DESPITE Birmingham’s St Patrick’s Day parade pulling an estimated 80,000 spectators this month the community is debating just how Irish the city remains.
A report by the BBC called on community members to answer claims that the Irish population has declined markedly over the last few decades.
Citing the 2001 census, which identified 22,828 Republic-born and 6,086 Northern Irish Birmingham residents in the city in 2001, the British broadcaster has highlighted the fact that those numbers dropped to 16,085 and 4,623 in 2011.
But community leaders were quick to refute claims that the numbers indicate a loss of Irish identity in the city.
Anne Tighe, head of Birmingham's St Patrick’s Day Parade board, claims while the older generation may be fading, their offspring are keeping Birmingham’s Irish tradition alive.
“I think there’s still a very strong Irish culture in Birmingham,” she said.
“We have Gaelic football teams, a fantastic Irish dancing scene, there are places you can learn Irish instruments and there’s a great music scene for both traditional and more modern artists.”
She added: “There are still a lot of Irish traditions and Irish family values; those are all very strong in the Irish community in Birmingham.”
But Paddy Foy, Chairman of the Midlands Republic of Ireland Soccer Supporters Club, believes young Irish graduates and professionals are heading for London instead of Birmingham.
He claims the Irish ‘navvy’ experience of previous waves of emigration often no longer applies.
“When my mum and dad moved over in the 1950s the Irish did the jobs the English didn’t want to do,” he said.
“My dad helped to build Birmingham landmarks like Spaghetti Junction and the Rotunda.
“Now the Irish are going to London to join big corporations because that’s where the jobs are seen to be.”
Either way, Birmingham’s Irish connections remain vibrant. The city boasts Britain’s only Irish Quarter, with many traditional Irish pubs, and the Birmingham Irish Centre is one of the most successful in the country.
Last year the city’s impressive JFK mural, created by artist Kenneth Budd in 1968 and paid for by the city’s Irish community, was erected in Digbeth following a lengthy restoration project.
See More: Birmingham, Identity, Irish, St Patrick's Day
