Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The United States and Ireland are woven together in so many different ways. We have an incredibly complex and far-reaching history. The first tune people learn on the fiddle when they are taught music here is the hornpipe "The Rights of Man". I was amazed to find out recently that weeks after "Rights of Man" had been published in New York it was published on Grafton Street and it took hold in this country like fire. In response to it, Mary Wollstonecraft, who lived across the road at No. 15 Merrion Square for a period, added to the fire with "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman". This freedom thinking, from the "Rights of Man" and "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman", were embedded deeply the Irish culture.

Washington's army was made up hugely of Scots Irish immigrants who were refugees from religious persecution. These were the founding fathers, and the founding institutions were set up by that culture. When Washington's army was fighting the British there was a reduction in soldiers here because the British had to fight in America. In response the Irish Yeomanry volunteers were established, as were the United Irishmen by Wolfe Tone. Each of them used the shamrock in their flags to denote this new sense of Irish nationhood, freedom and identity, and they sang about "The Wearing of the Green". This is still sung, and it is deeply woven into US consciousness and thinking today because of all those people.

In our house we recently found out that an ancestor of my wife's as a young 14 year old from the dissenting tradition in Donegal read Uncle Tom's Cabinby Harriet Beecher Stowe and with other young men from Donegal migrated to join Lincoln's army. It is an incredible story, a 14 year old going on the boat and journey to join Lincoln's army. With Lincoln's army they fought under the flag with the shamrock. At the same time, as Sebastian Barry writes in his book Days Without End, the confederates came at them with the confederate flag on one side and the shamrock on the other. The image on the flag is not unimportant. It also flew in Mexico, when St. Patrick's Battalion took the Mexican side in the Mexican-American War. This imagery, particularly of the shamrock and the wearing of the green, goes right back to the core of Irish and US history. This is why everyone was so proud when John F. Kennedy came here and presented the flag which is at the entrance of Leinster House. It is an important part of the House. It is the flag of the Irish Brigade showing its involvement in the American Civil War.

We must remember today what Kennedy said, that self-determination can no longer mean isolation and no nation large or small can be indifferent to the fate of others. It is in this context the Green Party states we should stand up and wear the green today and state we respect and stand up for the Mexican Government. How dare the Trump Administration treat another government in the way it has treated the Mexican Government in recent months. If it treats that country of 120 million people, its most important nearest neighbour, in this way how will it treat others?

We stand up for the wearing of the green and state we do not accept torture. We stand by Thomas Paine. We stand by Washington and others, and the values established under the US Constitution because it is plain wrong not to do so. Yes, Deputy Mick Wallace is right, we also stand up against the drone strikes the Obama Administration introduced, but at least there was a sense in the Obama Administration that it believed in those constitutional values which are woven into our constitutional values which we hold so dear. We stand up and wear green by stating we refuse to accept a US Administration which is about to try to dismantle the climate agreement in which we all have a life or death interest for the future of our people. For this reason we must stand up. Perhaps most importantly, we stand up for the rights of those people from countries such as Syria, Iraq, Libya and elsewhere in the Middle East who have been the victims of the terrorism that has been unleashed by the bombings in Iraq and Libya in recent years and state we cannot stand for this.

What do we do? We should take inspiration from the speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, who stated it is not an automatic right but an earned honour for someone such as President Trump to speak in Westminster Hall, and he will not accept him doing so because opposition to racism and sexism, support for equality before the law and an independent Judiciary are hugely important considerations for the House of Commons. They are the constitutional values we should also stand up for but we are not doing so.

I am afraid the speech of the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade was very weak. Commenting on the order, he stated it could have far reaching implications and further noted the Government fully shares the concerns expressed by other EU partners regarding the development. That is not good enough. It is not strong enough. It does not give a message that we need to stand up and represent.

Deputy Darragh O’Brien said in response to the Minister that his approach was very well handled and well considered. I am sorry but I beg to differ. Even if we had been in government, and as the Deputy said it is not easy in government, we would not just be sitting back and doing nothing, which is what is represented in the Minister's speech. What can we do? The Taoiseach is going over there. Let us start by not presenting the bowl of shamrock. Let us think of other ways of making a point because this is all about images and symbolism. Let us get an Erin go Brach flag from the period. It does not have to be Mexican one because I do not believe we have any of them left. Let us get a symbol of the shamrock which represents what we stand for. Why not hand him a copy of the Rights of Manwith a small shamrock on top? We must do something differently.

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