Migrants put thoughts into designing postcards as part of An Post scheme

YOUNG PEOPLE from immigrant and minority backgrounds are being asked to put their views of Ireland to creative use by designing original postcards under an An Post scheme.

The nationwide initiative, targeting different groups each month, tries to harness young artistic talent and assemble a social record of young people’s representations of Ireland. Next month’s theme is migration.

A spokeswoman for the organisers said the “An Post C Both Sides” theme for August would encourage those who have either moved to or from Ireland in the recent past, and would record the “individual experiences and expressions of a whole new age of people in Ireland.

“Ireland has long been a country with high emigration levels. Until very recently, many of our rural areas saw a continuous migration abroad,” she said. “With all of this distance, a vital role was played by the letters, postcards and parcels that Irish immigrants sent home.

“Ireland’s new communities now use these services to keep in touch with their own homelands, so although much has changed in our society, the simple act of posting a letter home, by those living far away from family and friends, is still vital to many.”

Further details can be found at www.anpostcbothsides.ie.