Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

As other Members have said, racism exists in Ireland, but it is important to state that it is not a new problem. I remember as a teenager watching an English television drama set on a building site in London. At the height of an argument between an old Irish navvy and young black British brickie, the Irish lad said without a trace of irony to the British lad, "Why don't you go back to where you came from?". That one sentence encapsulates the very heart of racism - the idea that someone does not belong, is not from here and, therefore, should be treated differently.

For this reason, I believe that the Twenty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution Act 2004 - the idea that, despite being born in Ireland, people do not belong here in the same way we do because of who their parents are - was racist. It is why I believe that opposition to Traveller accommodation, including the sale of public land to prevent such accommodation being provided, is telling those families that they do not belong and is ultimately racist. It is why I believe that the segregation of asylum applicants into wholly inappropriate direct provision is racist. It is why the significant number of physical and verbal attacks on people of colour are racist and why anti-Semitism and Islamophobia are racist.

It is time to stop asking whether we have a problem with racism and start saying it is time to do much more to combat it. This week, the Irish Network Against Racism published a useful online resource, entitled "10 Things You Can Do About Racism in Ireland". I recommend that every Deputy and all people concerned about the problem read it and do something.

Of course, words are not enough and action at all levels, especially Government, is what matters. Let us make a clear statement today - Ireland belongs to all of us, not just those of us who were born here, but those who come here, work here and contribute to our society. Let us work together and tackle racism once and for all.

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