Vincent Browne was overawed by events at Saturday's rugby international but wonders why the inclusiveness in evidence at Croke Park is not extended to Travellers by the Irish media.
The euphoria of last Saturday continues. Never before did I even know what it was to be proud to be Irish (I thought the idea of pride for a chance occurrence was absurd); never before overawed by a stadium (I had been in Croke Park several times previously and recently, but never overawed until the dusk of last Saturday); never before moved emotionally by Amhrán na BhFiann (the words of which I hate); never before filled with pride by an Irish team (Munster yes, but not Ireland); never left a sports ground with such elation, proud of the GAA, proud of the IRFU, proud of Paul O'Connell, Ronan O'Gara, Peter Stringer, David Wallace, John Hayes, Marcus Horan, even of the Leinster players Brian O'Driscoll, Shane Horgan, Gordon D'Arcy and the rest. Proud of the Army Number One Band and the Garda Band, for God's sake. Even proud of Bertie for giving Mary McAleese a smacker (did Paddy the Plasterer give her a smacker too?).
This was as good as it gets.
But pride? Pride in what? I had nothing to do with it. But still proud. Can't explain.
And I think I am like hundreds of thousands of Irish people in the glow of that splendid occasion. It all seemed to come together: the rugby and the GAA crowd united at last in mutual respect; the sensibility about God Save the Queen (many more sang that at Croke Park than there were English supporters or Northern unionists present); that magnificent monument to voluntary effort and spirit that Croke Park represents, that ability to get the formalities and informalities just right. And then the game.
The picture in The Irish Times on Monday of Paul O'Connell soaring to the rafters of that arena, with the towering stadium framing his extraordinary athleticism, captured that wonderment
But then on Tuesday a reality check.
What is it about this country that can exalt the spirit as happened on Saturday evening and then can demean itself so casually and heedlessly?
In yesterday's Daily Irish Mail there was a lead story headed "Traveller mob in hospital rampage". Its opening paragraph read: "Patients and medical staff cowered in fear last night as a 30-strong gang of Travellers laid siege to a hospital". The report included stories of smashed windows and kicked-in doors.
But later on in the story it was reported that, according to a spokesperson for the hospital (Naas), a group of Travellers arrived after a patient was admitted to the hospital. Afterwards, the hospital doors were locked as a safety precaution. The local gardaí said there was an incident in the hospital grounds, but no one was injured and no arrests were made.
Had this been a group of GAA or soccer or even rugby supporters, nobody would have taken any notice. But because the people involved were from the most stigmatised group in Irish society, this headline was written, accompanied by scare stories about essentially nothing.
How can the decent society that was so splendidly on display last Saturday then become a nasty, vicious society when dealing with one of its most vulnerable groups? And, yes, this was just the Daily Irish Mail, but they know their audience.
A few weeks back (February 4th) the Sunday World led its edition with the headline "Sprog Ward". The strap line was "Widow pregnant by refugee hubby". This was another Paul Williams "exclusive" (Williams is the paper's crime correspondent). The story began: "The widow of slain traveller, John 'Frog' Ward is expecting her TWELFTH child - but she has split from her new African refugee husband" (emphasis added by the Sunday World). The headline and story - itself a gross invasion of privacy - are dripping with racism.
But it is not just the gutter press that is at it. In reference to the inquest into the killing of John Ward - the Traveller badly beaten and then shot dead by the Mayo farmer, Pádraig Nally - RTÉ news bulletins persistently referred to John Ward as "John Frog Ward".
I assume the justification for this is that this is how John Ward was known among his peers. But is that good enough? Would a demeaning nickname - however often used by a person's peers - be used were it a judge or a barrister being referred to, or a "captain of industry" or a priest or a bishop? You bet it wouldn't. But it is okay for a Traveller.
More than 5,000 Travellers live on the roadside with no sanitation or running water, because the State refuses to provide them with proper halting sites, with washing and cooking facilities and toilets. It is not a lot of ask of the State for a group that has been victimised, discriminated against and reviled for so long.
A few years ago the Traveller community had the energy and leadership to confront instances of such egregious prejudice as represented by the Daily Irish Mail, the Sunday World, and RTÉ and would have campaigned on the issues surrounding the killing of John Ward. Nowadays hardly a cheep. Discouraging.
But back to my question: how can a people who behaved with such dignity and respect last Saturday at the same time behave with such indignity and disrespect?