The St. Patrick's Day War / Call for a Culture Jam

national | miscellaneous | news report Friday March 07, 2003 21:48 by Graham Caswell caswell at indigo dot ie

What will YOU celebrate this St. Patrick's day?

Britain and America have chosen March 17th as the day on which they will abandon international rule of law in favour of war. Since this day is also Ireland's national day, and for the global celebration of Irishness, Irish activists have been given a platform from which they can be heard around the world. So let the call go out: there is nothing to celebrate - wear black this St. Patrick's day.

Britain and the United States have given March 17th as a deadline for Iraq to disarm or face war. Since the decision to go to war has already been made, March 17th is, in effect, the day that the pretence of legality will be abandoned. What the United States and Britain are actually saying is that war can begin at any time after St. Patrick's day.

Here in Ireland we are a small, bit player in the global games that are being played - barely noticed by the powers involved. In only two ways can Ireland have any effect on events - by the statements and positions of our government (which won't happen), and by possible disruption to US military traffic through Shannon airport. Even these influences are minimal: Ireland is only one small nation among many and, even if Shannon were to be closed to US military traffic, that traffic would simply relocate elsewhere.

However the date of the American and British deadline has offered another possibility for Ireland to have an influence. St. Patrick's day, March 17th is not only Ireland's national day, but a global day of celebration of all things Irish. In New York, in Moscow, in Tokyo and in many other places around the world people will parade in celebration of Irishness. From small towns in New Zealand to the cities of Europe there will be shamrock and leprechaun stickers in shop windows and people will wear green. Unlike any other national holiday, St. Patrick's day has become part of the western holiday calendar along with Halloween and Valentine's day. Nowhere is this phenomena more pronounced than in the United States, where 40 million people claim Irish ancestry.

And with the green beer, and the silly hats and the shamrock come media attention. Almost every newscast, every morning show, every radio phone-in, every newspaper will have a St. Patrick day's feature on March 17th, often focusing on Ireland. In the land of corporate conformity St. Patrick's day is an automatic event between Valentines and Easter and its focus is the Emerald Isle. This is the one day of the year that it is almost guaranteed that the world's attention will be on Ireland.

Except that this year we know another event that will also capture the world's attention on March 17th - the expiration of the pretence of legality and the beginning of the move to war. March 17th. and the beginning of war, St. Patrick's day and Iraq, Shamrock and suffering, leprechauns and Tomahawk missiles - all will combine this year. But imagine if, on this St. Patrick's day, Ireland told the world that war is wrong?

Symbolism is important to people - often much more important than they realise. To link the Irishness of St. Patrick's day with an unambiguous anti-war message in the minds of the 40 million Americans claiming Irish ancestry could have a significant effect on American public opinion and thus on the American government's enthusiasm for war. We have been handed an opportunity to do this by the US/UK's choice of date since they have given Ireland's day as their deadline.

If the activists of Ireland - the very people who use Indymedia.ie - were to make a call for people to wear black on St. Patrick's day, that would have an effect. If PANA, and the IAWM and MAMA, and the NGO Peace Alliance and other groups against the war were to make a public call for everybody to wear black on St. Patrick's day, that would have an effect. If the call went out on the websites, on the email lists, in the meetings and in leaflets for people to wear black on St. Patrick's day, then that would have an effect.

And further. If, from Ireland, the call went out for people to wear black on St. Patrick's day on global Indymedia, on Adbusters, on international email lists, in phone calls and on websites - that would have an effect. If others were encouraged to pass on this call, around and around the world, that would have an effect. If the call went out from Ireland, the Emerald Isle, for people to wear black on St. Patrick's day, there would be an effect. Possibly an important effect.

On March 17th are we really going to celebrate Irishness on the same day that the rush to war enters its final and most deadly phase? Are we going to celebrate the first Tomahawk missiles pounding into Baghdad? Are we going to celebrate the incineration of human beings with fuel-air bombs? Are we going to celebrate the end of international legality and rule of law?

Let's jam St. Patrick's day with an anti-war message. Wear black on March 17th.