canyonwalker | (Reply)

From:

I wonder if the promotion of St. Patrick's Day in the US isn't a product of several things:

a) It's been a very long time, but the Irish were unwanted, hated, and vilified for some time. Was St. Patrick's Day in part a way to have both one's own pride in heritage, as well as a promotion to others of a more positive attitude towards people of Irish descent?

b) In the modern era, it's a huge monetary uptick for certain parts of the hospitality industry. I suspect it's right up there with New Year's for some of them. It's big business so it gets promoted for no heritage reason.

c) Overlapping with the previous, there was no holiday between Christmas and Easter. Plus, for those that observed it, there's Lent. Was St. Patrick's Day a convenient opportunity for people to take a break?

d) In the 70's (?) it was a propaganda tool for the IRA to promote support in the US.

Probably some other social reasons, too. And it's probably perceived very differently if you have Irish Catholic heritage or Irish Protestant heritage or no Irish heritage. It would be interesting to know if the whole perspective was different in Ireland, now and historically.

I do find it surprising that one of the stereotypes about "the Irish" was that they were drunks, and that sure seems echoed in what you mentioned.