TITLE TEXT Cumann Cultúr agus Spóirt na hÉireann

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                                   TEXT
                       Cumann Cultúr agus Spóirt na hÉireann
                                        Aibreán / April 2021
   The Pulse

A Chairde (Friends),
Can you see it??!!! There’s a light at the end of that ominous Covid tunnel!! That
means that your ICSA is finally able to start making plans for in-person events!
You’ll see more about that as you continue to read An Cuisle. Of course, we will
continue to cautiously abide by all covid regulations and best practices to assure
the safety of all of our members. We hope to see you soon!

MEMBERSHIP RENEWALS
For those who may have forgotten to renew their ICSA membership,
here’s a friendly reminder that you can renew via check, cash, or
through Venmo using our handle/name; @ICSAHamden. Membership
dues are $25 for an individual and $40 for a family membership. Checks
can be mailed to ICSA, P.O. Box 6562, Hamden, CT 06517. Please make a
note in your correspondence (or right on your check) that your payment
is for membership dues. If you choose to use Venmo as your form of
payment, please indicate your first and last name as well as the
membership type you are paying for.

ST PATRICK’S DAY VIRTUAL HOOLEY
             Though we would have preferred to celebrate St. Patrick
             Day in person, many ICSA members did the next best thing
             … a Virtual Hooley!! On March 13 all participants were ready
             to ‘party hardy’ and that they did! Thanks to Liz McNicholl
for providing her delightful music to the mix and to Shaun Donnelly
creating and hosting three exciting rounds of Irish Trivia. And
Congrats to our Trivia winners.

DRAMA— GET READY FOR BOOKWORMS !!!!!
 The dates are set!! The venue is secured! The Director
is raring to go! The cast is ready (and memorizing lines
as I write!)! And the set is nearly complete! The only thing missing is the
AUDIENCE!! So mark your calendars, folks! The Connecticut Irish
Theater Troupe is delighted to announce that its long awaited production
of Bookworms by Bernard Farrell and directed by Karl Ryan will take
place in August 13, 14 and 15, 2021 at the Whitneyville Cultural Center.
Look for information in future issues of An Cuisle.

                  The Flock is Back! We have a “Pandemic Special” going on now
                  20 sheep for an overnight visit on the lawn of your choice*—only
                  $10. *This offer is limited to New Haven County*.
                  To arrange a flocking, please contact Siobhan Dacey-Ammon at
                  sdacey@icsa-home.org

UPDATE—FLOWER SALE
        Sadly, our Annual Spring Flower Sale has been cancelled this year
due to Covid-related circumstances. Unfortunately, our suppliers were
unable to maintain their usual inventory due to reduced bulk sales this
year. Therefore, they could not guarantee they would be able to meet
our order. Tune in again next year when we plan to continue our yearly
sale.

ICSA GOLF SOCIETY
The ICSA Golf Society is up and running! Monthly outings are scheduled through
September, including the Golf Society Outing on
August 7th. Best of luck to all participants!

ICSA ANNUAL GOLF TOURNAMENT

Calling all golfers!! Mark your calendars for August 28, 2021. The Annual Golf
Tournament will take place once again at Alling Memorial Golf Course. Look for
more details in upcoming editions of An Cuisle.

THIMBLE ISLANDS CRUISE
                                 ICSA members will be back on the water for
                                 the Annual Thimble Islands Cruise on
                                 Saturday, September 11, 2021.

                                 This thoroughly enjoyable evening is your chance
                                 to ‘get away from it all’ and relax as you watch
                                 the sun set on the Thimble Islands. Watch for
more details in An Cuisle as the date approaches.

MAY MEETINGS
ICSA Board and General Membership meetings will continue to be conducted on
the Zoom platform. Following are May meeting dates:

 May 10, 2021 - ICSA Executive Board Meeting— 7:30 PM via Zoom

 May 17, 2021 - ICSA Social Committee Meeting—7:45 PM via Zoom

 May 17, 2021 - ICSA Members Meeting - 8:00 PM via Zoom

We’d love to see you on May 17th! Please contact Margaret Prendergast at
mspren@snet.net if you would like to attend. She will send you the Zoom link.

Gaeilge—Irish Language

  It seemed as if it would never come this year, but finally SPRING is HERE!
Time to get outside and see what’s going on in our backyards! There’s a good
chance you’ll have the opportunity to see almost every one of these ‘critters’ …

IRISH HISTORY
April is Women’s History Month in the U.S. Of course, a critical event in women’s
history was obtaining the right to vote in the early 20th century. But did you
know that at the very same time, suffragettes in Ireland were fighting the same
battle for voting rights? If not, you may find this article from the website of the
Irish Studies Group at SUNY Geneseo very interesting.

    SUFFRAGE MOVEMENT IN IRELAND
Beginning in 1847, the Dublin Women’s Suffrage Association was founded by
Anna M. Haslam with the goal of parliamentary franchise for women. Inspired by the
actions of London and Manchester’s Suffrage Committees, 25 Irish women signed the
first suffrage petition in 1866. The petition was presented to the House of Commons by
John Stuart Mill.

“We ought not to deny to them, what we are conceding to everybody else—a right to
be consulted; the ordinary chance of placing in the great Council of the nation a few
organs of their sentiments— of having, what every petty trade or profession has, a
few members who feel specially called on to attend to their interests, and to point out
how those interests are affected by the law, or by any proposed changes in it.”

A year after Mill first presented the petition, the first debate regarding a woman’s
right to vote was held. Although the proposition of Women’s Suffrage lost, the amount
of support, 73 votes in favor, delighted Mill. However, 73 votes were not going to
enfranchise women.

Through the Local Government Act of 1894, single, and in some cases married,
women were enfranchised for local elections. However, a larger issue than most
suffragettes foresaw came to be. By signing petitions with Suffrage Movements from
England, the women of Ireland allied themselves with the ‘English enemy’, as seen by
a growing population of disgruntled Irishmen.

In 1908 Hannah and Francis Sheehy-Skeffington and Margaret Cousins founded
the Irish Women’s Franchise League (IWFL) which focused on securing Women’s
Suffrage within Home Rule. According to the History of Ireland magazine,

“The IWFL was the most outspoken and public manifestation of women’s discontent
and radical feminism in Ireland.”

The tensions between the Home Rule and Suffrage Movements were enflamed
when the Suffrage movement was ‘swept under the rug’ of Irish interest and news in
the early 1900s. According to the History of Ireland magazine, “From the headlines for
the years 1912-14 Home Rule and its progress or otherwise dominated all local and
national papers in Ireland. A simple survey of general history books for this dramatic
period would lead one to believe that the women’s movement had passed Ireland by,
that there had been no Irish suffragettes.

This obliteration from news and history angered the suffragettes, and many took up
the call ‘No Home Rule before Suffrage’. While some women movements supported
the revolution, Cumann na mBan for example, others strictly opposed it.

This led women to take opposing paths of intervention to make their voices heard.
In her book, ‘Suffrage First-Above All Else!’ An Account of the Irish Suffrage
Movement Margaret Ward tells of how women often chose between “putting pressure
exclusively upon the faction [women] identified with politically-home rulers or
unionists- in order to ensure women’s enfranchisement would be included within any
constitutional settlement or campaign wholeheartedly for one faction.”

Not only were the Home Rule and the Suffrage Movements butting heads, but
tensions developed and persisted between and within the Irishwomen of the Suffrage
Movement. Especially due to the terse nature in which the North and South interacted
at this time, it became increasingly difficult for the suffragettes to ally themselves to a
political organization all would support.

“In the early years of the 20th century, the women’s suffrage movement in Ulster
gained momentum, but the message from each of the suffrage groups was diverse
and complex. Each association had a different focus, from the militant to religious,
constitutional to feminist. The North of Ireland Women’s Suffrage Society changed its
name in 1909 to the Irish Women’s Suffrage Society (IWSS). It was based in Belfast
but had many branches outside the city in Bangor, Whitehead, Antrim and Derry and
was the militant side of the movement but was not associated with any political party.”

By the time the Rising ended, the Suffrage Movement was decimated and divided.
They were not able to maintain the support of all the groups they appealed to and lost
the Home Rule battle.
After many conferences, petitions, and appeals, women owning property and over the
age of thirty were enfranchised in 1918. It wasn’t until 1922, however, that all women
over the age of 21 were given the right to vote.

A Chairde,
Hoping that things keep progressing and that we are able to return to (new) normal soon.
As we’ve mentioned, we have plans for the golf league and tournaments, and the drama is
gearing up for a late summer production and the sheep are baaaack!
It will be great to see people live and in person. Just want to toss in a few items—first, if you
haven’t yet, please send in your dues so we can continue to work on events such as our theater
productions. Second, please plan on joining us for our membership and social committee
meetings, new thoughts and ideas for projects and events are always welcome!!
Slan,
Margaret

Irish Language Classes: Unfortunately, due to Covid regulations, Irish Language classes
are currently on hold. Any questions regarding Irish language can be directed to Cultural
Director, Rich Regan at rregan@icsa-home.org.

Irish Radio Show: Echoes of Erin. We encourage you to listen to our friends and club
supporters at Echoes of Erin Radio show (88.7FM), broadcasting live every Sunday from 12 to
2 p.m. from the University of New Haven in West Haven CT and over the internet at http://
www.wnhu.net/ This is your source for Irish music, news, sports and community events. Hosted
by Pat and Joan Kennedy, Mike McGrath, Pat Hosey and Siobhan Dacey and Chuck Vigue..

Irish Radio Show: Ceol na nGael. Club member Molly Monahan Grunner is the co-producer of
this show on Fordham University’s NPR Radio Station, WFUV, 90.7 FM on your radio dial or
live streamed at WFUV.org. Listen in on Sundays from noon to 4pm. You can also listen to
several weeks of archived shows at WFUV.org.
                                           2021 Officers

                        President—Margaret Prendergast—mspren@snet.net
                     Vice President—Shaun Donnelly - sdonnelly@icsa-home.org
                       Secretary—Mary Williams—mwilliams@icsa-home.org
                         Treasurer—Tim Whalen—twhalen@icsa-home.org
                Financial Secretary—Meaghan Whalen—mwhalen@icsa-home.org
                       Cultural Director—Rich Regan—rregan@icsa-home.org
                     Program Director—Siobhan Dacey—sdacey@icsa-home.org

AMAZON SMILE

Do you know about Amazon Smile? If you enroll in Amazon Smile and designate Irish Cultural and
Sports Association of Southern CT as your non-profit of choice, Amazon will donate small percent of
the sale to the ICSA. If you could use help with enrolling, contact Mary Williams at the email above.
Every penny helps!