Working class people ‘carrying burden of guilt for rise in right-wing politics’

Civil rights campaigner Bernadette McAliskey has said that working class people are “carrying the burden of guilt” for the Republic’s rise in right-wing politics.

The 76-year-old activist said that politics in Dublin is moving to the right and the working class are being “pilloried for it”.

“At the moment, particularly within Irish politics, we are seeing a move to the right,” she said.

Civil rights campaigner Bernadette McAliskey (Niall Carson/PA)

“But the people who are carrying the burden of guilt for it are working class and unemployed people. They are the people who are being pilloried for being right wing.

“They are the people who are suffering from the problems of right-wing gutless government.

“That’s not an anti-southern position. If you want to really see cowardness, gutlessness and incompetence, have a look at what we have to put up with in the north (of the border).

“I think we have that local, national and international need like we never did before to protect and hold the line for human rights, for the broad left against neoliberal.

“We’re looking at that drift to the right. We’re looking at shameless greed being held up, we’re looking at governments that haven’t – even in the wake of homelessness everywhere and crisis everywhere – the courage to cap the private sector rents. Haven’t even the courage to do the minimal act.”

The veteran civil rights campaigner made the comments as she backed Clare Daly’s European re-election campaign.

The former TD was first elected to the European Parliament in 2019.

Ms McAliskey described Ms Daly as a “thorn in the side” of Europe.

Former TD for Dublin Central Maureen O’Sullivan, TD for Galway West Catherine Connolly, MEP Clare Daly and civil rights campaigner Bernadette Devlin McAliskey as Ms Daly launched her European re-election campaign in Dublin (Cate McCurry/PA)

“A thorn from Ireland in the side of Europe is needed to hold to account our Irish politicians who won’t stand up,” she added.

“We see increasingly fragmentation on the left and we see greed on the could-be left.

“In a crowded field, particularly in this constituency (Dublin), I think it is crucial that people know what needs to be done.

“I think for Ireland at a crucial point to lose that voice would not simply be a disaster for the constituency, it would be a disaster for a generation of people who look to this voice which is a thorn in the side of Europe.”

Ms Daly said: “When I stood for election, I said I was going to be a thorn in the side of the establishment. My slogan was Daly is Different and now it’s Still Different, Still Daly.

“In the course of the mandate, it’s actually become a sort of bad thing to be different, if you were to read a lot in the papers.

“They want everybody to be the same, to be the ‘yes men and women’ of Europe, but for us to be Euro-critical is very clearly pro-European because citizens all over Europe are highly critical of the policies that Europe are implementing.

“None clearer than the fact that they have sided with the genocidal Israeli attack on Gaza, not only being silent in the face of that but actually supporting and enabling that complicity. We have been able to use the parliament to be a beacon for international law, for humanity in calling those to account.”

Independent TD Catherine Connolly also spoke at the campaign launch.

“I absolutely support Clare. Her honesty, her integrity, her workload. I wish there were more like her,” she said.

“I wish I could canvass every day for her on the streets of Dublin and I will do my best in the limited time that I have.

“We need that thorn to be recognised as the new establishment.”