Parading Conspicuous Identity: St. Patrick’s Day, New York

Abstract

St. Patrick’s Day is an interesting exemplar of an internationally celebrated National Day. Such has been the influence of Irish immigration and cultures throughout the world, that celebrations of Irishness on 17th March take place across the globe — in some cases with far greater spectacle than observance of the Day in the Republic of Ireland itself. This paper reviews St. Patrick’s Day, a ‘national day’ for those of Irish descent and in Ireland itself, as it is observed in the official, City sponsored Parade in New York City. It is concerned specifically with the version of ‘Irishness’ that is on display at the Parade — whether in the overt elements of the event itself, or in the ‘back of house’ arrangements for the delivery of it. It is argued that the Parade is a key element in ensuring that this community remains visible and conspicuous by virtue of its size, its demonstrable organisational capability and its political and market power. It is accepted that the imperatives of conspicuousness may have changed over time but that the ‘official’ and accepted celebration reinforces distant (and unsustainable) stereotypes whilst consciously distancing the group from more recent immigrants and overtly demonstrating its importance in contemporary American culture, politics and public order.KeywordsYork CityCity GovernmentPolitical GeographyReligious ObservanceIrish ImmigrationThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.