Tomás Ó Flatharta

Looking at Things from the Left

Archive for the ‘Racism’ Category

Taoiseach Simon Harris Announces Irish General Election on November 29 – Heading to Phoenix Park HQ of President Michael D Higgins to dissolve current Dáil – Support Credible Radical Left Candidates

with one comment

https://www.rte.ie/news/2024/1108/1479774-end-33-dail-general-election/

Simon Harris confirmed that he’ll travel to Áras an Uachtaráin shortly to ask President Higgins to dissolve the Dáil.

The election is set for Friday 29 November 2024.

A number of radical left candidates against any coalition deal with FFFFGGG have a realistic chance of winning a Dáil seat. [FFFGGG = Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, Greens, Gombeens].

One of them is Councillor John Lyons in Dublin Bay North.

Councillor John Lyons (Second left) supports Irish Left With Ukraine (Seen Here Picketing the Dublin Russian Embassy of Vladimir Putin

Rejecting any coalition deals with FFFGGG and a policy that All refugees Are Welcome should be top priorities for radical left candidates in this general election.

People Before Profit (PBP) candidates also endorse the above policy.

Link :


No Coalition with FF or FG – PBP Conor Reddy

John Meehan, November 7 2024

Written by tomasoflatharta

Nov 8, 2024 at 2:22 pm

Posted in 26 County State (Ireland), Anti War Movements, Boris Kagarlitsky, Councillor John Lyons, Direct Provision - Irish Gombeen State Racism, Dublin 7 for All, Dublin Communities Against Racism (DCAR), Dublin Governments, Dublin’s racist mobs hit the city centre, 23.11.23, Elected Left for Ukraine, Fall of the Berlin Wall, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, Free Russians Ireland, Green Party, History of Ireland, Holly Cairns TD (Cork South West), Hope and Courage Collective, Independent Left (Ireland), International Political Analysis, Ireland, Irish Left With Ukraine, Ivana Bacik TD, Labour Party Leader, Labour Party (Ireland), Left Unity, Mary Lou McDonald TD, Micheál Martin TD, Niamh McDonald, Paul Murphy TD Dublin South-West, People Before Profit, Political Prisoners in Russia, President Michael D Higgins, Racism, Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ), RISE, Roderick O'Gorman TD, Russia, Show Racism the Red Card, Simon Harris TD, Sinn Féin, Social Democrats (Ireland), Ukraine

Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Keegan says election candidacy ‘an error of judgement’ – Stardust Tragedy Survivor Steps Back From Racist-Fascist Irish National Party

leave a comment »

https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2024/1107/1479671-antoinette-keegan-election/

Stardust Survivor Antoinette Keegan will not be a 2024 Irish General Election candidate on behalf of the fascist-racist Irish National Party. She has made a good decision.

Gardaí criticised over treatment of minority communities at Culture Night block party – Disturbing Dublin Reports : Gay Community News and University Times

leave a comment »

This report comes from Gay Community News via the Cedar Lounge Revolution blog.

The author is Sarah Creighton Keogh

Gardaí criticised over treatment of minority communities at Culture Night block party

The arrests of three individuals at a Culture Night block party have led to discussions around the treatment of minority communities.

Photo : Wikipedia Commons

Source :
Light-touch policing


On the night of Friday, September 20, three individuals were arrested in Dublin’s Temple Bar area for public order offences, according to An Garda Síochána. The arrests took place during a block party hosted by Tola Vintage, a popular clothing store, as part of the city’s Culture Night celebrations. The event was held outside the flagship store on Fownes Street, with Tola Vintage having two other locations in the city on College Green and Aungier Street.

The incident, captured on video and widely circulated on social media, has ignited public discourse around policing in Ireland, particularly in relation to the treatment of minority communities.

The footage shows a significant Garda presence at the party, and what started as a celebration quickly escalated into a violent altercation. In the video, multiple gardaí can be seen subduing one man, with witnesses heard shouting, “He’s bleeding.”

Read the rest of this entry »

English Soccer Manager, an Irish citizen, won’t sing “God Save the King” – Daily Mail leads racist tabloid mob – English FA should sack Lee Carsley!

with one comment

Lee Carsley solidarity campaign starts now!

The former Irish international might accept an offer to co-manage Ireland with the Icelander Heimir Hallgrímsson.

Has far-right racist poison infected English sporting journalism again?

That’s like asking if the Pope is a Catholic.

From the Irish Times, September 7 2024

Irish Citizen Lee Carsley Will Not Sing “God Save the King”

Lee Carsley might have thought that an inquiry about anthem-singing at his pre-match press conference on Friday was harmless enough. “I fully respect both anthems and understand how much they mean to both countries,” he said. But he has never joined in on the crooning either as a player for Ireland or as manager of the England under-21s because he is “in a zone at that point”, he wants to focus on the match ahead, being “wary” of his mind “wandering off”.

Grand. Moving along … ooooooh, hold it.

Never mind asking God to save the King, it’s Carsley who needs saving from that section of the English press that lost its tiny mind on hearing his comments. It was the lead story – the lead! – on the front page – the front! – of the Telegraph and the Daily Mail, there was a deluge of incandescent opinion pieces, it featured on the news on BBC Radio and LBC and … you get the drift.

Read the rest of this entry »

“Cork city’s Lord Mayor defends Naked Bike Ride photo” – far right desperados open a new culture war in Ireland

with one comment

A key idea needs endless repetition.

The far-right is on the warpath, highlighting a number of seemingly obscure cultural and political issues. These bigots are 21st century spiritual descendants of the sinister religious orders who created magdalene laundry prisons and torture chambers locking up generations of Irish women and children after the 26 county bit of Ireland became a state in 1922.

We can say with confidence – first they came for the transgender community, then they went after the naked bike-riders. Cork’s 21st century spiritual descendant of the notorious Laois anti-semite bigot Oliver J Flanagan TD (Fine Gael) is Kenneth O’Flynn of the Independent Ireland (II) party.

An editorial from the current Belfast Media publication offers a very useful guide to these issues :

A settled and utterly uncontroversial matter until it was identified in far-right focus grouping

‘The Trans question was a settled & utterly uncontroversial matter until it was identified in far-right focus-grouping as a potential goldmine for those who profit from fear & division.’

Read the rest of this entry »

Majority of Irish people welcome migrants who move here to ‘make a better life for themselves’

leave a comment »

Survey responses often depend on how the question is framed.

Like me, I am sure many readers are sick and tired of tactics used by many mainstream media organisations to bolster a sinister racist agenda. This is a drum regularly beaten by friends who post at two excellent blogs : Irish Election Projections and the Cedar Lounge Revolution

Sources :

The Journal.ie story :

Majority of Irish people welcome migrants who move here to ‘make a better life for themselves’

Read the rest of this entry »

Racist-Transphobic Laois Councillor Aidan Mullins resigns from Sinn Féin

leave a comment »

First the good news :

A Sinn Féin councillor has resigned from the party, saying he took the decision to do so after being “silenced” by his party on the migration crisis and the recent referendums on family and carers.
Long-serving Laois county councillor Aidan Mullins announced his resignation after he was told he would be suspended from the party for three months.


Racist and Transphobic Laois Councillor Aidan Mullins resigns from Sinn Féin

Mr Mullins has form
Aidan Mullins, racist SF councillor in Laois

Second, the bad news.

Sinn Féin continues playing to the racist gallery; here is a leaflet issued by party leader Mary-Lou McDonald in the Dublin Central Constituency :

Read the rest of this entry »

The (undemocratic) Democratic Party machine lurches toward the election – Grim Presidential Tales from the USA

leave a comment »

Sharon Smith, writing for International Socialism, explores the control wielded by the Democratic Party establishment over the nomination process in her article, “The (undemocratic) Democratic Party machine lurches toward the election.

Foreword : USA Presidential elections are shit-shows – mud-slinging works.

Readers may know a famous Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) quip about why he called his opponent a pig fucker. Johnson admitted it wasn’t true, but “I want him to have to deny it,” he explained.

Mr Johnson became President of the USA in November 1963, taking over from the assassinated John F Kennedy.

Johnson won an election landslide in 1964 claiming his opponent Barry Goldwater was a fanatical warmonger. By 1968 demonstrators all over the globe were marching against the USA invasion of Vietnam – a favourite chant was :

“Hey, Hey, LBJ

How many kids did you kill today”

Donald Trump (age 78) looked more mentally capable than President Joe Biden (age 82) in a recent TV debate. The New York felon, convicted in a jury trial and fined 86 million dollars for sexually assaulting the writer E Jean Carroll, is now up against a more formidable Democratic party opponent Kamala Harris (age 59). The gloves are off :

“Ms Harris, speaking at a private fundraiser headlined by singer-songwriter James Taylor in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, said much of the rhetoric coming from Mr Trump and his running mate, US Senator JD Vance, was “just plain weird.”

Her use of the word “weird” to describe her opponents was part of a new strategy from Democrats.

The Harris campaign called Mr Trump “old and quite weird” following his appearance on Fox News on Thursday, and at least one supporter showed up outside the event yesterday holding a sign proclaiming “Trump is weird.” – RTÉ News Report


The (undemocratic) Democratic Party machine lurches toward the election – by Sharon Smith

What the Democratic Party establishment wants, it gets—and that includes its chosen presidential candidate. It had anointed Joe Biden well before the election primary season got underway in early 2024. This is why Biden ran virtually unopposed and predictably won every Democratic primary.

But the path to Biden’s reelection was not as smooth as Democratic Party leaders envisioned, mainly because Biden’s cognitive decline—underway for several years—has accelerated in recent months. Perhaps the leaders of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) believed they could shield the public from Biden’s decline through the entire election cycle by limiting his time in the public eye. That strategy backfired badly. The Party leadership is entirely to blame for the ensuing chaos. But don’t expect them to change course.

Read the rest of this entry »

With Vance, Trump is doubling down on Maga

leave a comment »

An article from the Financial Times journalist Edward Luce, which should be a wake-up call.

Donald Trump’s running mate opposes abortion and aid to Ukraine and says he would not have certified results of 2020 vote.

With Vance, Trump is doubling down on Maga

Ohio senator is an intelligent and forceful exponent of the Maga movement — and maybe also its future

If there were any doubts that Donald Trump would go full “America First” he banished them on Monday with his vice-presidential pick. JD Vance is the most high-profile Trumpian cheerleader among senior Republicans.

Trump could have held his nose and chosen Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor, who gave him the biggest run for his money in the Republican primaries. Haley is a relative moderate on abortion. Selecting her, or a like-minded figure, would have signalled that he wanted to broaden his appeal to wavering suburban female Republicans.

Vance, by contrast, is an unapologetic Christian conservative. If Joe Biden can find a silver lining in the gathering storm clouds, Vance would be it. Biden’s vice-president, Kamala Harris, is an effective campaigner on a woman’s right to choose. 

Read the rest of this entry »

France : The far right has been pushed back by popular mobilization – now we must implement the programme of the New Popular Front – Nouveau Parti Anticapitaliste (NPA)

leave a comment »

A great result for the left from France, July 7 2024. The NPA’s reactions is below :

Source :
Far right pushed back by popular mobilization – implement programme of New Popular Front- NPA

The main lesson of the first results of this second round is the setback suffered by the Rassemblement national and its allies. The defeat of the hundreds of fascist, racist, Islamophobic, antisemitic and ultra-racist candidates put forward by the RN is a huge relief for racialized people, women, LGBTI+ people and workers. This victory for the united left has halted the momentum of the far right, which nonetheless won around fifty more seats. This defeat of the far right of Bardella and Le Pen is the fruit of the popular mobilization that took place thanks to the unitive impetus provided by the creation of the New Popular Front.

This is already a victory for the New Popular Front, which was made possible by the rallying of the entire left – political parties, trade unions and campaigning groups – , but also and above all by the grassroots mobilization of large sectors of the working classes, in particular racialized people and young people, who committed themselves everywhere to blocking the RN. This made it possible for a very large number of New Popular Front MPs (including a relative majority for LFI) to be elected to the National Assembly on the basis of a programme that breaks not only with Macronism in the service of the ultra-rich, but also with the liberal left of the Hollande mandate, which had followed the policies of the right.

Read the rest of this entry »