2024 -- S 2792

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LC005757

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2024

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S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

CELEBRATING ST. PATRICK’S DAY AND THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE

ESTABLISHMENT OF DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF

AMERICA AND IRELAND

     

     Introduced By: Senators Burke, McKenney, Murray, Euer, F. Lombardi, E Morgan,
Felag, Paolino, Rogers, and de la Cruz

     Date Introduced: March 19, 2024

     Referred To: Recommended for Immediate Consideration

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     WHEREAS, On March 17th, during the annual celebration of the Feast of Saint Patrick,

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the Patron Saint of Ireland, Irish Americans join with people of all ethnic origins who, for one

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day, are considered honorary citizens of Ireland as they celebrate Saint Patrick and a love of all

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things Irish; and

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     WHEREAS, Wielding the devotion of his faith like a great sword of righteousness, and

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using the strength of his intellect and the power of his passions, Saint Patrick assimilated the

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ancient pagan Irish myths into a Christian message, and in so doing, converted all of Ireland to

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Christianity during his lifetime; and

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     WHEREAS, Irish immigrants to Rhode Island helped to form the cultural foundation of

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our State, and Rhode Islanders of Irish lineage today proudly sing of their roots in Ballinamore

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and Ballinasloe, in Ennistymon and Enniscorthy, in Cahirciveen and Castlebarr, and in

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Skibbereen and Skerries; and

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     WHEREAS, The songs of Ireland are the tragic songs of love and the joyous songs of

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battle: the nostalgic reveries of the sorrows and the glories that are the Emerald Isle; and the

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lamentations of life's myriad travails and the odes to joy and the life eternal; and

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     WHEREAS, A century ago, in October of 1924, Ireland formally opened diplomatic

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relations with the United States of America when Timothy Smiddy presented his credentials to

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President Calvin Coolidge. Following the Irish people’s long and painful struggle for

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independence, the U.S. was one of the first nations to recognize the fledgling Irish state earlier

 

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that year, and when Smiddy emerged from the White House, he had become Ireland’s first

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Ambassador to any country in the World; and

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     WHEREAS, It was very appropriate that Ireland’s first representative overseas should be

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dispatched to Washington D.C. for, while 1924 marked the beginning of formal diplomatic

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relations, the deep Irish American connection dated back centuries; and

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     WHEREAS, Today, nearly one tenth of Americans identify as being of Irish ancestry.

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Irish immigrants helped build the America we know today, not only the physical infrastructure -

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the skyscrapers of Manhattan or the transcontinental railroad-but also the political construct that

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is America. Irish people have made an enormous contribution to public debate and politics in

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America, from their local communities right up to the White House; and

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     WHEREAS, More than twenty American Presidents claimed some Irish ancestry. But the

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influence of Irish America extends well beyond the Oval Office and the Capitol Building, to

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every state within the Union, most evident by the significant number of state legislators within the

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American Ireland State Legislators Caucus, which is open to everyone of Irish Heritage and those

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who are supporters of Ireland; and

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     WHEREAS, Since Timothy Smiddy’s momentous audience in the Oval Office 100 years

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ago, a further eighteen Irish Ambassadors have presented credentials to U.S. Presidents. Over this

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time, Ireland’s relations with the United States have evolved significantly. From an impoverished

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and internationally isolated state, scarred by years of conflict, Ireland has transformed over the

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past century. Ireland today is at peace, economically prosperous and culturally vibrant; and

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     WHEREAS, This transformation is due to the support of friends in the United States,

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from the crucial role America played in brokering peace in Northern Ireland – culminating with

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the 1998 Good Friday Agreement– to the huge American economic investment in Ireland; and

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     WHEREAS, There are almost one thousand US companies in Ireland, employing over

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two hundred thousand people directly. Our economic relationship is truly two-way; some one

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hundred thousand people are employed in the U.S. by over 650 Irish-owned companies, across all

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fifty states. Indeed, Ireland is now the ninth largest source of foreign direct investment in the US;

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and

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     WHEREAS, The US-Irish relationship is a shining example of how ancestral ties,

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historical connections, cultural affinities, and shared values can create a foundation for enduring

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partnership and mutual prosperity. Irish American state legislators across the United States are

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playing a vitally important role in fostering this partnership and ensuring that it continues and

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flourishes for another century to come; now, therefore be it

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     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island hereby celebrates St. Patrick’s

 

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Day and the 100th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the United

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States of America and Ireland; and be it further

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     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

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transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to The Chair of the American Irish State

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Legislators Caucus, Senator Mark Daly, the 24th Chair of the Senate of Ireland and to the

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National Co-Chairs listed below; Representative Brian Patrick Kennedy, Rhode Island;

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Assemblywoman Carol Murphy, New Jersey; Assemblyman Robin Vos, Wisconsin; Senator

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Shannon O’Brien, Montana; Assemblyman James Gallagher; California; the Honorable Fran

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Hurley, Illinois; Representative Killian Timoney, Kentucky; Senator Wayne Harper, Utah;

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Representative Bridget Walsh Moore, Missouri; and the Honorable Mia Costello, Alaska.

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LC005757

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