A Chara, - The Irishman's Diary (June 24th) continued the denigration of those of us who lived and worked here during the second World War. The writer, Mr Tom Farrell informed your readers that anti-semitism in the Ireland of that era was irrefutable. "All in all," he stated, "our record during this worst period in human history is not one to be proud of." He then proceeded to quote from the well-worn speech of Oliver Flanagan in 1943.
As someone who lived through that era and is not dependent on written history (which Henry Ford called bunk), I can inform Tom Farrell that, apart from a minority in Leix-Offaly, most of us regarded Oliver as merely a character to be made fun of by Dublin Opinion.
Our generation built the foundations for a free and decent society at a time when our country was devastated and poverty-stricken after a century of famine exploitation, emigration, rebellions and wars and was trying to recover from a disastrous civil war. It is perfectly understandable that officials would try to control immigration tightly. We already had in our midst huge numbers living in the direst poverty.
I can also inform Mr Farrell that I and most of my contemporaries dealt with Jews during this period in the same way as we would deal with anyone else. I came across no harmful incidents of anti-semitism, other than childlike name-calling. I dealt with the Finemans, Flittermans and Ellimans, and many others of the Jewish faith, many of whom came to this country in the Hitler era, and were well treated here before, during and after the war.
It seems to me that modern commentators with the benefit of hindsight are all good guys, but we who were not so well enlightened by hindsight are baddies. - Is mise, etc.,
Howth Road, Dublin 3.