My lineage, for the most part, traces its roots back to that wonderfully green country, Ireland. I was born William Bailey McCreery IV, about as Irish as a name can be. Also, I’m Catholic and I share a name with a popular liquor (Bailey’s Irish Cream, in case one could not come to mind) that seems to be the only way that people can remember my name. Due to this, my name and lineage have been associated with drunken debauchery and the desire to fight anything that moves, though most often the former. As funny as those jokes about the drunken Irishman in a pub may be, they tend to come all to often and wear my patience, for the Irish culture is much more defined beyond Guinness Draught.
Despite this modern era of political correctness and supposed social equality, stereotypes still fall through the cracks, and I am particularly bothered by the stereotypes of Irish people. The one I hear most of all is that all Irish people are drunks by the age of 15. Also, I hear pretty frequently that Irish people just love fighting and will do anything to look for a fight. Oh, and I forgot that all Irish people are going to become police officers or firefighters, since we can’t really do much else in the way of a career. So thus far, we know that Irish people are police officers who have whiskey in their veins and bloodied knuckles. Sounds pretty accurate, right? Of course it does, especially when you have TV shows and movies showing just that, it has to have some truth. For instance, the TV show, The Fighting Fitzgeralds, which was on NBC not too long ago featured an Irish family in South Boston. The father was a firefighter, one of the sons was a bartender, the other was a stockbroker who could not hold a job, and of course their hobbies were drinking and arguing. But then again, that’s what Irish people do anyway, so it’s all in good fun.
When I went to Las Vegas over the summer, ironically enough, my Aunt and Uncle had booked us into the hotel “Fitzgeralds,” and from there, everything about Irish culture was revealed. The leprechauns and shamrocks were innumerable; the breakfast buffet featured corned beef, potatoes, and cabbage, but surprisingly, not Guinness or whiskey. It was like watching a Lucky Charms commercial, but longer and interactive. I wanted to get out my shillelegh and Riverdance the whole time I was there.
Knowing that all Irish people are either involved in drinking or fighting, its hard to believe that there were Irish men and women who decided to break the ethos of the Irish and do something constructive. For instance, there was Jonathan Swift, one of the greatest satirists of all time, famous for his A Modest Proposal, and Gulliver’s Travels. Also, he was a major player in the British parliament during his era, using his power to help Ireland try and rid itself of British hatred. Also, there was John F. Kennedy, who, as we all know, became our 35th President, helped diffuse the Cuban Missile Crisis, and started the Peace Corps. Oscar Wilde, the famous humorist and noted author of The Picture of Dorian Grey and The Importance of Being Earnest, was also Irish. More famous Irish folk include Eugene O’Neill, the famous playwright of The Ice Man Cometh and A Long Day’s Journey Into Night, and F. Scott Fitzgerald, of The Great Gatsby and Tender is the Night fame. Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female Supreme Court Justice, and Nellie Bly, the pioneering female journalist, were also of Irish decent. The list can go on for hours, but the point is that these few are just drops in the bucket. Just because there have been numerous people that are Irish or of Irish decent who have profoundly influenced our society doesn’t mean that all the other Irish people will amount to anything beyond boxing or cirrhosis of the liver. After all, it’s what we do best.
My name is William Bailey McCreery IV, born to an Irish father and very proud to be considered Irish. I do not drink. I do not fight. The British don’t upset me. I do not know if there is a pot o’ gold at the end of the rainbow. I’m studying to become an astrophysicist, I can’t River Dance, and I have never met a leprechaun. But then again, I am Catholic and I like the color green . . .