[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 45 (Wednesday, April 22, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E631-E632]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  A HISTORIC DAY FOR THE CITY OF MILWAUKEE AND ITS THOUSANDS OF IRISH-
                           AMERICAN RESIDENTS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. THOMAS M. BARRETT

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 22, 1998

  Mr. BARRETT of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a moment 
to recognize a historic day for the city of Milwaukee and its thousands 
of Irish-American residents.
  Tomorrow, April 23, several officials who negotiated the ground-
breaking Northern Ireland peace accord will be in the Common Council 
Room at Milwaukee's City Hall. The news conference is a precursor to 
the officials' participation in the ninth annual University of 
Wisconsin-Milwaukee George F. Kennan Forum in International Affairs. 
This year's forum, entitled ``Prospects for Peace in Northern 
Ireland,'' was arranged long before the peace talks reported progress 
this spring and culminated in the Good Friday Agreement peace accords 
announced on April 10.
  The officials attending the UWM Forum on International Affairs 
include: W. David Trimble, leader of the Ulster Unionist Party; Anthony 
Cary, counsellor political at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C.; 
and Irish Consul General Frank Sheridan of Chicago. Other confirmed 
speakers include Bronagh Hinds, of the Northern Ireland Women's 
Coalition of Belfast; Mitchell McLaughlin, Head, Island Wide Sinn Fein 
Organization of Belfast; Bridd Rodgers, Chairperson of the SDLP 
Negotiations Team.
  The Good Friday Agreement ended twenty-one months of grueling talks 
and tense negotiations and one last 32-hour marathon session between 
Northern Ireland's political leaders. The settlement plan offers a hope 
for peace among sectarian groups that have waged a war of terrorism 
against each other for nearly thirty years.
  Under the settlement plan, self-rule would be restored to Northern 
Ireland for the first time in 26 years and new institutions would be 
created to provide the minority Catholics with a greater voice and to 
meet the majority Protestant wishes that Northern Ireland remain a part 
of Britain. The settlement plan also calls for the strengthening of 
relations between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.
  Although some factions have voiced opposition to the settlement plan, 
the hope for peace continues to grow as the May 22 referendum date 
approaches. On that day, the people of both Northern Ireland and the 
Republic of Ireland will have the opportunity to vote for peace.
  I think President Clinton said it best when he said ``After a thirty 
year winter of sectarian violence, Northern Ireland today has the 
promise of a springtime of peace.''
  Milwaukee has long participated in the practice of healing and 
developing understanding among Irish youth. Since 1980, Milwaukee area 
families have participated in The Ulster Project, which brings Catholic 
and Protestant teen-agers between 14 and 16 years of age, at no cost, 
to the United States to live with Catholic and Protestant families with 
children of the same age. The Belfast teens, nominated by church and 
school officials in Northern Ireland, are selected for participation

[[Page E632]]

based on leadership potential. The American teens and their families 
are recruited, screened, and selected based on their willingness and 
ability to accommodate the addition of another teenager to their 
household for the one-month long project.
  The Ulster Project is important because it teaches young people the 
skills of conflict resolution in an environment far from the 
politically charged atmosphere of Northern Ireland. The teens 
participate in an intensely programmed and professionally supervised 
month of educational, ecumenically spiritual and social activities that 
promote interaction and reflection. The teens are also required to 
perform weekly community service tasks and are allowed time to have fun 
with the new friends they make from both America and their homeland.
  The Ulster Project provides the teens with an alternative to the 
``them against us'' mind set that has permeated the politics of 
Northern Ireland for thirty years and that, until recently, had 
prevented reason from prevailing in the peace talks. The Ulster Project 
teaches a ``them and us'' approach of inclusion and discussion and 
resolution. Teens returning to Northern Ireland after participating in 
the Ulster Project have been able to view the conflict in a different 
light and change their perceptions of Catholics or Protestants. The 
Ulster Project has become a real and effective factor in turning young 
people away from continuing the conflict and towards working for peace.
  There are many more Ulster Projects across the United States that 
have provided the same opportunities to teenagers from Northern 
Ireland. The American people have deliberately gotten involved in the 
effort to restore peace to all of Ireland and their efforts have paid 
off. President Clinton also recognized the importance of peace in 
Northern Ireland and devoted the resources of his administration to 
working to resolve the conflict in Northern Ireland and he has been 
credited with keeping the talks going which lead to the peace 
settlement.
  The Milwaukee community is obviously excited to host the key players 
from the Northern Ireland peace talks. And, to finally see the prospect 
of peace manifested in the peace agreement is an accomplishment in 
which the Irish in Milwaukee, and around the nation, can surely take 
pride.

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