THE annual Féile na gCloigíní Gorma will be launched on Friday ahead of eight packed days of events.
Named after the bluebells which make a beautiful background on the Black Mountain at this time of year, this week marks the eighth year of the festival which was founded in the Upper Springfield and the surrounding areas as a response to austerity and increased poverty. The aim of the festival is to reconnect the local community with the beautiful environment around us, and showing solidarity with each other.
In the eight days of the festival, there will be events for families and people of all ages who have an interest in the environment, Irish language, sports, mental health, history, exercise, art, music, politics, discussions, films, drama, and much more.
Speaking ahead of this year's festival, Eoghan Ó Garmáile said: "This year, we are thrilled to once again host international delegations from around the world, especially Kali Akuno from Cooperation Jackson and the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, and David Cobb from the People’s Network for Land and Liberation as guest speakers of the Féile to talk about their lessons from land reclamation and transformation, and democratic ownership in Mississippi and across the US."
He added: "The festival emphasizes reconnecting with our magnificent local environment and promoting mental health. To this end, there will be a dawn swim at Helen's Bay, mountain exploration with the Rewilding the Black Mountain Project, workshops in the Community Garden, community walks and runs, a children's nature trail, and much more.
"The revival of the Irish language and decolonisation are at the heart of the festival, and we celebrate the transformative achievements of An Dream Dearg recently. Thanks to the Tonn Dearg (Red Wave), an Irish Language Commissioner will be appointed before the end of the year, the colonial 1737 Penal Law that banned Irish in the courts will be repealed, bilingual signage will be introduced in the Grand Central Station, and much more.
"With solidarity at the heart of the Bluebell Festival, anti-racism is this year's key theme. Young people, both Irish speakers and new communities, will facilitate an Irish-Arabic language exchange workshop where youth will learn about each other's history, culture and language as well as their commonalities."
The Féile will be launched on Friday at 1pm in Gael-Ionad Mhic Goill with climate, language and housing activists as guest speakers and will end with a finale gig on Friday, May 23 at 8pm in Gort na Móna with some of the best of local musicians. The full programme is available here.
