve Raglan T-Shirt
• Juniors “Let’s Get Ready To Stumble” Funny St. Patrick’s Day T-Shirt
• “Drunk 1” and “Drunk 2” Shamrock Irish Drinking Party Group Team T-Shirt
• “IRISH TODAY HUNGOVER TOMORROW” St Patrick’s Day T Shirt

Per AOH National Anti-Defamation Chairman Neil Cosgrove:

“We are appalled that Amazon, which regularly markets itself as a modern 21^st century innovator, is promoting the bigoted 19^th century stereotypes of Thomas Nast and the ‘Know Nothings.’   Amazon lists as part of its prohibited products policy “products that promote or glorify hatred, violence, racial, sexual or religious intolerance or promote organizations with such views.”  These Amazon products that perpetuate bigoted clichés and tropes directed at people of Irish heritage certainly exceed Amazon’s prohibited products guidelines; we ask why then are they permitted for sale at Amazon? We do not believe that Amazon would allow the sale of a product emblazoned with “_____ TODAY HUNGOVER TOMORROW” if that blank was filled in by any other ethnic group so why is it acceptable when the object of the defamation is the Irish? The Hibernians ask why Amazon continues to promote merchandise targeting Irish Americans with negative stereotypes of “Drunken Paddy” that share the same bigoted 19^th century origins and motivations as the minstrel show’s “Mr. Interlocutor”?

The Hibernians also note that in addition to promulgating defaming messages targeting Irish Americans, these products also glorifying irresponsible drinking and appear to target a young, perhaps underage, audience.  We question why Amazon would want to associate themselves with such dangerous and irresponsible behavior.  One only has to look at our society’s struggles with the problems associated with irresponsible drinking, from auto fatalities to date rape, to realize that promoting being drunk as a subject of humor is unconscionable and irresponsible.

It is time for Amazon to remove these reprehensible products that are Prime examples of despicable stereotypes that target people of Irish Heritage and consistently enforce its prohibited items policy irrespective of the ethnic group targeted“ 

The Ancient Order of Hibernians calls for the immediate removal of these defaming items immediately and for a public apology from Amazon be issued to all Irish Americans.  The Ancient Order of Hibernians calls upon its members and all who believe that in the 21st century there is no place for demeaning ethnic based stereotypes nor the glorification of drunkenness and binge drinking to sign their petition at Change.Org (https://www.change.org/p/amazon-com-stop-the-sale-of-defaming-merchandise-targeting-irish-americans-by-amazon).

New City, New York

Per AOH National Anti-Defamation Chairman Neil Cosgrove:

“We are outraged that Disney/ABC television has seen fit through its program “The Real O’Neals” to turn back the clock and engage in one of the worst examples of media bigotry targeting Irish Catholics since the days of 19th century ”The Know Nothings”. There is nothing either “real” or funny about the “Real O’Neals”; it is the 21st century equivalent of the bigoted cartoons of Thomas Nast that depicted Catholic Bishop’s as attacking alligators and the Irish as mindless ape-like creatures.

The show is a litany of prejudicial Irish and Catholic media clichés. The sanctimonious, overbearing Mother who uses a statue of the Virgin Mary to ensure the lid is put down on the toilet (in fact there is not an adult Catholic woman character in the entire show who is not depicted as a mindless hypocrite). We have the stereotype of the crassly insensitive father “Pat” who is of course a cop. We are presented a daughter who steals under the pretense of collecting for Catholic Charities by using Catholic guilt as a shakedown device. The oldest son is a jock with anorexia (for we all know how funny suffering with a serious eating disorder is) with a Tarzan like vocabulary, but whom the mother hopes through her fawning flattery of the Bishop to get into Notre Dame.   The youngest son is an implausibly naive gay dominated by his mother; the shows comedic trivialization of his coming out (using the shameless Catholic trope of a bingo game as a setting) is a disservice to people of all ethnicities and faiths dealing with this issue. This is what Disney/ABC would have viewers believe it the “The typical Irish Catholic family”.

It is hard for us to believe that the executives of Disney/ABC would produce such an exercise in religious intolerance if the subject was other than Irish Catholics. We ask Disney/ABC would they sign off on a plot line that saw pancakes served in the shape of the Prophet Mohammed or depict him, as Jesus was in a cameo, as a “Wayne’s World” like dude? We think, and would hope, not. Why then is it acceptable to ABC executives to denigrate the faith of Christians? With the release of the “Real O’Neals”, Disney/ABC highlights the hypocrisy of Hollywood and the media where Irish and Catholic Americans are “fair game” for the perpetuation of bigoted stereotypes while other groups are surrounded in a cordon of Political Correctness.

We can anticipate that there will be those who will attempt to defend Disney/ABC by pointing out the network is dominated by other ethnic “comedies” such as “The Goldbergs”, “Blackish” and “Fresh Off the Boat”; that ABC is an equal opportunity defamer. “Comedy” based on prejudicial ethnic stereotypes and tropes are as dated as Disney’s “Tomorrowland” attraction irrespective of the heritage defamed. There is something both equally pathetic and offensive that ABC is now promoting their Tuesday lineup as “The funniest night of Chinese/Irish Catholic Comedy on TV”. Thankfully it is the only night of such bigoted, trope ridden alleged comedies and we hope that the other networks will not follow Disney/ABC’s misguided path in a race to the bottom, a contest no one should want to win. We must also note that unlike the other comedies, “O’Neals” executive produce Dan Savage has a well-documented hostility to the Catholic Church and question the wisdom and motivations of Disney/ABC giving him a national platform to perpetuate his intolerance.

That ABC has chosen to launch this defaming outrage 24 hours into our nation’s recognition of “Irish American Heritage Month” is despicable. At a time when we should be celebrating Irish Americans such as Commodore Barry, Mother Jones, and real Irish American families such as the Sullivan Brothers, Disney/ABC has chosen instead to plumb the lowest depths of intolerant stereotypes. There is nothing “real” about the “Real O’Neals” other than “real” and unmitigated defamation and bigotry.”

The Ancient Order of Hibernians calls on Disney/ABC to issue a complete and unconditional apology for this scurrilous attack on Irish and Catholic Americans and to discontinue this show which attempts to wrap defamation and intolerance in comedy. The Hibernians further asks its members and all Americans who believe that there is no room in 21st century America for the hateful bigotry of the 19th to contact ABC TV President Ben Sherwood at Ben.Sherwood@disney.comor by Twitter @bensherwood with the hashtag #CancelRealONeals.

The Hibernians call on its 40,000 members and our fellow Americans of all ethnicities to send a clear message to Disney/ABC that there is no room in the America of the 21^st century for bigoted ethnic based stereotypes no matter who the target is.

Satire and sarcasm are standard tools of the opinion writing trade. However, Dana Milbank overstepped the line from drollery to denigration in his March 18 op-ed column, “A fanciful GOP budget,” when he used St. Patrick’s Day as a prop to lampoon House Republicans.

For Milbank to trivialize and denigrate St. Patrick’s Day as a “festival of inebriation in honor of the man who magically (and apocryphally) banished snakes from Ireland” is an outrage and insult to all Irish Americans.

I would direct Milbank to President Obama’s proclamation of March as Irish American Heritage Month and the numerous contributions that Irish Americans have made to this country, contributions celebrated by those who embrace the true meaning of St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick, himself taken as a slave, was one of the first recorded voices to condemn slavery and preached a gospel of respect for not only humanity but also the environment, messages as relevant today as they were 1,500 years ago and well worth honoring.

The insensitive denigration of Irish Americans’ patron saint is inexcusable. There should be no room in a 21st-century newspaper for the bigoted, ethnic-based tropes of the 19th.

Neil F. Cosgrove

The writer is national anti-defamation chair for the Ancient Order of Hibernians.