Irish Stereotypes in the 1800s

The Irish people left Ireland and immigrated to America to enjoy a better life, get away from the poverty and starvation that they were faced with in Ireland due to the potato famine. They face all kinds of discrimination and were forced to take the worst types of jobs, but they never gave up and kept fighting for their freedom. The Irish were brave, courageous, and hardworking and made it possible for all Irish to live happy and free lives in America.

     Irish-American. To some, this term merely designates one of the many ethnic groups which can be found in the United States; but to those who are Irish-American, it represents a people who faced a disaster of mammoth proportions and who managed to survive at great cost. The Great Hunger of 1845 changed, or more often, destroyed the lives of millions of Irish, causing them to seek refuge from poverty and starvation in other, more prosperous countries. However, not all countries would accept these victims of the Potato Famine. After an immense burst of Irish immigration to Great Britain, the British Parliament began to

The Irish experience in the U.S. was harsh. They fled Ireland due to the Potato Famine, and arrived here for opportunity, and even more importantly, a better life. They were also exceedingly poor, so that being

     One may question, what did the Irish have against the English? The answer one will find is, plenty! In Ireland, the landlords and agents and in American there were bosses and mine owners. The landlords in Ireland lived on large estates in the Irish countryside and charged

While America was known at the time as a place for accepting immigrants, this was not the case for most Irish immigrants. Irish Catholics were targeted on the grounds that Catholics could not be trusted to remain loyal to anyone but the Pope, if another war were to arise. However, the Irish remained strong willed and assimilated into American society by working as farmers and building machines.

The book, “The Irish Way” by James R. Barrett is a masterpiece written to describe the life of Irish immigrants who went to start new lives in America after conditions at home became un-accommodative. Widespread insecurity, callous English colonizers and the ghost of great famine still lingering on and on in their lives, made this ethnic group be convinced that home was longer a home anymore. They descended in United States of America in large numbers. James R. Barrett in his book notes that these people were the first group of immigrants to settle in America. According to him, there were a number of several ethnic groups that have arrived in America. It was, however, the mass exodus of Irish people during and after the great

While this cartoon is based in America the prejudice against Irish natives and immigrants had long been in issue. Over the centuries Ireland has dealt with conquerors, loss of culture, poverty, hunger and political strife. The emerald isle was entirely conquered and colonized by the British in the second part of the sixteenth century. After the colonization Ireland’s inhabitants

In the nineteenth century, Irish people in Great Britain and the United States were negatively stereotyped. To illustrate, some scientists during the time believed that Irish people were more closely related to apes than other Europeans, and considered them to be an inferior race to Anglo-Saxons. Some communities in the United States classified Irish people as Black, like Africans and African Americans. Irish people were seen as lazy, immoral, selfish, and destructive. The group was illustrated to be criminals that lied and stole from people. Gilman Tenney introduces O’Connor’s character as a very stereotypical Irishman of the time period. In “The boy was likely, impudent, and a good scholar; always at the head of all mischief in every school he attended; and remarkable for having always a park of cards in his pocket, and for attending every cock-fight and horse-race, within a dozen miles of him” (Tenney, 16). He partakes in stereotypical Irish pastimes such as gambling and causing mischief for others. As he grew up, these

After the Civil War, with the economy in shambles and increased openings for jobs, attitudes toward the Irish shifted slightly. Unlike earlier times, when the Irish first came to America, store windows no longer flashed "Irish Need Not Apply" signs. The Irish had won their place amongst the natives, having heartily participated in the war: thirty nine Union Regiments contained a majority of Irishmen, and the famous 69th regiment "Fighting 69" was comprised almost totally of Irishmen. But, don't let the Confederates be forgotten either, over forty thousand Irishmen fought for the grays. The Irish Americans gained some respectability for their involvement in the Civil War and were now more accepted by American society. The Irish Americans in post-Civil War era were more economically successful. Several of the Irishmen that had been manual laborers now held managerial positions in the railroad, iron and construction industries, their hard work has allowed them to rise through the ranks. Irish Americans also became educated and trained professionals. Fortunately Irish women, although held back by the restrictions placed on all American women around the turn of the century, achieved higher positions in society as teachers, nurses and secretaries.

The life of Irish immigrants in Boston was one of poverty and discrimination. The religiously centered culture of the Irish has along with their importance on family has allowed the Irish to prosper and persevere through times of injustice. Boston's Irish immigrant population amounted to a tenth of its population. Many after arriving could not find suitable jobs and ended up living where earlier generations had resided. This attributed to the 'invisibility' of the Irish.

Irish had often lived in unhealthy and unclean tenements. Then when they arrived in America they too had faced discrimination. They had many organizations conspired against them to ensure the immigrants could not vote, or hold office (Baker 262). “In 1844 controversy arose in Philadelphia over whether Catholic children in public schools could be allowed to read from the Catholic version of the Bible rather than the King James version and other issues”(Baker 262). This caused a violent reaction of the people who were against the Irish and Catholics (Baker 262). “Catholic churches and priests were the most frequent nativist targets” (Baker 262). The Americans had thought that the Irish Catholics had used the U.S voting system to elect followers of the pope so the pope could have some power in the United States. The nativist did not just have conspiracies about the Irish but many other immigrants too (Baker 262).

With the occurrence of the U.S. Civil War, a lot of Irish immigrants stared serving valiantly in both armies; though, because of their weak and unstable social position, many of the Irish soldiers became the targets for military conscription. Fearing discrimination and abuse, the Irish banded together in their parishes and led major efforts to build churches, parochial schools, and major private universities where they and their children felt comfortable. Catholicism, a minor religion before the arrival of the Irish, grew to become the largest single denomination by the early twentieth century, and much of that growth and visibility was due to the devotion of the Irish.

England was one of the main contributors to the hatred of Irish Catholics in the America. This is clearly demonstrated as the Know-Nothing Party campaigned against Irish immigration and laws limiting their freedom analogous to British suppression. “... critics branded Irish as lazy, thieving, drunkards, poor material for either labor or citizenry.” This quote sounds very similar to how the British saw Irish Catholics, indicating where these nativists got their prejudices and bias from. Discrimination was evident on signs like, “No Irish Need Apply” hung on many employers’ windows.

The Irish first began to start immigrating into the United States around the earlier to mid 1800s, roughly 1820. Like most immigrants, they were not treated fairly and stereotypes were assigned to them and they were also discriminated against. Four main stereotypes were assigned to the Irish: catholic, race, inferior, and drunk. The Americans, at the time, did not like that the Irish were catholics because they thanked that they were brainwashed by the papacy. Also they would often times call the Irish “blood drinkers”, “baby killers”, or “vampires” because they thought that the Irish would kill babies for their blood and flesh in order to perform communion. Along with assigns a stereotype to the Irish’s catholic beliefs, they also would call

Over time the Irish and Germans were finally accepted and considered part of the “American society”. By the time the next big wave of immigration occurred, the Irish and Germans were considered the old guard as opposed to the newcomers. The changing ethnic composition was critical and the Irish as well as the