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Behind the Mask a smash hit for Christmas

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A book chronicling how the people of Killarney coped during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020 is being snapped up in local bookshops in the days leading up to Christmas.

AUTHOR: Mayor Marie Moloney pictured with Marie Carroll O'Sullivan author of ‘Behind the Mask Killarney’ a book benefitting 3 local organisations - Kerry Branch for the Irish Cancer Society Nathan's Walk Pieta House and gift tokens for the COVID-19 staff ICU ward 2020. Photo: Marke Hajdasz

There is massive demand for Killarney Behind the Mask which, in words and pictures, focuses on the lives and experiences of many people who had to adapt to a whole new way of living with proceeds from the venture going to charity.
Killarney Behind the Mask tells the stories of ordinary men, women and children whose lives were turned upside down from January to December 2020 as Killarney battened down the hatches.
The book has been written and published by Killarney Advertiser columnist, Marie Carroll O’Sullivan, who made it her business to photograph and chat to as many local people as possible, initially within her 2km travel limit and later further afield, to determine how Killarney dealt with the pandemic.
She originally posted the stories on her social media site, The Little Memory Gallery, and the response was so positive that she decided to publish her work in book form.
LAUNCH
Speaking at the official launch on Saturday, author Marie said Behind the Mask oozes community spirit as demonstrated throughout a global pandemic.
“Through my eyes, it was never a big project, more a labour of love. I am immensely proud to showcase our beautiful town during a time when we radiated exceptional positivity and resilience,” she said.
“My notion of compiling a book was backed by the people of Killarney to the tune of thousands of euro. They invested in me and what a massive compliment that it,” she said.
“Behind the Mask gives the opportunity to give back to society as well as the beneficiaries involved and I thank each and every person involved who honoured ne by smiling down my lens in making this history book a possibility,” Marie said.
The 364-page hardback, coffee table style publication was officially launched at the Killarney Avenue Hotel on Saturday evening where the guest speakers included Mayor of Killarney Cllr Marie Moloney and inspirational teenager Ian O’Connell who wrote the foreword to the book.
The publication is dedicated to Marie’s parents, Mary and the late Pat, and to the late Killarney Garda Paudie Twohig who, with his Garda wife Diane, contributed hugely to the book.

CHARITIES

The beneficiaries of the sale of the book are the Kerry branch of the Irish Cancer Society and Pieta House-Nathan’s Walk while Marie has also decided to donate part of the proceeds to purchase pampering gifts for the COVID-19 staff at University Hospital Kerry.

AVAILABLE

The book, designed by Sinead Collins of Design by Sinead and edited by John O’Mahony of O’Mahony Media, retails at €35 and it is available at Eason on Main Street, Bricín on High Street, Kerry Catering Supplies at the Countess Shopping Centre and O’Connor’s Newsagents on Beech Road.

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Fossa School says ‘bonjour’ to French classes

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Fossa National School is giving its pupils a headstart in learning a new language.

The school signed up to Language Sampler scheme as part of the ‘Say Yes to Languages’ initiative in primary schools organised by Post Primary languages Ireland in 2021. This is the school’s third year running the module.

Hélène Olivier-Courtney, the school’s French teacher and director of French For All Killarney School of French, covers ten schools in Kerry over the three terms.

The success of the initiative relies on an all-school approach and the active involvement of class teachers and management.

“The whole staff in Fossa certainly helped make this new journey a special and enjoyable experience for the children as we learnt French through art, songs, games and food tasting! This year, we also organised a catwalk on our last day. Our sixth-class students will have such a head start before secondary school and most importantly will have develop curiosity interest and love for the language,” said Hélène.

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Opinion: Silent majority needs to stand up and call out far-right hate

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By Chris Davies

Last Friday’s Dublin Riots should not have come as a surprise to anyone. It has been bubbling under the surface of Irish society for a good number of years now. The actions of a small minority last week was a culmination of years of racism, hatred and misinformation shared online by far-right groups.

Late on Friday night a disturbing WhatsApp voice note was doing the rounds on social media where a far-right actor could clearly be heard encouraging violence on the streets of Dublin. 

“’Seven o’clock, be in town. Everyone bally up, tool up…Any foreigner, just kill them”

Watching the Riots unfold on social media brought me back to when I was working in Dublin a number of years back. My morning commute from Skerries to the city centre involved a dart to Connolly Station followed by a short trip on the Luas to the Jervis. Every week, without fail, I would witness at least one racial slur or attack on someone who didn’t fit the narrow minded view of what an Irish person should look, dress or talk like. I don’t know if it is the eerie silence of public transport that seems to amplify the situation, but that’s where I found it to be most common. The abuse was usually perpetrated by a group of youths or someone who was clearly under the influence of drink or drugs. The victims were always of colour, often dressed smartly enough to presume they were on their way, or coming from work. A far cry from the perpetrators who you could tell were roaming aimlessly around the city looking for trouble.

While shameful to admit, I would often look on and watch the abuse unfold, only to spend the rest of my work day thinking about the poor person who was told to “F*&K off back to your own country”. I would sit at my desk questioning why I didn’t step in and say something. There were one or two occasions where I did step in and call it out, but not nearly often enough.  

This disgusting behaviour is much more visible in our cities. Since moving back to Killarney I wouldn’t witness as much direct abuse on the streets but working with the Killarney Advertiser I would be tuned in to local news and some of the comments I read on our social platforms are far worse than anything I witnessed during my time in Dublin.  

There is a significant group of people in Ireland that I would call the ‘silent majority’. We are not as outspoken on issues we care about. We tend to observe and consume the news quietly, and only speak of our support or disgust on certain issues in close circles, too afraid we might offend someone. The problem with this is that we are leaving these far-right groups unchallenged, to become louder, more aggressive and more hostile as seen last week. 

The past week Sinn Fein and the Social Democrats have been busy in the media expressing no confidence in Justice Minister Helen McEntee and Garda Commissioner Drew Harris but I would suggest that there is a large percentage of the Irish population that bears some of the responsibility. We witness racism in our communities and online every day and we need to start speaking up and calling it out. 

On the issue of immigration in Killarney, there is no doubt resources are being stretched and our tourism industry is suffering as a result of an influx of immigration. Locals have also raised concerns in relation to the placement of so many male international protection applicants in one setting and we only have to look back on the incident in Hotel Killarney last year where a number of men were involved in a harrowing stabbing incident to see how that played out.  

However, being concerned around immigration is not the same as anti-immigration. It is important to raise these issues with local representatives and Kerry TD’s but also to separate ourselves from far-right groups who are only interested in encouraging violence.  

The anarchy we witnessed last week should never be the answer and research shows it is completely unnecessary. Harvard University have looked at hundreds of protests over the last century, and found that non-violent campaigns are twice as likely to achieve their goals as violent campaigns and that it only takes around 3.5% of the population actively participating in the protests to ensure serious political change.

Let’s continue to protest peacefully for issues we believe in, but stand up and speak out against people and movements in our community that incite hate and violence. 

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