[LINK] "St. Patrick's Day tradition made in U.S., not Ireland"

[rfmcdonald]

CBC's Meagan Fitzpatrick writes about how the modern celebration of St. Patrick's Day is really a product not of Ireland but of the Irish-Americans.

Irish immigrants in the U.S. began their own St. Patrick traditions in the 18th century. According to [academic Mike] Cronin's research, a group of elite Irishmen first gathered for a celebratory dinner in Boston on March 17, 1737.

The parade tradition was born about 30 years later in New York City in 1766 when Irish Catholic members of the British army took to the streets.

"What the Irish start doing is parading on St. Patrick's Day as a way of declaring their ethnicity," said Cronin.

Not all Irish immigrants to the U.S. were welcomed. They were characterized by some as drunken, violent and disease-carrying. The parades offered Irish-Americans an opportunity to showcase their pride and cultural identity.

As more immigrants arrived they felt strength in numbers, and the Irish started climbing the social ladder, moving into positions of power in local police forces, for example, and in commerce.

They kept marching, in more cities, in more public spaces, and not just in typically Irish neighbourhoods.

"We are here, we're not going away, and we are powerful," Cronin said of the attitude behind the parades.