Are you Irish and living abroad? Have you come across anti-Irish sentiment or outdated negative views about Irish people where you live recent years?
The issue of anti-Irish racism has come to the fore after the case of an Irish woman in the UK whose boss repeatedly shouted the word “potato” at her “in a strong Irish accent”. She won more than £23,000 after an employment tribunal found she had been racially harassed.
While anti-Irish bigotry is well-documented in the UK and US decades ago, what about now? How commonplace is casual racism against Irish people living in other countries? Have you experienced any strongly anti-Irish sentiment, in a social or a work setting or generally in recent day-to-day life?
Maybe there were distasteful references to the famine or to alcohol consumption or other tired stereotypes. Or have you been treated differently, harassed or mocked because you were Irish?
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How did you react and how did it make you feel? Did you correct the person, laugh it off, seethe silently or complain?
In the UK case, Irish book-keeper Bernadette Hayes, who is Irish, described suffering “a death by 1,000 cuts” between December 2023 and June 2024 while working for engineering company West Leeds Civils.
The firm’s director Mick Atkins also used the terms “paddy”, “stupid paddy” and “pikey”, Leeds employment tribunal heard.
A judge ruled that the “offensive and humiliating” phrases are “overtly linked to race” before awarding the claimant £20,735.91 and ordering the business to give her four weeks’ pay, amounting to £2,800.
You can let us know about your experience using the form below. You can write two sentences or three paragraphs but please limit your submissions to 400 words or less. We will call you to clarify your story Please include a phone number for verification purposes only. If you would prefer to remain anonymous, please indicate this in your submission – we will keep your name and contact details confidential.
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