This Saturday sees the much anticipated National Hungerstrike Commemoration and Parade taking off at 12 noon from the GPO. Last year seen hundreds take to the streets of Dublin, leaving from the iconic GPO to the hallowed ground of Glasnevin Cemetery and the graveside of Thomas Ashe, the first republican Hungerstriker, who died in 1917 from force-feeding.
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This year will see again portraits of the twenty-two Hungerstrikers lead the parade, giving all who died on Hungerstrike from 1917-1981 equal standing on the day. Anyone wishing to carry a portrait please make yourself known to the stewards, who will be wearing 1916 Societies bibs.
Speakers will be Antoin O’Hara, son of recently deceased Peggy O’Hara and brother of INLA Hungerstriker Patsy, and Margaretta D’Arcy, a present-day activist known widely for her jailing in relation to protests at Shannon Airport. She is an ex-republican prisoner who endured the dirty protest in Armagh Gaol with Mairéad Farrell.
As with all of our commemorative events we have Maire Ui Mhaolain to sing a song in relation to the Hungerstrikes and a member of the 1916 Societies in Dublin has written a poem especially for the occasion. On conclusion the Societies will march back to the city centre to join the Right2Water demonstration planned for 2pm later that day.
For more information contact Dublin 1916 Societies through their Facebook or Twitter accounts or get in touch with us directly on this site.
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