I was really excited to watch this movie because my ancestors came from Ireland. As I watched I was really captivated about the terrible things the Irish had to endure that I had never heard about.
The story talked about Clarice Wolf one of the seven million Irish that came to America in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. Many Irish were told stories form their grandparents; some made American look good, and others made it look very bad. Presbyterians of Scotch ancestry came looking for land in the U.S. They all had different experiences due to the fact that they were catholic. English armies had taken away their land in Ireland. They oppressed them and took away any land belonging to Catholics. Two brothers had to pay rent to liver on the land that had been stolen from them by the English. To own land was considered very powerful because it was hand in hand with the government. One of the brothers moved to the United States, the other brother enlisted the help of a Blacksmith and made weapons for an uprising against the English. They attached in 1798 and were a success. Then in June the “Piteman� (Irish) were defeated. Then this brother too immigrated to the U.S. The first immigrant brother became a mayor of a town and was very successful; the rebellious brother was never heard form again.
Nationalists’ say that immigration was forced exile by the English. It was the only option left for the Irish. The Barrats, an Irish family, immigrated to Canada, they left behind their eldest daughter Mary Rush. She had her own little potatoe crop. Despite poverty, they ate well due to the potatoes. There was soon a potatoe famine. Over one million people in Ireland died of starvation. Mary rush could not afford the passage to America so she was forced to stay and starve to death.
It’s these types of situations that I really thought were amazing. I had never realized the amount of persecution that was endured by the Irish. I am so glad that I watched this movie because it gave me a greater understanding of what my ancestors went through. I also feel better aware of the truth surrounding what was experienced while they stayed in America.
