Irish Kids in Kansas
Nothing says peace in Ireland like Irish teens on holiday.
And this time some of the lucky ones got to go to McPherson in Kansas.
Religious tolerance is the theme rather than racial tolerance:
teenagers from Portadown, Ireland, are visiting McPherson as part of an annual project that pairs Ireland’s Protestant and Catholic youth with America’s Protestant and Catholic youth. It allows the teens the chance to see how Americans co-exist despite religious differences. The project sends teens to 32 American towns, hoping the freedom of religion they experience will be taken back and incorporated into future generations.
I can’t help but wondering how things might be if the Irish teens were allowed the chance to see Americans co-exist, or not, despite racial differences. That might not be such a good experience to take back to and incorporate into an Ireland quickly learning its own racism.
The McPherson Sentinel has more.
Eolaí gan Fhéile:
We were involved with Children’s Friendship Project for Northern Ireland during the summer of 2001. Two teenage girls–one Protestant, one Catholic–stayed with us for six weeks. The KC Star even ran a front-page article about it! One of the things they couldn’t believe was that my daughter was dating a boy who had a black father and a white mother. They spent a lot of time with that family while here, and said how much they learned from them that could be applied to their own situation in Northern Ireland. We had a fantastic time with Sheryl and Chloe! Sadly, the next summer Sheryl and her older sister died in a car wreck in Ireland. We’ll never get over her…..