Irish-Americans Elated by McAleese Victory

Posted By: March 29, 2013

Washington, D.C., October 31, 1997 — Irish-Americans are delighted by the election of Mary McAleese as President of Ireland. They see her as a vindication of the peace-process and as cause for more hope for Northern Ireland.

Fr. Sean McManus, President of the Capitol Hill-based Irish National Caucus, said, “As a Fermanagh man, I’m deeply proud that a Northern woman has become President of Ireland. Irish-Americans are elated. We see Mary’s election as a victory over those malicious anti-Northern elements in the South that tried to smear her and thereby retard progress in the North. Mary’s election is a victory for the peace-process. It means that the North will now be more visible than ever to the international community. It gives us further hope that a just and lasting solution will be achieved. Peace and reconciliation are, therefore, made more possible by the election of this outstanding woman from the North,” he concluded.