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The Legacy
When James Connolly was executed on May 12th 1916 for his leadership role in the Easter Revolution he left behind two important legacies to the people of Ireland and the wider world.
To the Irish people he left his unique input into the Proclamation of the Irish Republic with Paragraph 4 outlining the truly revolutionary and republican ideals that Connolly had devoted the greater part of his life to bring to reality. That statement of intent by the leaders of the newly declared Republic addresses men and women equally, commits the Republic to be anti-sectarian, and promises that every child of the Nation will be treated equally. The Proclamation has been described as the finest foundational document of any nation.
To the Irish people and the wider world, Connolly left a body of written work that is largely as relevant today as it was in his own time. Many of the problems of the world remain the same now as then – poverty, oppression, hunger, war and so on. To each of these and other issues Connolly applied his very clear intellect and committed his thoughts to print. In recent times his writings have been gathered together in a more systematic way and are now readily available.
But, while Connolly has a substantial following throughout the world, his legacy to his own people in Ireland has been largely hidden. He is known to many in Ireland only for the brutal manner of his execution. His ideas are not promoted for discussion except by those of the left. His commitment to the socialist cause has found disfavour within a conservative Irish State. As the Ireland he loved and gave his life for moves into the beginning of a new century, well positioned to correct the many injustices perpetrated on the weakest in society, it is right and proper that the inclusive Proclamation he played such a central role in formulating should be brought back centre-stage, and that Connolly’s ideas should be allowed see the light and be considered by new generations of Irish men and Irish women. |
