By Niall O’Dowd

On the one hand we have a narrative about more and more Irish going home and fewer and fewer coming out. On the other hand, Irish activities and events have never been so vibrant.

Many Irish organizations are in mortal peril of disappearing. The New York GAA is fighting a rearguard battle. It has always been the backbone of the emigrant Irish community, and has been the bedrock of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR) since its inception.

Two hurling teams folded last week, leaving the GAA further weakened. The GAA is the canary in the coalmine for many other Irish organizations, many of which seem blissfully unaware of what is happening, judging by their lack of cohesive support for ILIR.

It was very noticeable at the ILIR dinner last Friday night in Queens that the older Irish organizations were no shows. Particularly galling is the lack of participation by the thousands of Donnelly and Morrison visa winners who benefited from the immigration fight by an earlier generation. Now they seem content to pull up the ladder behind them.

The groups, already under pressure, will essentially disappear unless something dramatic is done to reverse the slide in immigration from Ireland, and help is forthcoming in legalizing the young Irish who are the lifeblood of Irish organizations into the future.

On the other hand, in another part of the forest, it is clear that large sections of the community have never been more buoyant in terms of events and activities.

I can say that in two decades of covering Irish American activities in the New York area I have never seen such a plethora of happenings, new organizations and old organizations gearing up, and a general sense of well-being in parts of the Irish American cultural and community arena.

To give just one random example, here at the Irish Voice we have received no fewer than 70 new Irish book titles for review for the St. Patrick’s season. They range in scope from children’s titles to scholarly works to chick lit to paeans of love for the Irish. I cannot imagine any other ethnic group is so closely scrutinized and followed.

Equally in the film world we have just had a hugely successful “Irish Oscars” in Hollywood before the actual Academy Awards, backed by the US-Ireland Alliance and attended by a host of stars. At the actual Oscars the best film of the year, The Departed, was about the Irish mob in Boston.

More locally, the annual Craic Festival, a New York film and music lollapalooza, is a bigger success every year and continues to grow.

Irish theater is also undergoing a remarkable renaissance. Irish plays are hugely fashionable on Broadway.

Brian Friel’s Faith Healer and Translations have won rave reviews. The Irish Arts Center and Irish Repertory Theatre look like they will soon break loose of their hand to mouth existences and become financial as well as creative successes. Meanwhile, The Pirate Queen is about to launch on Broadway in a spectacular setting.

Plans are well afoot for major cultural centers in New York City and on Long Island. Boston and Chicago have created wonderful centers in the recent past, as has San Francisco. The American Ireland Fund and other philanthropic organizations such as the US-Ireland Alliance are receiving record donations.

Meanwhile, younger organizations such as IN-NYC, a group of under 40 aged professionals, founded by the Irish Consulate in New York, has enjoyed spectacular growth in a very short time.

Irish studies, whether at NYU, Boston College or Notre Dame, have taken huge leaps forward in recent years and have ensured that the level of knowledge of Irish history, language and culture is at an all-time high in our most prestigious institutions.

Clearly at the root of much of this is the fact that the growth of the Celtic Tiger has resulted in a hugely positive spillover for Irish America. Most of the young Irish professionals who come to these shores are utterly at home in their new country and have much to contribute.

Yet the answering echo from Irish America which provided the home for Irish culture and community, and created much of the economic miracle in Ireland through Irish American business links, will weaken rapidly in the years ahead unless we can continue to graft new generations of Irish and Irish Americans onto the new lifeline from Ireland.

That is why immigration reform has never been so important. That is why, also, the success of one will ultimately depend on the other surviving. It is a serious concern.