Halfpints: Six points that sum up Ireland’s 2020 election

The Irish Passport
The Irish Passport
Halfpints: Six points that sum up Ireland's 2020 election
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Ireland goes to the polls on February 8th. Naomi O’Leary breaks down six points that explain the election. Who are the players? Why was the election called? What are the main issues? How will the election work? What are the likely results? And what do the Black and Tans have to do with it?

This is an episode of Halfpints, the bonus episodes of The Irish Passport podcast we make specially to thank our supporters on Patreon. You can find a whole archive of extra content over at https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport.

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.


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Direct Provision

The Irish Passport
The Irish Passport
Direct Provision
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Contains an interview about anti-LGBT+ and anti-immigration violence.

In this season finale, The Irish Passport takes on one of Ireland’s most controversial issues: Direct Provision. The system for housing people who apply for refugee status in Ireland turns 20 this year. Tim Mc Inerney and Naomi O’Leary speak to Bulelani Mfaco, who fled persecution of gay and LGBT+ people in South Africa to Ireland in 2017, and now campaigns for the rights of those seeking asylum. We visit the Direct Provision centre he lives in to take a look at life on the inside, and find out why Mfaco describes the system as deliberate marginalisation of migrants and akin to racial segregation. Irish Times journalist Sorcha Pollak explains how the system came to be, and discusses the evidence that the system was deliberately designed to be unpleasant. In the wake of a series of arson attacks on planned Direct Provision centres, Pollak’s reporting has revealed that a small group of far-right activists are hijacking community meetings all around Ireland in an attempt to exploit unhappiness about Direct Provision and inflame anti-immigration politics that have so far skipped over Ireland. Finally, we explore cultural responses to the system, in a discussion with award-winning music group Rusangano Family, featuring their acclaimed song ‘Heathrow’.

We made bonus episodes specially to thank our Patreon supporters over on https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport.

A full interview with Bulelani Mfaco about life in Direct Provision can be heard here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/35038927

You can hear a bonus episode on Irish politics and the far right featuring political scientist Cas Mudde here: https://www.theirishpassport.com/podcast/rise-of-the-right-what-ireland-can-learn-with-political-scientist-cas-mudde/

Featuring editing by Alan Meaney http://alanmeaney.ie/ .

Season 3 of The Irish Passport podcast is made with the kind support of Biddy Murphy, online sellers of genuine Irish goods. Check them out on www.biddymurphy.com.

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.


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Home for Christmas

The Irish Passport
The Irish Passport
Home for Christmas
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Every year, thousands of returning emigrants make their way through the sliding doors of Dublin airport arrivals to come home to Ireland for Christmas. Tim Mc Inerney and Naomi O’Leary record from the scene to bring you the stories of those who have travelled from far and wide and come back home to celebrate the holiday with their loved ones. We share funny stories, sad stories, moving stories, and discuss family quirks and pre-Christian traditions that make up the Irish Christmas experience.

For bonus episodes, support us on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport.

Featuring editing by Alan Meaney http://alanmeaney.ie/ .

Season 3 of The Irish Passport podcast is made with the kind support of Biddy Murphy, online sellers of genuine Irish goods. Check them out on www.biddymurphy.com.

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.

Featuring the track “wound” by Jahzzar.


Support this podcast

What the UK election means for Ireland, Brexit and the union

The Irish Passport
The Irish Passport
What the UK election means for Ireland, Brexit and the union
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The UK has voted for a Boris Brexit, and the future of the union has never seemed so fragile. What does the biggest Conservative majority in a generation mean for Ireland north and south? Naomi O’Leary and Tim Mc Inerney dissect the election results, discuss how a number of upsets from the Democratic Unionist Party indicate the party seriously miscalculated on Brexit, and bring you fresh analysis from the election frontlines. Unionist political commentator Sarah Creighton tells us how Northern Ireland is reacting to the results and what it means for loyalism. Chatham House analyst Pepijn Bergsen tells us how the remaining members of the European Union are reacting. MEP and First Vice President of the European Parliament Mairead McGuinness tells us why Brexit is far from over and what lies ahead in the next phase of the negotiations.

For bonus episodes, support us on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/theirishpassport.

Featuring editing by Alan Meaney http://alanmeaney.ie/ .

Season 3 of The Irish Passport podcast is made with the kind support of Biddy Murphy, online sellers of genuine Irish goods. Check them out on www.biddymurphy.com.

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.

A text transcript of this episode is available here: https://theirishpassport.com/transcripts/transcript-what-the-uk-election-means-for-ireland-brexit-and-the-union/


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Halfpints: Ireland’s history of locking up women: interview with Caelainn Hogan

The Irish Passport
The Irish Passport
Halfpints: Ireland's history of locking up women: interview with Caelainn Hogan
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During the 20th century, a significant proportion of the Irish population was incarcerated in a network of institutions. These ranged from Magdalene laundries where ‘troublesome’ women were put into servitude, to industrial schools for children that were famed for their cruelty. Journalist Caelainn Hogan is the author of Republic of Shame: Stories from Ireland’s Institutions for ‘Fallen Women’. In this interview with Naomi O’Leary, Hogan explains how this dark side of Irish society is a much more recent phenomenon than commonly thought. She tells the story of one Mother and Baby home that was only founded in the 1980s, and closed in 2006. Born to unmarried parents herself, Hogan explains how her own family history gave what she discovered additional poignancy as she tells the story of women still searching for their lost children, and adopted people struggling to uncover their origins.

This is an episode of Halfpints, the bonus series we make to thank our supporters on Patreon. To gain access to our full catalogue of bonus content, head over now to www.patreon.com/theirishpassport, and become a supporter of the podcast today.

Share this episode on social media and tag @PassportIrish to be in with a chance to win a copy of Republic of Shame.

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: @PassportIrish.

Editing by Alan Meaney.


Support this podcast