Sir, – The resignation of Diarmaid Ferriter, one of our most distinguished historians, from the board of the National Library in protest at cutbacks in the bodies charged with preserving our cultural heritage is extremely worrying. As he says (Opinion, May 29th), at a time of national crisis we particularly need “the robust, independent protection of our culture and history”. He links the proposed amalgamation of the National Library with the National Archives and Irish Manuscripts Commission, with the proposal to remove history from the list of mandatory subjects taught at Junior Cert level in our schools as evidence that the “Bureaucrat Barbarians are at the gates”.
I would go further and argue that they are already well ensconced within the gates. I have many reservations about the way history has been taught in this country over the years, but none about the need that it should be taught. The erosion of collective memory, of social solidarity values and the hard-fought battles for basic human rights against both foreign and native ruling elites that characterised us as a nation have long been among the objectives of the prevailing neo-liberal consensus in our society.
This is not to deny that collective memory can be wrong or even oppressive on occasion, but that is all the more reason to cherish the bodies charged with enriching our understanding of the past. I, for one, do not believe we will become a richer nation by becoming practitioners of the “greasy till” version of Irish culture advocated by the unlamented William Martin Murphy.
We are constantly being urged to “sell” our unique cultural legacy to the world. As general president of a union representing thousands of workers in the tourism industry, I am well aware of the value of that legacy, but I wonder if those who promote a slash and burn policy in the cultural sector as an easy way of making public spending cuts do.
It is one area, above all, where the pursuit of narrow commercial objectives can be ultimately self-defeating. – Yours, etc,