The Gaelic Athletic Association
After the Great Potato Famine in the country of Ireland, the culture and pride of the land began to disappear. The Irish had lost around one million people after this tragedy struck the land, and the Irish morale was low. People began to emigrate to other countries and British customs and language were beginning to take over. It became evident that the Irish needed a cultural revolution to restore all that had been lost in their culture. The solution to this problem was found in the creation the Gaelic Athletic Association. While its main focus may have only appeared to involve sports, it was very influential in the cultural and political revolutions to come in the future. The GAA has been described as a
…show more content…
It was enacted to give the Irish something to follow and cheer about in an attempt to raise feelings of pride across communities. When the GAA was created, it was separated into individual districts throughout Ireland. This same occurrence has happened in the United States, as many communities rally around a sports team. Through emigration from Ireland, Irish sports and customs have spread across the world to countries such as the United States and even as far as Australia.
Politics were almost a bigger focus for the GAA than the sporting aspect itself because of the political instability and British influence. The GAA was intent on reaching the people in the countryside because these were the people that could fall out of contact with Ireland and adopt British ideals and customs. Cusack even included Archbishop Croke as his patron in order to gain as much support as possible and also to gain help in spreading the popularity of the GAA. (Collins 111) Cusack and Croke were able to revamp the Irish countryside along with spreading nationalistic feelings. The Irish in the countryside began to be included in Irish ways instead of being isolated and this was crucial in establishing a separatist democratic culture (Hutchinson 161). Many of these people utilized the GAA to gain political influence in Ireland (Cohan 221). The people in the
The factors that led to the Irish to emigrate from Ireland to America in the 1700’s and 1800’s were because of the scares resources. Potato was an important crop in Ireland because it can survive the war and provided their basic food needs. The Irish Famine forced them to make the choice to emigrate to America. The government was no help at all to the Irish because they did not do anything to really help the people going through hard times. Many people in Ireland were in poverty and lived of what they could grow but things diseases affected their crops. They were starving to death. Those working were paid little but most were unemployed. They were not given education in Ireland. The Irish had no hope left in Ireland. They left to America to
In the early 1800s life in Ireland wasn’t easy, Irish citizens got by day to day by farming and relying on the potato. The potato was their main source of food and money. With out the potato the Irish would have nothing. No one was prepared for what was about to happen in 1845, the beginning of the Great Irish Potato Famine.
Failing to make to the JV soccer team has been one of most impactful moments of my life, and it has changed the way I approach athletics and life outside of sports.
They have really cool sports, but their sports are similar to the U.S. Irish hurling is really a combination of the sports we know as baseball, field hockey, rugby, and soccer. Hurling is an ancient game and one of the national sports of Ireland. It’s widely considered to be the fastest game on grass. Oh the holidays, I love the holidays, especially Christmas. Ireland has as many of the same holidays as we do. As it said in the Irish book some of their major holidays are “New Years, St. Patrick’s Day, St. Bridget’s Day, Shrove Tuesday (the day before Lent), and Easter.” “Irish culture is also reflected in a diversity of films such as The Quiet Man, My Left Foot, Michael Collins, The Commitments, and Waking Ned Devine,” says the Irish book. Most of these cultural (norms) are like some of our cultural
There were two distinct groups in the Irish community. There were the Roman Catholic Irish and the Protestant Irish based on their faith it divided the Irish community. It was such an
Since potatoes constituted the main dietary staple for most people this left them in dire conditions. As many as 1.5 million people died of starvation and the illnesses which ensued from the epidemics which accompanied the famine itself are believed to have lead to another 1 million. This brought upon the mass exodus from Ireland to the U.S. for survival; from the mid 1840’s to 1860 about 1.7 million Irish immigrants made it to the U.S. (overall numbers from 1820-1900 are at approximately 4 million total)(Rapple,
It could be argued that The Great Famine was the utmost turning point in Irish Nationalism due to the lack of action of the British Government, which left deep-rooted hatred for the English within Ireland. Government expenditure for the famine equaled a total of £8 million, 3% of the total government budget. The British Government stuck closer to a laissez-faire economic policy, which is echoed through Charles Trevelyan who claimed that through relief “people grow worse instead of better.” The Irish
The start of the Irish’ peoples struggles began when the British came and destroyed their way of life. The Penal laws of 1691 stripped Irish Catholics of their freedoms by taking away their rights to become officers
Ireland has always had religious problems between, Pagans, Catholic, Protestant and Jewish people. Ireland has always been a place of interest in English eyes so Ireland was continually concord over and over by the English and the currency, traditions and religions changed with every English King, Queen or Irish Rebel. Between 1641 and 1691 Oliver Cromwell changed everything, Irish Catholics, Pagans and Jews were killed or shipped off to be slaves. The influence to immigrate was very strong, their options were to go to a new world of which they knew no one and had nothing, be killed for your religion, or be gathered up and shipped away as a slave. It was a hard decision they all were forced to
The term “student-athlete,” coined by Walter Byers and the National Collegiate Athletic Association, has been frequently mentioned and used in intense arguments between the NCAA and former and current students (Nocera, 1). Today’s student-athletes are expected to be students first and athletes second, but when these athletes are forced to undergo countless hours of preparation for the big lights on Saturday in order to retain their scholarships, they often must ignore their studies. These athletes do not have the time to maintain jobs and make money because of their stressful schedules. The NCAA, an organization that the federal government qualifies as non-profit, makes nearly $1 billion a year and gives absolutely none of that money to the true makers of revenue, the athletes (primarily those in Division I football and men’s basketball). The only compensation that athletes receive for their work is scholarship money, which may be deemed priceless for one’s future but is really only worth $25,000 a year. Universities, television networks, and the NCAA are ignoring that college athletics is a real business (Jackson, 1). The educational benefits do not provide these athletes with food for their tables, money for their families, or even beds to sleep in. Student-athletes are commonly forced to take benefits from alumni, fans who have money, and their own coaches, despite it being an NCAA violation. Because college sports serve as one of America’s most profitable
The Irish Americans feel it was important to participate in politics. Like every other American, this group of people aimed to have their voice heard. Irish Americans begun to take a part in Urban politics, in this way, these immigrants shaped government politics and aimed to benefit the poor. As immigrants, these populations did not have abundant job opportunities or high incomes. Therefore, they aimed to take control of political positions to benefit those who struggled in the same way they did. Towards the 1800s, Irish Americans began to take major roles in politics. They began to interact in elections and they gained representation for their population. By taking a part in politics, Irish Americans became a great part of the representative
Effect of it – this famine not only caused a great number of deaths, around 1 million, but it also caused emigration. Many people left Ireland and migrated to the U.S., some went to Canada, and some to Australia.
The Irish Potato Famine was a period of starvation, disease and emigration, and was known as one of the biggest tragedies from 1845 to 1847. Many people depended on potato crops to survive; however [comma] the potato crops acquired blight, a disease that caused the potatoes to rot while still in the ground. No good crops could be grown for two years [comma] causing Irish tenant farmers unable to pay rent and was forced off their land causing over 21,000 people to die of starvation. The Irish Potato Famine caused many people to leave Ireland to seek work overseas in areas such as England and America. The Irish Potato Famine had a big impact on the history and the economy of Ireland.
Ireland is a country that is rich in culture, traditions, and faith. This country has struggled with over time with famine, religious tension, and even freedom. Many individuals immigrated to America in search of a better life. The person I chose to interview family came over to the United States when Ireland was struggling with famine. They came over on a boat through New York and changed there name to make it more American. For this paper I will further discuss the Irish culture and the person I interviewed.
Sports and religion are things that can go together in many ways. Sports were founded on religion and were kept strong by religion. Now sport is taking over as religion almost in today's world. Sports can promote things that are not necessarily right according to God but we participate anyway. While how the mind and body are connected give another way of how sport is. Finally, we see that sports in a modern context have changed greatly and are ritual heavy one would almost say idolic. Religion and sports are both here to stay and they really are a way something that can unite everyone.