By: John O’Brien, Jr.; Judge Michael C. Mentel; Marilyn Madigan; Rita O’Hara

William Shakespeare, the renowned playwright, composed a delightful play titled “Much Ado About Nothing.” The play centers on the sequence of frivolous concerns brought about by the main characters that culminate into a comedic cuffuffle that the circumstances do not merit.

Recently, Shakespeare’s play was reflected in reality. A Belfast newspaper recently published an article in an attempt to connect a photograph with unrelated aspersions made about it.

Additionally, a social media user posted aspersions that lack substantive evidence in an attempt to associate the photograph with those unrelated aspersions. Neither of these publications merit additional consideration regarding the photograph or the aspersions they present, as they contain no substantive value.

Nonetheless, they must be called out. Arguably, the individuals at the Belfast newspaper and the individual who posted on social media have never exercised their intellectual curiosity to read Shakespeare’s play let alone contemplate the meaning of its title.  

A Comedy of Frivolity

In January of this year, the Ohio State University Mershon Center for International Security Studies and the Greater Columbus Irish Cultural Foundation co-sponsored an international panel discussion on the opportunities & practical challenges to unification of Ireland. The international discussion was held in Columbus, Ohio. One of the featured panelists was Ms. Andrée Murphy, Deputy Director of Relatives for Justice Belfast, Northern Ireland, and Board Member, Ireland’s Future.

The following day, Ms. Murphy delivered a presentation to the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians (the LAOH) in Cleveland, Ohio. Also attending the event were members of the Cleveland area Ancient Order of Hibernians, the West Side Irish American Club and the St. Pat’s /St. Jarlath’s GAA Club of Cleveland, Ohio.

Ms. Murphy was scheduled to depart from Cleveland, Ohio for her return flight to Ireland the following day. Ms. Murphy’s departure time allowed her to spend time with friends in Cleveland and visit some notable attractions in the city before she departed. One of these attractions is the famed house where the hit movie, “A Christmas Story,” was filmed.

Some clarity and context is necessary about the movie to deconstruct the innuendo and aspersions recently made in social and print media and the comedic frivolity of the published material. The movie, its filming location, and the props used in the movie, expose why the “Ado” raised in the Belfast newspaper article and social media post is “About Nothing.”   

A Christmas Story was released on November 18, 1983, more than 40 years ago. The movie continues to be shown year after year across the world, including on tv and streaming in Ireland. The house featured in the film is situated in the Cleveland, Ohio neighborhood of Tremont. It was restored to its movie specifications in 2006 – 20 years ago, and is a popular museum attraction, drawing visitors from all over the world yearly.

Set in circa 1940, the movie is a fictional comedy tale, a collection of funny, heartfelt snapshots of childhood during Christmastime, centered around a 9-year-old boy who wants a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas. Throughout the Christmas season, the boy, “Ralphie,” tries to convince his mom and dad to get him his dream gift, a Red Ryder BB gun. After his parents and Santa Claus tell him no, Ralphie is dejected.

On Christmas morning, depressed and thinking he will not find his dream gift under the tree, Ralphie’s dad tells him to look next to the Christmas tree, “that another gift looks like it is sitting there.” Ralphie looks, and his Christmas dream comes true; he gets his BB gun.

The movie’s success has fueled numerous spin off’s, re-creations, plays, merchandise and more, making it even more recognized around the world and very present today. In 2012, A Christmas Story was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

While Ms. Murphy was visiting The Christmas Story house, she stood for a photograph with her friends next to some of the classic props used in the movie. The props in the house, included the “leg lamp” and the “Red Ryder BB gun” sitting next to the Christmas tree. Ms. Murphy posed for a photograph with Ralphie’s BB gun standing in the spot next to the Christmas tree, where Ralphie found his dream gift.

Almost two months later, the photograph of Ms. Murphy with Ralphie’s BB gun was posted on social media, standing next to the Christmas tree where Ralphie found his dream gift. The photograph, unconnected to the aspersions made in the social media post, was used to imply that Ms. Murphy and Relatives for Justice are “bullying” and inflicting “trauma” on the people they serve. No facts or references were cited by the poster, other than a photograph of the newspaper article and the photograph of Ms. Murphy.

Compounding the comic frivolity of the social media post was the frivolity of the Belfast newspaper. It went forward with an article, referring to both the photograph of Ms. Murphy and the aspersions published on social media by an individual using a pseudonym. The newspaper added backfill to its article, with assertions made by others that had no connection to the photograph of Ms. Murphy.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

Relatives for Justice Supports Victims and Families

The paper characterized the work of Relatives for Justice, and its senior staff, as somehow “contentious” or as “inflicting trauma” on those it serves, fundamentally misrepresenting its scope and purpose. Relatives for Justice is a long-established victims’ organization providing sustained advocacy and therapeutic support to individuals and families bereaved or injured during the conflict, while also engaging at the highest strategic policy levels to ensure victims’ human rights are recognized and addressed.

Employing over 50 staff delivering accredited, regulated and professional services, Relatives for Justice supported over 6,500 individuals last year with gold standard delivery. The organization routinely supports some of the most marginalized victims, including those living with the impact of impunity for conflict related killings and navigating complex legacy processes, those excluded from compensation schemes, and survivors of sexual violence and torture, demonstrating a breadth of practical, inclusive, frontline assistance far beyond political debate or media caricature.

In particular, as the only victims’ support organization applying a gendered lens to its work, Relatives for Justice places the active and deliberate inclusion of those traditionally excluded from processes of healing and recovery at the center of its approach—not least individuals and families affected by state and state-sponsored killings. Relatives for Justice is on the front line of successfully challenging British state violence in Ireland in the domestic and international courts, recently successfully supporting families who challenged the Legacy Act, and having it declared unlawful in the Belfast High Court.

It was Relatives for Justice, and Irish America, who successfully lobbied the Irish Government to file a case against the United Kingdom before the European Court of Human Rights in support of families impacted by the British Legacy Act. Relatives for Justice is a third-party intervenor in that case.

Deputy Director Andrée Murphy’s drive and determination is evident in Relatives for Justice’s commitment to both care and advocacy. From Ms. Murphy’s perspective, “challenging systemic failures is not ‘contentiousness,’ but a necessary response to the systemic barriers to justice, support and participation that directly impact victims’ lives.”

She added that, “in this context, attempts to frame such efforts as controversial must be viewed with broader patterns of hostility faced by human rights defenders, particularly women, whose work is often subject to disproportionate scrutiny and mischaracterization.” Marking the anniversary of the killing of solicitor Rosemary Nelson, Ms. Murphy noted that Ms. Nelson’s murder “is a stark reminder of the risks and pressures historically faced by those who advocate for rights and accountability. Framing Relatives for Justice’s work through [the] mischievous lens’ of contention not only diminishes the essential support it provides to victims and survivors but also echoes a troubling tendency to undermine and delegitimize those engaged in human rights defense.”

A Vital Service Provided

Deputy Director Murphy and Relatives for Justice provide a vital service to the victims and families who suffered through the conflict in the north of Ireland. Their advocacy to replace and repeal the Legacy Act threatens a minority of individuals who wish to hide the truth and maintain the status quo. When a newspaper publishes an article that superficially appears to present a balanced viewpoint to its readers yet conflates the aspersions of a person who uses a pseudonym on a social media as topical, it must simply be called out for what it is; frivolous.

President Abraham Lincoln observed, “[i]t is better to have remained silent and thought a fool than speak and remove all doubt.” It would behoove the publisher of the Belfast newspaper and the social media poster to adhere to President Lincoln’s observation in the future. They may also want to read Shakespeare’s play too.

To learn more about Relatives for Justice you may visit their website at: relativesforjustice.com.  

By: John O’Brien, Jr. Judge Michael Mentel, Marilyn Madigan, Rita O’Hara

 *John O’Brien Jr. is a first-generation Irish American; the founder and publisher of iIrish, a Cleveland, Ohio based monthly print and multiplatform daily digital newsmagazine established in 2006; and one of the founders of Cleveland Irish Cultural Festival, now in its 41st year.  

*Judge Michael C. Mentel is an Ohio Appellate Court Judge. He is an author and columnist for iIrish newsmagazine. He has written articles for other publications, such as the Irish Echo, and has taken part in national and international panels focused on the Legacy Act and Irish unification.

*Marilyn Madigan is the immediate Past National President of the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians in America and currently serves as the Deputy Director of the United Irish Societies of Cleveland, Ohio. She is also a columnist for iIrish newsmagazine.

*Rita O’Hara is the current National Deputy Chair of  Freedom for all Ireland of the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians in America. Ms. O’Hara is a lifetime supporter and advocate for the unification of Ireland.  

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