February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
As part of a weeklong trip, the group visited the New York Irish Center in Long Island City, the Aisling Center in Yonkers, Catholic Charities in the Bronx and the Irish Immigration Apostle Center in Philadelphia. On Friday, they will meet senior representatives for Senators Kennedy and McCain in Washington.
From JFK airport, they headed straight for the Emerald Isle Immigration Center in Woodside.
“I think this trip is pretty significant,” said Siobh_n Dennehy, the center’s Executive Director, who donned a lime-green suit for the occasion.
“It’s the first time the government has sent a delegation over here to deal specifically with the undocumented Irish.”
Arriving a mere 10 minutes behind schedule, Dublin TD Michael Woods and Former Irish Transport Minister Mary O’Rourke led the committee of six as they crowded into the small lobby, looking crinkled from the flight and flushed from the heat.
They were in high spirits nevertheless and O’Rourke led the introductions, greeting everybody with a firm handshake and a kiss on the cheek.
The rest of the delegation, Cork TD Bernard Allen, Leitrim Senator Pascal Mooney, Cork Senator Paul Bradford and committee advisor Dermot O’Mahony, followed suit, mingling and shaking hands with staff and a couple of bemused-looking young men in shorts and Galway jerseys who were sitting in the waiting area.
Dennehy greeted the group warmly but ushered them firmly into the conference room, where a traditional Irish welcome of tea and scones awaited – possibly to soften them up for the round of tough talking that followed.
After the meeting, which went on for over an hour, Cullen presented Dennehy with a Newbridge silver clock on behalf of the delegation.
“I approve,” she said with a smile, “My father’s an Athy man!”
As the group drifted out of the office and scattered around the lobby to chat with various members of staff, Minister Woods spoke about his hopes for their meeting in Washington.
“We believe this is a good bill for Ireland and for America,” he said.
“These are people who want to work in America, and America wants to accommodate them if you look at the situation on the ground. There are currently 90,000 people employed by American companies in Ireland, and there are 65,000 Americans employed by Irish companies in the U.S. It seemed obvious that we should come now, we don’t want to let anytime slip away.”
In response to arguments that the bill does do enough to help undocumented Irish currently living in the U.S. he said: “It’s not amnesty, but it’s a very big step ahead. It’s an opportunity to regularize people who are undocumented. It provides a way for people to come and work in the States and establish themselves. The bill a long way to go at this stage, but we want to follow it all the way.”
Dennehy was positive that the group would present a strong case in Washington.
“I was pleasantly surprised with the level of knowledge that the group arrived with, they were very well-versed,” she said.
“The fact that they are heading to Washington to represent the Irish undocumented with that level of knowledge is great.”