Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We have all watched the devastation and the scenes in Ukraine recently. Perhaps the most devastating of all of these images were those of families being ripped apart and of women and children and, in some cases, children on their own travelling across borders. I am very aware that thousands of these children and women will be coming to Ireland in the coming weeks. Some have already come. We have spoken about that. I am also very aware that the trauma these people have experienced, and will continue to experience, is unimaginable. These people will soon be on our streets, in our schools and in our shops. They will be anxious, waiting for news from home. Their families will be missing fathers and they will be missing friends and other relatives. We cannot bury our heads in the sand and pretend that there is no racism or discrimination in this State. We have seen on social media racism and vicious attacks from certain individuals who are determined to bring down this State. We need to make sure that our streets are safe for those coming from Ukraine, Syria, Yemen or Palestine, for refugees from other parts of the world who might come here in the future and for members of other marginalised groups such as the LGBTQI community, disabled people and members of the Traveller community. Ireland has a long history of oppression but we also have a long history of compassion. We cannot let that be overshadowed by the voices of a few who want to target and discriminate against people based on differences. Hate crime and hate speech have no place in our society. We are better than that.

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