Speech by Catherine Martin T.D. at del Salvador University (USAL)

Is mór an onóir dom labhairt libh anseo inniu. It is a great privilege to have this opportunity to address you here today. It coincides with the Feast of St Patrick and I wish you all Lá Fheile Phádraig. I am pleased to have this opportunity today to reflect on the connections between us and on the role that culture plays in sustaining those connections. I will also set out how we have sought to nurture those aspects of our culture which make us unique, and to promote participation in arts and creativity as a fundamental support for personal and collective wellbeing. I will also share more on how we are innovating to support artistic practice.

I understand that the Extracurricular Chair of Irish Studies was established following the visit of President Higgins to Argentina in 2012, here to the del Salvador University. Ireland is honoured to have this focus on Irish studies in such a prestigious university in Argentina. History was made when you launched a Diploma of Irish Studies in August 2020, as this was the first of its kind in Spanish-speaking Latin America.

I hope that this academic engagement will serve to cement further the long historic connections between our two countries and lead to fresh and imaginative new beginnings as a new generation of students become immersed in the history, culture and make up of Irish society. To achieve greater understanding I believe we must be informed by the history that shaped and formed us. Irish figures played an historical role in Argentina’s independence and Irish immigrants contributed to the country’s development. Since that time, Argentina’s community of Irish descendants has also helped to keep the relationship strong. The Irish Studies programme here is diverse, covering the most significant elements of the culture of Ireland including its history, literature, folklore and distinctive elements such as the Irish language.

The timing of my address to you today is special. Ireland celebrates the centenary of the foundation of our nation this year. As Minister with responsibility for arts, culture and the Irish language, I will focus in particular on these aspects as we look back over 100 years of nationhood, and look forward to what we now plan and aspire to achieve.

It has to be acknowledged at the outset that the journey towards self-determination and nationhood was a complex and difficult one, interspersed with acts of violence and tragedy. It took time to achieve and as we planned in Ireland to commemorate our past we settled on a decade as being the appropriate period to commemorate. The Decade of Centenaries Programme allowed us to incorporate a remembrance of the many milestones on the road to achieving independence. And I am especially pleased to share that the Decade of Centenaries programme had culture at its centre. It was a particular feature of activity to commemorate the events of the 1916 Easter Rising. This activity, much of which was community based and involved children and young people, led to the Irish Government’s commitment to the Creative Ireland Programme which enjoys the accolade of being the only programme of its kind in the world.

At the core of the Creative Ireland programme is the founding vision that creativity must be at the very heart of public policy and that participation in cultural and creative activity effectively promotes the wellbeing of the individual, the community and the nation at large. Collaborating across Government and in tandem with arts, community and voluntary organisations, the Creative Ireland Programme deploys creativity as a vital strategy for wellbeing, social cohesion and economic success.

As we embarked on celebrating 100 years of nationhood, we recognised also the importance of remembering and reflecting on the significant events that shaped our journey towards sovereignty and self-determination. On January 16th this year, I attended a ceremony which marked the historic handing over of power to an elected Irish Government. This occasion offered a timely opportunity to acknowledge and reflect on the principles that have buttressed one hundred years of parliamentary democracy and our place in the world now as one of the oldest continuous democracies.

As we remember and honour our founders and the traditions which both won the support of the people and secured progress, we at the same time are acutely aware that we must remain flexible and open to new perspectives. We are a diverse society and we respect the fact that diverse societies allow open, reflective debate. A key aspect in achieving peace and reconciliation on our shared island has been the recognition of the legitimacy of all traditions with mutual respect and historical authenticity.

Each country’s cultural identity is unique, and it is usually hugely important to its citizens and their well-being. It is culture that gives every country the sense of pride they carry in the international arena. Ireland’s culture in all its distinctiveness and variety is the well-spring of our identity as a people. It captures our past, shapes our present and imagines our future. In the early days of the foundation of the State, every effort was made to see how we could imagine our future. This involved embracing the ancient, our history and working to shape how we could move forward. In the unsettled early years of the Irish Free State, we worked hard to find and reclaim our country’s own cultural identity to set out who we were, and what defined our newly founded nation.

We had our language, our music, our literature, our storytelling, our dancing, our playwrights. We had a pride in our heritage and the strength of Ireland’s creativity and we needed to ensure that as a new nation we had a vision to preserve and nurture our culture. It was the cultural revival which accompanied and inspired the revolutionary movement that led to independence. Many of our artists had been central to our struggle for independence and had written, painted, sang and performed work which related to and supported Ireland’s quest for independence. The concern of our forefathers 100 years ago was not just related to the continuing thriving of creativity in Ireland, but also for the survival of the Irish language.

Ireland’s first President Douglas Hyde expressed these concerns over 100 years ago when he said:

“If we allow one of the finest and the richest languages in Europe, which, fifty years ago, was spoken by nearly four millions of Irishmen, to die out without a struggle, it will be an everlasting disgrace”

Douglas Hyde set out to ensure that the Irish language would be treasured in Ireland and maintained as a key part our culture. Hyde’s passion involved the founding of Conradh na Gaeilge, of which he served as President from 1893 to 1915. Conradh na Gaeilge has worked continuously towards ensuring the survival of Irish as a living language and today - 130 years on - it has branches, not only throughout Ireland, but abroad.

In truth the survival of Irish as a living working language, although cherished as part of our nation, has not always been easily achieved. There is ongoing work to ensure that our language is as widely used as possible and remains a living part of our rich heritage. Irish is a living community language in our Gaeltacht areas and we wish to extend its general usage throughout the length and breadth of the country.

Our focused efforts extend to the widespread teaching of Irish, increasing the numbers who select to use it as the living language of choice in daily life as well as encouraging its use officially. Last year, I worked to introduce the Official Languages (Amendment) Act 2021 which is a strengthening of the Official Languages Act 2003, and aims to improve the quality of services available to citizens who wish to conduct business with, or avail of services from, the State through the medium of Irish. Now we need to ensure that the provisions of that new legislation are fully implemented.

I am so delighted to share with you the recent development that the Irish language has achieved full parity with the European Union’s 23 official languages. This international recognition of the Irish language and to have our native tongue take its appropriate place with the other languages of Europe is a matter of both pride and importance to the heart of our nation.

A key element in the normalisation of our language was the foundation of a dedicated Irish language television station 25 years ago, TG4. It has played an important role in the development and growth of Irish language drama, bringing our native language into our homes and allowing every day access to all to the everyday happenings of our country reported as gaeilge.

I am keen that we continue to build on the traditional approaches and legislative measures to ensure that the language is accessible to everyone across the country and to Irish diaspora around the world. Not only must we prioritise the revitalisation of Gaeltacht areas into vibrant communities where young people want to stay, work, raise a family and grow old, we must also make the language as accessible as we can across the country, in areas not traditionally known to be Gaeltacht communities.

We have recently seen a resurgence in the popularity of the Irish language in what is known as the ‘Galltacht’ - areas that aren’t typically Gaeltacht regions. Young people, in particular, are leading this resurgence.

‘Pop Up Gaeltachts’, informal gatherings of Irish speakers of varying abilities in a bar or a café setting, have grown in popularity, with these events taking place across the country and all over the world. They take place very regularly across the island of Ireland, and have even grown in popularity among Irish diaspora across the world. Pop Up Gaeltachts have taken place in New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Bolivia, Australia, the UAE, and across Europe.

As well as that, more and more parents around the country are sending their children to ‘Gaelscoileanna’ and ‘Gaelcholáistí’, schools where Irish is spoken as the primary language. In my own home county of Monaghan, for example, a county that isn’t a Gaeltacht area historically, over 10% of children now attend school through the medium of Irish at either a primary or secondary level.

It is also a top priority of mine to ensure that children around the country of all backgrounds have the opportunity to attend Gaeltacht summer courses. Every year, tens of thousands of students travel to the Gaeltacht to learn Irish and immerse themselves in the culture. One of the biggest stumbling blocks to the accessibility of the language is that many can’t afford this, so one of my biggest goals as Minister for the Gaeltacht is to reduce the cost barrier by providing more grants and supports to attend Gaeltacht summer courses to those who might not otherwise have been able to afford it. This will help to ensure that the language is accessible and there to be learned and enjoyed by young people of all backgrounds across the country.

The grá that the young people of Ireland have for their mother tongue, and the innovative ways they find to express this, truly is inspiring and it presents a bright future for the language. Third level colleges around the country have what they call a ‘Cumann Gaelach’, a college society where activities are carried out through Irish. These societies are some of the biggest societies in each of Ireland’s top universities.

Modern Irish pop music has become more popular, with new acts performing as Gaeilge rising to popularity and covers of popular songs in Irish being regularly released. Some of you may have seen a cover as Gaeilge of the Avicii song ‘Wake Me Up’ by teenagers in the Gaeltacht go ‘viral’ all over the world a few years ago. Internationally recognised musicians such as Hozier, Ed Sheeran, Kodaline and Gavin James have released Irish versions of some of their songs. An all Irish language camping festival celebrating Irish music and arts as a whole has even taken place in recent years and continues to grow in popularity.

As well as this, in recent years Duolingo announced that Irish was the fastest growing language on the app, the 16th most popular in the world, and the number one language being learned in Ireland. This shows the strength and cultural significance of Ireland and its diaspora across the world, and the deep cultural connection Irish people have to their mother tongue.

We have an incredible and unique opportunity for the rebirth of Irish as a thriving language across the country and the world for many more, for new ‘Gaeltachts’ to be created, for new colloquialisms, for new words, new dialects, and new accents to be formed.

My vision for the Irish language is one that allows it to flourish in its most natural form in Gaeltacht communities, where people of all ages live and work. It’s one where every young person in Ireland has the opportunity to immerse themselves in Irish, either through their school, through the arts, the media, or sport, or through attendance at a summer Gaeltacht course. One where Gaeilge is associated with pride, with love, with hope, by all in our country, and with who we are as Irish people, rather than an as a school subject or something only relevant to a few. It’s that vision that guides me in my role as Minister for the Gaeltacht, and will continue to guide me

There are other positive signs which augur well for the language – the creative arts and wealth of Irish poetry, novels and short stories emanating from a new generation of talented writers. In relation to film, Ireland has over recent years witnessed a revival in Irish language films including Arracht, a hugely moving story from Ireland’s famine times, to the recently released beautiful Irish-language film An Cailín Ciuin, which won awards at its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival.

On the wider topic of the film industry in Ireland, international attention has increased with the growth and success of Irish films. This year multiple Oscar nominations have been achieved by the moving of home and conflict in Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast, which features so many wonderful Irish actors, and which has a universal resonance, and last year’s Oscar nominated animated film Wolfwalkers, rooted in Irish folklore.

Our Government is ambitious for the film industry in Ireland and we want to see the Irish creative screen sector grow to become a global centre of excellence for the creative industries to tell all our stories. We aim to create opportunities for global audiences to be able to enjoy culturally rich Irish screen stories through collaboration and strategic partners, and we invite interest from Argentina in developing collaborations with Ireland.

It is important to me that Irish film can find a home not only nationally but internationally. It offers a way for us to share our stories, talent and also our breath-taking scenery which has become known and world famous through Star Wars which promotes the beauty of Kerry, and our UNESCO World Heritage site at Skellig Michael, and has attracted many Jedi fans to visit Ireland.

I know many of you are already familiar with what Ireland has to offer in terms of our culture and here in Argentina, I have felt a real sense of shared connection and heritage. Irish traditional music and dance is enjoyed by many here in Argentina and I am delighted that there is a municipal public school for Uileann pipers in Lago Puelo, in Patagonia. The sharing and promotion of Uileann piping is close to my heart.

I know that Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann are active here for some years in Buenos Aires, Rosario, Cordoba and elsewhere. Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann this year will take place in Mullingar and I am sure this will bring an added focus to the connection through music between Ireland and Argentina. There are strong links between the Irish Midlands and Argentina, having their origins in the huge numbers who emigrated from Counties Westmeath, Longford and Offaly to Argentina between 1830s and the 1870s, the majority from Westmeath. The Pipers Boreen in Mullingar – birthplace of Comhaltas - along the Royal Canal marks the place Uilleann pipers and musicians played music for departing emigrants who started their journey on the canal to the emigrant ships.

In December 2015, Ireland ratified the UNESCO 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, which aims to safeguard, appreciate and raise awareness of intangible cultural heritage while also providing for international cooperation and assistance in this area.

To date, Ireland has also been successful in having three elements of our living heritage inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity – these are Uileann piping, which was our first application in 2017, hurling in 2018 and Irish harping in 2019.

By achieving international recognition of these practices, which was achieved in close cooperation with the communities concerned, their safeguarding is supported and ensured for future generations. The UNESCO listing also serves to acknowledge and celebrate the work of the generations who have kept these traditions alive and provides a wonderful opportunity to share these cherished aspects of Irish culture with others. I wish to thank in particular those here in Argentina who have already played an important role transmitting the practices from generation to generation. Ireland is obliged by UNESCO to safeguard these elements of our culture and I thank all those interests in Argentina who have supported us in that regard.

Let us work to continue to build our connections. There is a saying in Irish – an té a bhíonn siúlach, bíonn scéalach – or those who travel have stories to tell. Ireland is known as the country of the céad míle fáilte – the hundred thousand welcomes – and invites you to visit and also to collaborate with us. Our Programme for Government – Our Shared Future - encourages Ireland to be ambitious, visible and active in promoting our nation on the international stage.

Culture Ireland which operates under my Department has the remit to promote Irish arts worldwide. Culture Ireland works with local venues, festivals and programmers to support the presentation of Irish artists on global stages. Given our shared interest, I would welcome interest from programmers in Argentina to consider having Irish artists visit with Culture Ireland support so we can strengthen our links, be it through music, dance, film or literature. Support is also offered for the translation of the work of Irish writers and there is currently a wealth of young and especially female Irish writers emerging in Ireland. They write of our society now as seen through the eyes of the younger generation and I hope that many of you here get the chance to engage with this work, which reflects the Ireland of today.

As I mention literature, another centenary comes to mind – that of James Joyce’s Ulysses. I know that there are plans to have a Bloomsday 100 project here thanks to the cooperation of Argentine partners and I hope that you get a chance to enjoy this unique occasion of one of Ireland’s most celebrated writers. One of the more celebrated quotations from that novel is his call that we “Hold to the now, the here, through which all future plunges to the past”. Perhaps a century ago, Joyce anticipated that the real value of commemorative reflection is the application of that reflection to the challenges and opportunities of today.

One hundred years on from the cultural revival we have set out a vision for our cultural future. This vision is contained in our cultural framework policy Culture 2025 which recognises the value of culture and creativity to the individual and society, commits to supporting creative practice and cultural participation, and cherishing our cultural heritage. It also emphasises the importance of the Irish language, our cultural heritage, folklore, games, music and the uniqueness of our Gaeltacht areas and the value of cultural diversity. It is informed by the many traditions and social backgrounds that constitute contemporary Ireland.

And of importance here today is to be aware that it reinforces the importance that Ireland maintain a vital connection through culture with its global diaspora and their descendants, who of course far outnumber Irish people living on the island. Supporting Irish culture internationally plays a key role in connecting Ireland with our estimated 70 million strong Irish diaspora and we are so aware that their experiences, stories, and heritage are a central component of our culture.

Supporting artistic practice is a priority policy objective. We have put in place a range of measures to deliver on this goal. In recent years, we have greatly increase allocations to the Arts Council to support artists. We have also developed and put in place programmes of support for the live entertainment sector who were so severely impacted by Covid.

Now, the key priority for me as Minister with responsibility for arts and culture is to launch a Basic Income for the Arts pilot scheme later this month. Based on my fundamental belief in the intrinsic value of the arts, culture and creativity, it is critical in my view that we recognise and support artistic practice in all its forms. What we are proposing to do in Ireland goes further than any other support I know of internationally, in that a basic income will be offered to artists and creative arts workers, not as a social protection support, but instead in recognition of the value of artistic practice allowing artists and creatives to focus on their practice and be compensated appropriately for it.

This action underpins a commitment to value the arts in Ireland as they contribute to individual and societal well-being, as well as Ireland's well founded reputation as a country with a rich cultural and artistic history. The recent pandemic reinforced our belief that each and every person relies on and leans into the arts during times of need. It also reinforced my belief that we need a new way to support artists, one that recognises the value of what has been unpaid work in the development of an arts practice and which addresses the precarious incomes which are all too often a challenge for artists. This proposal emerged from a Taskforce comprised of artists and has been shaped by repeated rounds of engagement with the sector and relevant stakeholders. I have been determined since the outset to ensure that the voices of artists would be heard and valued.

I want to take this opportunity today to say that as a member of Government, an important goal of mine is to further gender equality within every sector of my remit. I know that those working in the arts in Ireland are already leading in the field. The arts sector represents a contemporary Ireland woven from unique stories, originality of voice and cultural diversity and it has done significant work in recent years to address the issue of gender inequality.

Work must continue in this regard and the importance of policies promoting diversity and inclusion within the arts sector, and indeed at Government level, cannot be overstated. Ireland is now a country of great diversity and the arts that we produce should reflect and serve our wide range of audiences and provide a breadth of storytelling.

I wish to conclude by acknowledging that Irishness has many dimensions and is not defined on the basis of residence but rather is based on a shared culture. Global connectedness allows us now more than ever before to share our culture and heritage. All of you gathered here today, by being here alone, are expressing an interest in Ireland and our culture. This is deeply appreciated - you help reflect how we see ourselves, and represent the story of ourselves. You make a most valuable contribution to ensuring that Irish culture continues to flourish here and somehow the world seems like a smaller place, where we are not confined by where we live but joined by common interests. As they say in Irish, ní neart go cur le chéile – we are better together.

A hundred years on from the foundation of the State, we continue to nurture our cultural heritage, including our language. Not as museum pieces to be studied and conserved, but as a living embodiment of Irish culture to be shared with confidence on a global stage as we move into our second century of independence. We are a nation that values the arts and artists, that promotes creativity in all aspects of our daily lives, and understands the role that culture can play in building bridges at every level. At a time when the forces that seek to divide us are wreaking devastation on the lives of so many in Ukraine and elsewhere, it is more important than ever that we continue to nurture and promote those things that bind us together in our common humanity.

Guím beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig ar gach duine anseo inniu. I wish all here - whether Irish by birth, descent or association - a happy and peaceful Saint Patrick’s Day.