PRINTER'S NO. 376
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE RESOLUTION
No.41
Session of
2025
INTRODUCED BY ROBINSON, KEARNEY, FLYNN, KANE, BROWN, FONTANA,
PHILLIPS-HILL, TARTAGLIONE, PENNYCUICK, ARGALL, VOGEL,
LAUGHLIN, STREET, COSTA AND STEFANO, MARCH 14, 2025
REFERRED TO RULES AND EXECUTIVE NOMINATIONS, MARCH 14, 2025
A RESOLUTION
Recognizing the month of March 2025 as "Irish-American Heritage
Month" in Pennsylvania.
WHEREAS, From its earliest days, the United States has
inspired the hopes and dreams of countless individuals from
around the world in search of a better life for themselves and
their children; and
WHEREAS, More than 31,500,000 United States' citizens trace
their ancestry to Ireland; and
WHEREAS, Since before the United States was founded, Irish
men and women undertook the perilous journey across the Atlantic
Ocean to make a home in the United States, a place of hope and
promise, and made inestimable contributions to the United
States, both during the struggle for independence and after the
founding of the republic; and
WHEREAS, Nine of the 56 signatories of the Declaration of
Independence, four associate justices of the Supreme Court of
the United States and 22 Presidents proudly claim Irish
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17 heritage; and
WHEREAS, Irish immigrants who came to the United States
during the Great Famine of the 1840s helped transform cities in
the United States, building them into dynamic centers of
commerce and industry; and
WHEREAS, The cultural, economic and spiritual contributions
of Irish immigrants continue to be evident today throughout the
United States; and
WHEREAS, Irish Americans have become deeply integrated into
communities with strength, courage, wit and creativity, making
significant contributions in all areas of life; and
WHEREAS, Irish-American writers such as Eugene O'Neill, John
O'Hara and F. Scott Fitzgerald transformed literature in the
United States, entrepreneurs such as William Russell Grace
helped revolutionize industry and philanthropy in the United
States, performers such as Gregory Peck, Lucille Ball and Gene
Kelly enriched the arts and social reformers such as suffragist
Leonora Barry and labor organizer Mary Kenney O'Sullivan fought
for the rights of others; and
WHEREAS, Irish Americans have served ably in communities in
numerous capacities, including in public safety and government
at the Federal, State and local levels, and in the armed forces
in every war in which the United States has fought since the
Revolutionary War, including patriots such as Audie Murphy, the
most decorated soldier of World War II; and
WHEREAS, More than 200 years ago, John Barry, who was born in
Ireland, was the first naval hero of the Revolutionary War and
became known as the Father of the Navy; and
WHEREAS, The United States played a prominent role in support
of negotiations of the Good Friday Agreement, also known as the
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30 Belfast Agreement, done at Belfast, April 10, 1998, and has
taken a leading role in promoting peace on the island of Ireland
more broadly; and
WHEREAS, Congress greatly values the close relationships the
United States shares with both the United Kingdom and Ireland
and is steadfastly committed to supporting the peaceful
resolution of any and all political challenges in Northern
Ireland; and
WHEREAS, Pennsylvania is home to close to 2 million residents
of Irish descent; and
WHEREAS, The population of residents of Irish descent in
Allegheny County doubled in a 10-year span following the Great
Famine; and
WHEREAS, On March 6, 2025, the President of the United States
designated the month of March 2025 as "Irish-American Heritage
Month"; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate recognize the month of March 2025
as "Irish-American Heritage Month" in Pennsylvania; and be it
further
RESOLVED, That the Senate recognize the significant
contributions of Irish Americans in the history and progress of
the United States; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the Senate support the full implementation of
the Good Friday Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement,
and subsequent agreements or arrangements for implementation of
that agreement to support peace on the island of Ireland.
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