1,000 families in the sun
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Against all the odds, the sun came out on Saturday in Fitzgerald Park, Cork City for the launch of the Building Unity Through Diversity project and the Family and Cultural day.
Officially opened at 12 noon in Fitzgerald Park in Cork, four speakers gave short speeches on the concept behind the project and what it meant to them. The speakers were Paddy Maguinness, deputy CEO of Concern, Piaras McEinri, lecturer in migration studies and chairperson of Nasc, Munster rugby coach Jim Williams and Cork’s recently appointed Lord Mayor, Donal Counihan.
Paddy introduced all the speakers and handed over to Piaras who spoke about diversity, highlighting Cork’s history of immigration. Speaking as an immigrant himself (hailing all the way from Dublin) he said he always found Cork to be a very fair city, whether you were from Dublin or Lagos: no matter how long you lived there you would be a blown-in all your life.
Then Jim Williams said a few words about the welcome he and his family got when he first moved to Ireland and decided to stay. Adapting fairly easily to the pub culture helped considerably, he noted.
The Lord Mayor then officially opened the exhibition and programme events.
After everyone had taken a tour around the 1,000 Families exhibition, which provides the backdrop to the project and lines some of the walkways around the park, the afternoon kicked off with music from different African and samba bands.
Everyone was invited to take part in some African djembe drumming, or decorate their own kites at the crafts “make and do” stand, which was very popular. There was Indian head massages and bio-energy healing, which a few of the staff sampled, to counteract the effects of the early start.
Families were invited to have their photos taken, to be part of the wider family album associated with the exhibition. These photos will be uploaded to the Building Unity website.
The photographic exhibition 1,000 Families will be on in Fitzgerald Park, Cork until 12 August and there are a series of workshops based around the project for the next two weeks.
