Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We have all, I hope, been shocked and deeply saddened and angered by the injustices we have seen coming out of the US. It is easy to talk about the evils of racism as being over there, all the way over in America, but here in Ireland we need to search our own hearts. Prejudice is deeply rooted in all of us. It is fed by background, popular culture and, in Ireland, a sometimes clannish mistrust of people from other cultures. It is all borne out of a complex sense of inferiority because, as a colonised country and as migrants, we were once sinned against. However, as our President, Michael D. Higgins, once said, we have also been sinners.

As a nation we need to look at the places where these attitudes are formed. I could give examples but we all know them. The terrible truth is that racism exists in Ireland. It needs to be called out and stamped out. I was shocked when a constituent showed me one EU study which found that 13% of black people have experienced racism in Ireland. This compares with the EU average of only 5%. As a country we desperately need to examine our conscience. Countless studies show that multicultural societies are enriched societies. I praise community groups like Clonakilty Friends of Asylum Seekers. They have done Trojan work in supporting direct provision residents and helping them to feel part of the community as well as helping locals to inform and educate themselves on their backgrounds. I also praise the incoming hate speech legislation and the potential incoming Government's pledge to once and for all end direct provision. We need a closer look at our institutions as well. Our social and political institutions need to ask themselves whether they are fully representative of modern Ireland. Deputies need only take a look around this room. It is plain to see we are not fully representative of modern Ireland and her ethnicities. That needs to change if we are serious about driving out the prejudice that fuels racism.

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