Apparently I’m an “Irish ethno-nationalist”. At least that is the opinion of the British nationalist website “Open Unionism“ (if ever there was misnomer that title is surely it). In a review portentously entitled “State of the Union” (ahem…) a number of articles attacking progressive Nationalist movements in Ireland, Scotland and Wales are highlighted, though naturally it is the Irish that take the heaviest beating (or is it baiting?). In the view of the British Nationalists behind Open Unionism their Irish peers are mere “ethno-nationalists”. Because British Nationalism is not really a nationalism at all but it is actually, er, civic unionism.
One might take these claims slightly seriously if they did not come from a website which features the British national flag in its banner and the red, white and blue colours of the British national flag throughout. Not to mention that several of its recent contributors and articles feature members of the Traditional Unionist Voice or TUV, a tiny if fundamentalist British Unionist political party in the north-east of Ireland that wishes to drag that region of our country back to the days of the colonial apartheid-state that was “Northern Ireland”.
And then there is this opinion piece with its implied defence of the anti-democracy protesters from the militant extreme of the British Unionist minority in Ireland:
“By facilitating the anti-British agenda of Sinn Fein/SDLP at Belfast City Hall, David Ford and his cavalry of political donkeys have unwittingly sparked a wave of protests across Northern Ireland as grass roots unionists finally figure things may not be quite as they understand them. As the Union flag was taken down from City Hall, unionist anger has risen and a series of flag protests in cities, towns and villages have characterised recent weeks.
At every opportunity, Irish republicans seek to erase all symbols of our Britishness. This is a key objective for them. It is by removing these outward and visible signs of Northern Ireland’s British identity that they prepare us for future moves on a more dramatic scale.
“Stormont has been stripped of many historic artefacts which remind us of our Unionist heritage. The table on which the Act of Union was signed once took pride of place in Stormont’s Great Hall. Portraits of former Prime Ministers Lord Craigavon and JM Andrews were once on display in Parliament Buildings. Today they all languish in a commercial storage facility in Mallusk.
“Not a single portrait of Her Majesty the Queen is on public display in Stormont. Outside of Stormont Unionists have witnessed a campaign against their cultural identity with tensions manufactured around parades this year where there was never any problem before. We have seen tens of millions lavished on the promotion of Irish with the prospect of millions more if the Irish Language Strategy developed by Cullan’s DCAL is implemented. Since its establishment the North/South body charged with the promotion of Irish has received over £35 million and it emerged just yesterday that DCAL are bidding for £60,000 for an Irish language website.”
Sinn Fein and their handmaidens in the SDLP wage kulturkampf against everything that is British – short of the wages and expenses they grasp from the British exchequer.
Northern Ireland is British and the Union flag should fly outside Belfast City Hall an on Stormont 365 days a year.”
Flags? Tables? Portraits? Parades? Languages?
Oh no, British Unionism is not nationalistic at all.
But then British Unionism isn’t really anything like Irish Nationalism either. The latter is open, progressive and liberal. Whereas British Nationalism is resentful, supremacist and discriminatory.
Sure, maybe I’m a happy-go-lucky Irish ethno-nationalist after all!
AN SIONNACH FIONN 
re. “Because British Nationalism is not really a nationalism at all but it is actually, er, civic unionism”
Puts me in mind of the Tories (as a tribal Unionist party) coming over to our little tribal backwater to put an end to tribal politics in project UCUNF – the Unionist electorate obviously decided they needed their Unionism to be a little less cryptic.
re. “Not to mention that several of its recent contributors and articles feature members of the Traditional Unionist Voice or TUV”
In defense of OU I recently posted on there as a Nat. A major problem with most Norn Iron sites(Slugger excepted) is that they are too ethno centric – with general nodding and agreement between bloggers and contributors.
LikeLike
British Unionism is simply British Nationalism by another name. The only real difference between the varieties in Britain and Ireland is that the version imported here is mixed with a heavy dose of colonial supremacism, racism and sectarianism.
Open Unionism is simply the polar opposite of the political views expressed by An Sionnach Fionn. That they think they are something better, something superior, is what is so laughable.
LikeLike
Sammy,
” A major problem with most Norn Iron sites(Slugger excepted) is that they are too ethno centric – with general nodding and agreement between bloggers and contributors.”
Hardly a problem between us I think?
Readers, bloggers and commenters tend to read other blogs that they broadly agree with. That is natural. It also doesn’t mean they agree with everything they read nor should they. The point is to validate ones own opinions as well as to think more deeply about the matters at hand.
In the “olden” days there was academic research via books and newspapers as well as a chat down the pub on occasion. Now there is far greater choice and availability of information. A good thing, no?
You consistently challenge my opinions on my own site and I answer as honestly as I can. I don’t agree with you on some matters but I welcome the challenge as I have to think through my answer. Everyone wins!
As for open unionism, they had a little go at me recently as well so Séamus, welcome to the club 😉
LikeLike
Not a bad club to be in, methinks 😉
LikeLike
BD,
re. “Hardly a problem between us I think?”
In my opinion it is a problem – in fighting is of course enjoyable but not as good as real thing.
…but Unionists are not as interested in jibber jabbering as much as us lot and tend to stay within their comfort zone which includes Slugger – which in my opinion fairly reflects ussuns and themmuns. Probably just me but always interests me more what themmuns are saying as generally speaking I have a fair idea of what ussuns have to say.
LikeLike
The fact that Unionism in Ireland is so uninterested in airing its beliefs and teasing out its opinions is surely part of its inherent paranoia and lack of confidence? They don’t jibber-jabber because they are afraid too. Or because they fear their beliefs will be found wanting. They simply exist in echo-chambers.
Republicans on the other hand positively love to debate the rights and wrongs of their beliefs. They wish to explain themselves, to make friends and influence people. And they will go out to find such discussions – or arguments. Or so is my experience.
LikeLike
re. “surely part of its inherent paranoia and lack of confidence.
A tempting and perhaps self serving (for ussuns ) analysis no doubt – but I think there are certain ‘cultural’ differnces between the ‘indigenous’ (ussuns) peoples and those who have arrived in the last few centuries (themmuns).
I suspect such differences may well be reflected in the figures for example of those ussuns studying particular subjects (those relying more on Jibber Jabbering) in Northern Universities.
LikeLike
Or as they used to say back in the day, Republicans leave the Kesh with degrees and Unionists leave the Kesh with muscles.
Perhaps unfair. It was members of the Scots-Irish community who played a pivotal role in the defence of Ireland’s culture in the 19th century through the revival of Irish literature with all those Irish-English dictionaries, glossaries, translations, folklore collections, poetry, etc. Not to mention new and innovative works in the Irish language. Very obvious themmun surnames loom large in the Gaelic Revival.
On the other hand, and arguably, without the Anglo-Scots colonists of the 1600s and onwards there would have been no need for a revival in the first place. Who remembers Oirialla now?
Its a complicated weave of history.
LikeLike
re. “Or as they used to say back in the day, Republicans leave the Kesh with degrees and Unionists leave the Kesh with muscles.”
Probably the reason for this is that themmuns equivalents of ussuns paramilitiaries were in the secrutiy forces .
re. “Its a complicated weave of history”.
Now yer motoring ye boy ye.
LikeLike
“The fact that Unionism in Ireland is so uninterested in airing its beliefs and teasing out its opinions is surely part of its inherent paranoia and lack of confidence? They don’t jibber-jabber because they are afraid too. Or because they fear their beliefs will be found wanting.”
I read some of the articles on the site and I am not so sure this statement is right.
Of course anti-catholicism will be found wanting
I wonder about paranoia and lack of confidence.
I noticed quite the opposite in fact in several instances.
In my opinion the impermeability to other opinions and the feeling there was no need to air beliefs and tease out opinions was due to the unquestioned and unquestionable conviction of being right.
Which might be termed “supremacism”
or might be due to never having to defend the Unionist opinion/position against any real challenge on current cultural/intellectual/social/economic etc grounds
Maybe the debate on Scottish independence will open things up?
Or the debate on the Border Poll?
Setting out strong coherent arguments that have the potential to breach this conviction is certainly necessary.
Many writers from Davis, Mitchel, Lalor onwards did this in the 19th /early 20th century for the circumstances that obtained then.
Perhaps similar personalities are needed across all the media for the 21st century.
It’s never a bad thing to open the windows and let some fresh air into a cold stuffy house!!
LikeLike
Your point about about Davis, Mitchel, Lalor and the other early and mid-19th century generation of Republican intellectuals is very important. They had an influence that extended well beyond their time. When one compares the Irish Republican press in the mid to late 1800s and in the decade before the 1916 Revolution with what we have now the lack of variety and productivity is noticeable.
The generation of Republican writers including Tone and Emmett influenced the next generation including Davis and Mitchel. The Davis generation then went on to influence the IRB and Fenian generation of the 1840s to 1880s. They in turn influenced Pádraig mac Piarais and Connolly and that generation in their writings and philosophy.
While taking inspiration from all of them we need our own generation, a 21st century generation of Irish Republican philosophers, writers, poets, artists and historians to carry forward the Fenian Flame. I hope and strive for An Sionnach Fionn to be part of that Irish Awakening in its own tiny way. There are others, and better, who are doing the same.
LikeLike