The Irish Times view on the O’Rahilly’s house: demolishing our past

The motion to protect the building was on Dublin city council’s monthly agenda for more than a year, which speaks volumes about the way local authorities do their business

Fri, Oct 2, 2020, 19:29 The Irish Times View 6 Proinsias O’Rathaille, grandson of The O’Rahilly, pictured outside the house of The O’Rahilly at Herbert Park, Ballsbridge, Dublin. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill

Dear  Fred

You can quote from The Economist, as long as you properly cite the magazine. It is a highly-respected newspaper.

Thank you for your excellent paragraph of personal accounts of people past and present who have been completely aware of how our small area of Pembroke is steeped in Revolutionary Era (1913-1924) history. 

I am particularly frustrated with Sinn Féin and other “republicans” who ought to have protected The O’Rahilly House at least as far back as 2014, when SF had the DCC in its control and its Lord Mayor oversaw the Centenary of 1916 in 2016. But frankly, since every government in Ireland post-1922 has been nationalist, it was up to every self-declared nationalist/republican in Ireland to protect that site and yet they’ve spent the last 98 years doing nothing. 

I feel like a lot of Irish Republicanism ends up being faff; Irish language not being restored, the island still partitioned and republican monuments being destroyed by its own people. Meanwhile British pub chain Wetherspoons – not exactly popular with liberal sensibility at the moment for its owner’s pro-Brexit sentiments and for not paying his staff until he got UK government money during the lockdown – has led the way in restoring a derelict row of buildings on Camden Street. Their efforts have been recognised now but a lot of people were initially very critical of Wetherspoons being involved in Dublin. Appears people would rather have native Irish developers destroy or vandalise buildings or bring in architects seeped in modernism to ruin historical buildings instead, such as the lost opportunity to restore the facade of Fitzwilliam Street  

Some very interesting articles on the subject have appeared in both the Irish Times and the Irish Independent today:
One of them written by The O’Rahilly’s grandson, Proinsias Ó Rathaille, who was vocal in protecting Moore Street but seems to not have done the very same thing for his own grandfather’s house until it was too late!: https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/destruction-of-home-of-1916-leader-orahilly-a-shocking-end-to-a-cornerstone-of-states-foundation-39583998.html
An editorial by the Irish Times; very astute points about how everyone concerned acted way too late: https://archive.is/wip/5phyW

Much good came out of Ms Goodfellow’s land; it has been vital for the protection of trees and Wildlife

Stephen.