Bill > ACR70

Introduced Session

This resolution celebrates the flag of Ireland, St. Patrick's Day, and the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. The Good Friday Agreement was signed on April 10th, 1998, making 2023 the 25th anniversary of the historic document. The agreement was a peacekeeping measure to end several decades of violence and conflict in Northern Ireland, called The Troubles. In 1921, when Northern Ireland was created, it remained part of the UK, while the Republic of Ireland became a free state. From then on, unionists, who believed Northern Ireland should stay in the UK, and nationalists, who believed Northern Ireland should join the Republic of Ireland, clashed in violence. Almost 3,500 people were killed over 30 years due to The Troubles. The Good Friday Agreement established the Northern Ireland Assembly, a new government in Northern Ireland that represented both unionists and nationalists. The new Assembly was given control over significant areas of policy by the UK government. The agreement also allows the people of Northern Ireland to become part of the Republic through referendum, allows both Irish and British born people to reside there, and resolved weaponry and imprisonment issues that occurred during the conflict. March 17th of each year is St. Patrick's Day, a day in which people from around the world celebrate the feast day of St. Patrick. St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland and is said to have died on March 17th, 416 A.D., after establishing a legacy of spreading Christianity to thousands of people in Ireland. Today, the holiday is celebrated in Ireland with a day off of work and school to spend time with family and friends by listening to traditional music, dancing, attending parades, and more. It is celebrated in other countries with a variety of traditions established by the Irish diaspora. In the United States, it is common to wear green and eat corned beef, cabbage, and soda bread. The Irish flag seen today was first flown in 1848, in Waterford, Ireland by Thomas F. Meagher, making 2023 the 175th anniversary of the first flying of the vertical tricolor Irish flag. Thomas F. Meagher, a leader of the Young Irelanders, is said to have been gifted the tricolor flag by a group of French women who sympathized with Irish nationalism. Thomas F. Meagher has become a significant figure in both Irish and American history. He received a life prison sentence to be carried out in Tasmania for his participation in the Irish nationalist Rebellion of 1848, and escaped to the United States, where he served in the U.S. Army as Brigadier General in the Civil War. He is remembered in the United States for leading the Irish Brigade and motivating Irish immigrants to fight for the Union. The tri-color flag that Meagher flew was not widely recognized across the country until the Easter Rising of 1916. It was officially designated the national flag by the new Constitution of Ireland in 1937.

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Bill Moen (D)*,  Carol Murphy (D)*,  Aura Dunn (R),  Vicky Flynn (R),  Sean Kean (R), 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Oversight, Reform and Federal Relations Committee (on 01/09/2024)

Official Document