Ireland mayor refuses to represent black people

Alert DateNovember 22, 2011 Country: Ireland Address: naas, ireland General Type: Racist discourse, Institutional discrimination Racism and discrimination phenomena: Anti-migrant/xenophobia, Afrophobia
Groups affected / Interested in: Migrants, Ethnic minorities Key socio-economic/institutional areas: Political discourse -parties - orgs, Political participation Hate speech/Racist Discourse Medium: Radio, Public Discourse, Political Discourse
Victims Data
Victims Nationality/Ethnic Origin Algerian, Angolan, Batswana, Beninese, Burkinabe, Burundian, Cape Verdean, Central African, Chadian, Comoran, Congolese, Djibouti, Egyptian, Equatorial Guinean, Eritrean, Ethiopian, Gabonese, Gambian, Ghanaian, Guinean, Kenyan, Latvian, Liberian, Libyan, Malagasy, Malawian, Malian, Mauritanian, Moroccan, Mozambican, Namibian, Nigerian, Nigerien, Rwandan, Sao Tomean, Senegalese, Seychellois, Sierra Leonean, Somali, South African, Sudanese, Swazi, Tanzanian, Togolese, Tunisian, Ugandan, Zambian, Zimbabwean
Victims Gender N/A
Victims Age <17, 18-25, 26-35, 36-45, 46-55, 56-65, 66+
Victims Number N/A
Fatalities - deaths N/A
Perpetrators Data
Perpetrators Nationality/Ethnic Origin Irish
Perpetrator Gender Male
Perpetrator Age 36-45, 46-55
Perpetrators Number N/A
Extremist/Organised Group Violence No

 

Ireland's ruling party, Fine Gael, has moved to try to defuse a race row involving one of its mayors.

Councillor Darren Scully said he would no longer represent people of African origin in Naas, County Kildare. He stressed it was his own initiative, not that of the county council.

Scully said he had made the decision based on what he described as the "aggressive" attitude he experienced when representations were made to him by black African constituents. He told the local radio station KFM he would refer those seeking assistance from him to a council colleague.

 

"I have been met with aggressiveness and bad manners," he said. "I have also been met with the race card, [with people saying] 'Oh yeah, you will help white people, but you don't help black people.'

"So after a while I made a decision that I was just not going to take on representations from black Africans, that I would be very courteous to them and I would pass on their query to other public representatives. Everything I do as a councillor is for the general good … It saddens me that people would call me a racist, because I'm not."

Fine Gael said it would look into Scully's comments. "The views expressed by Cllr Scully do not reflect the views of Fine Gael, and they are not party policy. Fine Gael is an inclusive party and we are trying to build a country that caters for all," it said.

The Labour TD for Dublin North East, Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, said he would report Scully to the police under the Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act 1989. Another Labour TD, Ciara Conway, said she was "absolutely disgusted and sickened by these appallingly ignorant and disgustingly racist comments".

 

Source:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/22/ireland-mayor-refuses-black-people