The Museum of Newport Irish History announces the first talk of its 22nd Annual Lecture Series, featuring renowned historian and director of Ireland’s Great Hunger Institute at Quinnipiac University, Dr. Christine Kinealy.
Dr. Kinealy’s illustrated talk, “Forgotten Heroes of Ireland’s Great Hunger,“ will be presented on Tuesday, September 26 at 6:00 p.m. at the Wyndham Newport Hotel, 240 Aquidneck Ave., Middletown, and virtually via Zoom. The lecture is made possible by a gift from Virginia Pittsley, given in memory of Dr. Cheryl A. McCarthy.
The tragedy that struck Ireland between 1845 and 1852 is often viewed through the lens of cold-hearted bureaucrats, greedy merchants, or indifferent landlords, who put profit, principles of political economy, and prejudice above the need to save the lives of the Irish poor. But this is only part of the story of the Great Hunger. Dr. Kinealy’s presentation will examine the contributions of several men and women who risked their lives—and sometimes their livelihoods—in caring for the sick and the starving. A number of them had no connection to Ireland. As Jacques Judah Lyons, Rabbi of Shearith Israel in New York, told his Congregation in 1847, “There is but one connecting link between us and the sufferers…That link, my brethren, is humanity.“
A graduate of Trinity College, Dublin, Dr. Christine Kinealy has published extensively on Ireland’s Great Hunger and the Irish Abolition movement. Her publications include the award-winning This Great Calamity, The Great Hunger in Ireland, and two recently edited volumes, Heroes of the Great Hunger (2021) and More Heroes of the Great Hunger (2022). The latter two books were inspired by the front-line workers, unsung heroes of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Kinealy’s research on the Great Famine has been widely acclaimed, including an Emmy in 2017 for her contribution to the documentary, ‘The Great Hunger and the Irish Diaspora.’
Doors open at 5:30 pm. Complimentary light hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar will be available. Reservations are required for in-person and virtual participation. A $5 fee for in-person participation is requested, payable at the door. There is no fee to Zoom.
For details and the links to reserve, visit www.NewportIrishHistory.org.
