AOH Backs Caucus Campaign To Repeal Act of Settlement

IRISH NATIONAL CAUCUS

PRESS RELEASE

Washington AOH Backs Caucus Campaign To Repeal Act of Settlement.

Capitol Hill. Sunday, September 23, 2007---It did not take long
for the Irish National Caucus to pick up influential support for
its campaign to repeal the anti-Catholic provisions in the
British Act of Settlement, 1701.

The campaign was launched in an OP-Ed piece by Caucus president,
Fr. Sean Mc Manus, in the Irish Echo, which appeared on
Wednesday, September 22, 2007. Just three days later, on
September 22, the Washington AOH, in convention assembled, passed
a unanimous resolution endorsing in "solidarity" the Caucus
campaign and urging the US Congress to call upon," the British
Parliament to repeal this affront to human rights and to
eliminate any all state-sponsored bigotry and sectarianism"

Fr. Mc Manus expressed delight appreciation at the AOH
resolution: "This will clearly send the message to Congress
that a united Irish-American community, whether Democratic or
Republican, wants them to sign our "Roll Call", declaring their
support for Repeal."

The Irish National Caucus wrote to all Members of Congress, House
and Senate, asking them to sign an enclosed document, "Roll Call
on Act of Settlement", which states they," do hereby declare my
support for REPEAL.I join the growing number of leaders of both
Church and State in Britain, Ireland and the United States in
calling for the repeal of the sectarian and anti-Catholic
sections of the Act of Settlement, 1701.

And I pledge to Irish-Americans to continue supporting the Irish
peace-process, based on nonviolence, equality, justice and peace
in Northern Ireland". (See letter and Roll Call below).

Fr. Mc Manus concluded by congratulating the Washington AOH for
their swift and decisive action. He also praised AOH National
President, Jack Meehan. "Jack's presence added strength to the
Washington AOH resolution. He assured me he would make certain
that Hibernians all across America would throw their weight
behind the Caucus campaign".

END OF PRESS RELEASE
----

LETTER AND ROLL CALL FOLLOWS

The Honorable ___________
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC. 20510

September 18, 2007

Dear Senator/Representative_________,

This letter -- which asks you to state your position on repealing
the anti-Catholic sections of the British Act of Settlement of
1701-- has overwhelmingly support among Irish-Americans.
Furthermore, it is supported by the main Irish organizations that
have been working for over the years for equality, justice and
peace in Northern Ireland.

The sectarian and anti-Catholic Act of Settlement 1701, which is
still law today, decrees that only a Protestant can succeed to
the British throne and that if the Monarch becomes a Catholic,
or marries a Catholic, he/she forfeits the Throne and "the
people are absolved from their allegiance".

While this absurdly anachronistic law may mean little to the
average Englishman in the street, it has always been of the
utmost importance to Protestant/Unionist/Orange extremists in
Northern Ireland. It provides the ideological and philosophical
underpinnings for their bigotry and sectarianism. For you see,
the spurious but deadly logic goes, if a Catholic by law can't
get the top job, then Catholics are inferior to Protestants,
therefore it's okay to discriminate against them.

Imagine had there been a provision in the US Constitution
forbidding an African-American being president, or forbidding the
president to marry a black person imagine how that would have
stoked the flames of racism and the sick ideology of white
supremacy.

Tony Blair, who has done so much good work for justice and peace
in Northern Ireland, declared the Act was "plainly
discriminatory". Furthermore, an increasing number of people in
Britain itself are shamed and embarrassed by this archaic and
anti-Catholic law -- which is clearly incompatible with the Human
Rights Act 1998 -- and are demanding its repeal.

Here is a partial list: the British Attorney General, more than
150 MPs, the Cardinal of Scotland, the Cardinal of England and
the Guardian Newspaper.

We now ask you to join this growing list of concerned people in
the US, Britain and Ireland, by declaring your support for
repealing the sectarian and anti-Catholic sections of the Act of
Settlement, which fans the fires of religious bigotry in Northern
Ireland.

Please find enclosed our "Roll Call on Act of Settlement, 1701",
which polls all Members of the House and Senate on whether they
are for or against Repeal. (A similar poll will be sent to
Presidential Candidates and others seeking public office). Your
response, or lack thereof, will be disseminated among the Irish-
American community, which according to the last US census is over
30 million.

I look forward to your early response.
Thank you.

Sincerely,
Fr. Sean Mc Manus
President
********

ROLL CALL ON ACT OF SETTLEMENT, 1701

I, Senator (Representative)_______________________________ do
hereby declare my support for REPEAL.

I join the growing number of leaders of both Church and State in
Britain, Ireland and the United States in calling for the repeal
of the sectarian and anti-Catholic sections of the Act of
Settlement, 1701.

And I pledge to Irish-Americans to continue supporting the Irish
peace-process, based on nonviolence, equality, justice and peace
in Northern Ireland.

God bless America and God save Ireland.

SIGNED _________________________ Date________

Irish National Caucus,
Capitol Hill, PO BOX 15128, Washington DC, 20003
Tel. 202-544-0568; Fax 202-488-7537;
Email sean@irishnationalcaucus.org