Washington National Gala 2002

With over 1,300 people in attendance, the 10th Anniversary of the National Gala held in The Ronald Reagan International Trade Center was a marvelous evening.

This year's honorees, the Honorable Tommy Thompson, Secretary of Health and Human Services and Congressman Richard E. Neal were recognized for their distinguished contributions to peace and reconciliation in Ireland and presented with the International Leadership Award.

The second presentation of The American Ireland Fund Peace Award was made to An Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern. This award, created in 2000, recognizes an individual who has provided outstanding leadership in promoting the peace process in Northern Ireland.

Thanks to the work of Gala Chair Gerald Cassidy, and dinner co-chairs Elizabeth Frawley Bagley, Thomas Corcoran, Dennis Lucey, John McDonnell, Jr., Ray McGrath, George Moore and Paul Quinn, the evening was a tremendous success.

Photos

1 - Patricia & Dan Rooney with John Hume (center)
2 - Senator John Kerry helps out Charles U. Daly!
3 - The dinner in full swing
4 - Jack McDonnell & family
5 - Joseph Corcoran chats with Tom McDonagh
6 - Senator Ted Kennedy with honoree Congressman Richard Neal and Kingsley Aikins
7 - Senator Ted Kennedy addresses the audience
8 - Congressman Richard Neal
9 - Ray McGrath, Paul Quinn, Congressman David Obey, An Taoiseach Bertie Ahern with Secretary Tommy Thompson
10 - Chairman of The American Ireland Fund Loretta Brennan Glucksman with An Taoiseach Bertie Ahern & Kingsley Aikins
11 - Carine & John Reid, Northern Ireland Secretary, Celia Larkin & Bertie Ahern with Loretta Brennan Glucksman
12 - Gala Dinner Chairs: Ray McGrath, Gerry Cassidy, Paul Quinn, Elizabeth Frawley Bagley, George Moore, Dennis Lucey & Tom Corcoran

REMARKS OF CONGRESSMAN RICHARD E. NEAL
(D-MASS) AT THE AMERICAN IRELAND FUND DINNER

Thank you, Senator Kennedy for that kind introduction.There has no better friend to Ireland, and no more effective legislator in the United States Senate than Ted Kennedy. I also want to recognize the family of that other son of Massachusetts, former Speaker Thomas "Tip" O'Neill. These two Irish Americans, more than any other, are responsible for the raising the issue of Ireland to the level that it enjoys in Washington today.

An Taoiseach, Cardinal McCarrick, Sir Anthony O'Reilly, Loretta Brennan Glucksman, Gerry Cassidy, Secretary Thompson, Members of Congress and distinguished guests.

Before I begin my formal remarks, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize tonight's Honorary Chairman, Ambassador Sean O'Huiginn. After five years of outstanding service in our nation's capitol, the Ambassador and his charming wife Bernadette will be moving to Berlin this summer. The Irish government has always sent their very best to represent them in Washington, and there is no finer example than Sean. Thank you for your guidance, counsel and friendship.

We are gathered here tonight, on the 1,541st Anniversary of the death of St. Patrick , to celebrate the American Ireland Fund's 10th National Gala, and recall that it was Patrick who said we must all be a witness to justice.

If you measure time by decades, tonight is the end of an extraordinary chapter in the relationship between the United States and Ireland, and the fresh start of a new one. The transformation of that small island,
North and South, in the past ten years, has been nothing short of remarkable. Since 1992, with America's help, we have witnessed events that in previous times would have been simply unimaginable. And with the full implementation of the historic Good Friday Agreement, many believe that the island of Ireland's best days are yet to come.

At the dawning of this new century, we celebrate the economic, cultural and political success of that vibrant island three thousand miles away that has helped give new meaning to our lives. And we do so in this magnificent center of international trade that is named after a man whose great-grandfather, Michael Reagan, came from County Tipperary.

Take a moment to reflect back on the past decade and think of how far we have come. Ten years ago, the Berlin Wall came down, the yoke of Marxism was lifted from eastern Europe and majority rule came to South Africa. Many people like you in this room asked:"When is it Ireland's turn?"

At that time and place, Albert Reynolds was Taoiseach and John Major was the British Prime Minister. In Washington, a man named Bill Clinton was about to be sworn in as President of the United States. Who would have imagined that these three men, from such different and distinct backgrounds, would begin the process that would ultimately lead to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement?

A decade ago, there was no talk about cease-fire, the decommissioning of paramilitary weapons or the devolution of power. Who would have dared to suggest that people like John Hume, Gerry Adams and David Trimble would courageously sign their names on a document that would seek to build a new agreed upon Ireland?

And in 1992, the idea that people of Ireland would be given a chance to vote on a new future was unthinkable. Would anyone have predicted that there would be a referendum on self-determination that 85% of the men and women on that island would support?

It may have seemed incomprehensible at the time, but people with bold vision on both sides of the Atlantic were prepared to take great risks for peace. People like George Mitchell, and Bertie Ahern and Tony Blair who never lost their faith or their nerve in the elusive pursuit of peace. And the countless others who are not here tonight from places like Limerick, Dingle, Newry and Strabane who simply yearned for a new beginning. For them, too, it was a gamble worth taking. Like Sisyphus, they kept rolling the bolder back up the hill.

Because of this leap of faith, by nationalist and unionist, loyalist and republican, life tonight in the North is vastly different. Lasting peace and reconciliation now seem achievable. A society that embraces equality, tolerance and mutual trust is finally within reach. But the only way forward, the only way to accomplish these goals, is through full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. And it is the collective responsibility of everyone who has a stake in the future of that island to build on that accord, not to try and tear it down, undermine or dilute it.

The time for the people of Northern Ireland to start governing themselves is long overdue. These extraordinary people must start living ordinary lives.

Life in the North and along the border is far different than it was just ten years ago. The number of British soldiers deployed has been reduced, security installations are being removed, watchtowers are coming down, and holding centers are being closed. There is the promise of a newpoliceservice, a fair and impartial criminal justice system, equality of opportunity, a new human rights commission, sustained economic development and greater North-South cooperation. These sweeping changes were specifically designed to benefit both great traditions in the North. They favor nationalists and unionists equally. And it is my genuine hope tonight that both communities will reap the full benefits of this new dispensation.

Politics was not the only export from the island that captured America's attention in the last decade. Irish music, art literature, dance and culture became the rage of this continent.

Whether it was Seamus Heaney, Roddy Doyle, Frank McCourt, Riverdance, Neil Jordan, the Chieftains, Van Morrison or the Corrs, America was keen to be Irish. And when Bono and U2 can play the Super Bowl and the World Economic Forum in the same week, well, you know Ireland's time on the world stage has arrived.

In 2002, searching for a thatched roof house would be futile. It is a different Ireland than the one our parents, grandparents and great-grandparents left. The contrast of the success of those seated in this room with the tortured history of our lineage can be stark.

The poet reminds us that time is famous for its irony. It is the irony of this St. Patrick's Day that represents a great exodus, a long journey and a remarkable triumph for people so often under the heel of history. And it is the honor of a lifetime to receive this award from an organization that has done so much to make a difference in the lives of so many people on the island of my ancestors.

More than 100 years ago, the first immigrant stepped off the boat at Ellis Island, and her name was Annie Moore. At that moment, with precious little fanfare, the special courtship between America and Ireland began. As the grandson of immigrants from Bainbridge and Ventry, my experience suggests that we have become two people separated only by the sea whose relationship grows stronger with the passing of time.

Yeats said it best: "Though the leaves are many, the root is one."

Thank you, very much.