IRELAND/USA: Thousands of people line the streets in Dublin and New York as St. Patrick's Day celebrations get underway

Record ID: 657086

  • Title: IRELAND/USA: Thousands of people line the streets in Dublin and New York as St. Patrick's Day celebrations get underway
  • Date: 18th March 2006
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF US SOLDIERS MARCHING IN THE PARADE SPECTATORS CHEERING
  • Embargoed: 2nd April 2006 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment / Showbiz,Lifestyle
  • Reuters ID: LVA9H1INTH7REAGXET7QBTHF6W66
  • Story Text: Despite the cold weather hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets of Dublin to celebrate St. Patrick's Day on Friday (March 17).
    Locals as well as tourists from all over the world got into the festive mood wearing traditional green hats and clover shaped sun glasses.
    Braving the cold, the cheering crowds gathered around O'Connell Street, the main street in the city which is small section of the parade's three kilometre route, to watch the marching bands, flamboyantly dressed street performers and floats.
    Ireland's President Mary McAleese set the tone as she greeted the "global Irish family" from steps of the historical G.P.O building before reviewing the capital city's main parade.
    The celebrations kicked off after the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Catherine Byrne arrived in style in a gold carriage and was followed by a stream of marching bands from all over the world, cheerleaders from Dallas and theatrical pageants by groups from Dublin, Wexford, Donegal, Waterford and Kildare.
    Huge intricately decorated floats also made their way through the streets followed by a sea of performers dressed in brightly coloured costumes.
    The Grand Marshal of the St Patrick's Day parade was Ronnie Drew, the famed Dubliners' singer who also waved to the crowd as he drove past in the parade.
    St Patrick's Day was originally a religious festival commemorating Patrick, the fourth-century saint who evangelised the Irish after reputedly arriving in Ireland as a immigrant slave captured by Britain.
    Now, the festival which is celebrated all over the world, has turned into five days of "craic" (fun) and a huge tourist attraction. generating about 60 million Euros (730-million U.S. Dollars) for the economy.
    United States President George W. Bush hosted Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern on Friday for the annual Shamrock ceremony on St. Patrick's Day.
    In their brief remarks at the Shamrock ceremony, both President Bush and Prime Minister Ahern referred to the historic links between Ireland and the United States, to the potential for progress in the peace process in Northern Ireland and to the controversial issue of immigration reform.
    Ahern used the oppurtunity to call on Bush to support a Congressional legislation being advanced by Senators Ted Kennedy and John McCain for a practical immigration solution to help the 40,000 undocumented Irish in the US.
    A crowd of several thousands of supporters of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform gathered in New York on St. Patrick's Day to show support for the expected U.S. government enactment of new immigration legislation in 2006.
    Under current immigration law, it is almost impossible for an Irish person to legally immigrate to the US. Recent proposals would criminalize the undocumented Irish already here and effectively end Irish immigration to the US. It would sever to centuries-old link between the countries and destroy our shared heritage.
    The Kennedy/McCain bill would increase security at the borders while paving the way for law abiding immigrants already here to continue to contribute and eventually get green cards.
    Bush refrained from directly responding to Aherne's calll for support of the legislation but reiterated the close ties between the countries and the number of Irish immigrants living in the U.S. today.
    Fifth Avenue in New York was a maze of green on Friday for the 245th Annual Saint Patrick's Day Parade. It is the US's oldest and biggest parade with about 100,000 participants marching.
    Before the start on Friday morning Chairman of the Parade John Dunleavy, put aside the controversy surrounding the past few days to emphasize what the event is really all about,
    "It's a great day to be Irish here in New York, it's one of the most, greatest parades and exhibitions of our faith and our heritage and our culture anywhere in the world. People from all over the world here, we've bens from Spain, from Ireland, with've even people from Melbourne Austrailia here today."
    Dunleavy said in the Irish Times that if Israelis marched in New York you would not want to also allow Neo-Nazis to join in. His statements came amidst anger from Irish gay activists at not being allowed to openly protest and march at the parade.
    The recent controversy, however, did not put a damper on Friday's festivities with people coming from far and wide to watch.
    The Saint Patrick's Day parade marched for the first time on March 17, 1762. It is led by members of the 165th Infantry with various Irish societies from New York and around the country joining. The Emerald Societies of the New York Police and Fire Departments are particularly large contingents. Out in full force to show their support were Mayor Bloomberg and Rudy Giuliani.
    Around the world on Friday Irish diaspora are celebrating the holiday, but New York stills boasts one of the most outlandish and colourful parades. An estimated two million people watch it.
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