The idea blackness, which does not always pertain to the color of skin, but rather being inferior or oppressed, still plays a major role in race thinking. This idea was prominent as Irish Catholics began immigrating to America due to the 19th-century Irish famine. As more Irish Catholic immigrants arrived in America, the opposition against them and their religion increased.
Prior to the arrival of Irish Catholics, Irish Protestants assimilated easily into the American society. However, soon nativists pushed the Irish Protestants into calling themselves “Scotch Irish” to emphasize their Protestant religion. In the British colonies, anti-Catholic legislation was prevalent since British settlers took away Catholic lands causing Catholics to be deprived of ownership and live in poverty. Besides being discriminated based on their religion, the Irish were discriminated based on their race, since they were Celts and not Anglo-Saxons. The Irish were often compared to animals, and marriages between an English settler and an Irish Catholic were viewed as “unnatural.”
Immigrating to America did not allow Irish Catholics to escape discrimination they faced in Ireland; some states refused to allow Catholics citizenship while others refused to fund Catholic churches. Upon the arrival of the Irish in the 1840s, anti-Catholic journals and organizations began to develop in the Northeast, and upper-class Americans began publishing works denouncing Catholicism. One of the most controversial works was Awful Disclosures of Maria Monk: The Hidden Secrets of a Nun’s Life in a Convent Exposed, which painted Catholics as immoral since they had sex, partied on Sabbath, and drank. Ultimately, the Catholic opposition led to the development of “some 270 books, 25 newspapers, 13 magazines, and a slew of ephemeral publications.” Besides anti-Catholic writings, anti-Catholic sermons resulted in a wave of church burnings in the Midwest and New England. The Bloodstained Order of United Americans and the voter literacy tests for immigrant Democrats were also meant to diminish the power of the Catholic Irish.
The Irish immigrants soon obtained a stereotype called “Paddy,” who was often depicted in cartoons as a poor, ape-like, and drunk, while often comparing the Irish people to slaves. Though the only remnants of the “Paddy” stereotype today are “paddy wagon,” some of the Paddy phrases included “Paddy Doyle,” for a jail cell, and “Paddyland,” for Ireland. However, soon to elevate themselves, the Irish realized that they would have to use the American color line, which caused them to become Democrats, who were the pro-slavery party during the Civil War. This proslavery mindset led to riots where the Irish Americans attacked African Americans to affirm that they should not be compared to each other. The discrimination of the Irish caused them to not be even considered part of the Caucasian race. The English would portray themselves as modern descendants of Medieval Saxons; on the other hand, Irish nationalists would fabricate their lineage in order to not be descendants from their Celtic ancestors.
Early anti-Catholic violence was poorly organized and predominantly driven by the fear that the Irish immigrants would cause more crime or decrease wages. However, soon nativism lead to the development of the “Know-Nothing” Party which consisted of native-born sons of native born parents who were not married to Catholics. This party strongly opposed Catholics, liquor, and political corruption. Due to constant mob violence, the “Know-Nothing” Party was known for its riots against voters of other parties, Catholics, and Irish. The hatred towards Catholics allowed for the Know-Nothings to seize power in government. Since Catholics were still their targets, the Know-Nothings tried to enact laws, such as a bill preventing foreign born people from holding political office or extending the naturalization waiting period to twenty-one years.
Eventually, Americans became more tolerant towards the Irish Catholics, thus causing violence to stop. However, the Irish were still considered a separate race from the rest of the Americans. While the Irish were constantly discriminated, unlike African Americans, 90% of them were not enslaved or abused as the inferior race. African Americans were also rarely viewed as Americans. While the Irish constantly faced oppression due to their wealth and religion, their skin tone helped them assimilate and relate to the identity of the American.
