In 1933 Jimmy Gralton became the first, and last, Irishman deported from Ireland. Condemned by local priests as a communist whose Leitrim dancehall had become a den of prostitution, Gralton’s fate illustrates the deep anxieties provoked in 1930s Ireland by communism, jazz, and sexual immorality. Why did these emblems of inter-war modernity prompt such alarm in a remote corner of Ireland’s most rural county? This talk considers what such moral panics, and how we now remember them, tell us about Ireland.
Sligo musician and founder of the band Téada, Oisín Mac Diarmada will present a lecture/performance on the life and music of legendary Sligo fiddler Michael Coleman, 1891-1945. Presented by Irish Studies at Boston College, this virtual event is produced in collaboration with the John J. Burns Library Irish Music Archives and Boston College Libraries.
