OLDEST IRISH AMERICAN NEWSPAPER IN USA, ESTABLISHED IN 1928
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New leadership council meets in NY

February 17, 2011

By Staff Reporter

The council, which is the physical manifestation of a recommendation in the Irish government’s Strategic Review of Ireland-US relations, assembled for its first gathering at the American Irish Historical Society on Fifth Avenue.
The meeting was chaired by Irish foreign minister Miche_l Martin who was flanked at the meeting table by Ireland’s ambassador to the U.S. Michael Collins, prime author of the review, and Consul General in New York, Niall Burgess.
“The council reflects the enormous importance to Ireland of Irish America and will tackle the key challenge of harnessing and protecting the very special relationship between Ireland and the United States,” a statement issued by Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs, said.
In his remarks to the meeting, Minister Martin invited the council’s members to give further consideration to the most important issues facing the Irish in America and to develop appropriate proposals as to how these might be brought forward.
“This is a historic event in a historic place. This is the first time we have brought all Irish leadership in the U.S. together. This is an event of some significance,” said Martin.
Delegates to the first meeting who represented an array of organizations as well as Irish state bodies working in the U.S. had traveled, at their own expense, from cities including San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Pittsburgh.
In a meeting lasting over three hours, the participants, including Irish Echo editor Ray O’Hanlon, ranged over an agenda that covered Ireland’s economy and Irish/U.S. economic links, the Northern Ireland peace process and the challenges facing both the undocumented Irish in the U.S. and elderly Irish immigrants.
Additional meetings of the council in other cities are to be convened in the near future.

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