As someone whose great grandmother was exiled because of her love for an English soldier there is a part of me that feels an association with catholic Ireland, and a bit of pride in this link. I've sung and played many tunes that come from Ireland over the years. It's never bothered me and I sung many of the songs around clubs in London in the late sixties. A group of us were playing tunes on the P&O ferry from Rotterdam to Hull one night after the 1st eurogathering. Late at night after a good session where we gathered quite a good audiencea drunken angry Irishman accused us of playing rebel songs (actually tunes) and tried to berate us. His embaressed wife pulled him away and we told him that the words hadn't been added to the tunes until long after they were written. He eventually left amid comments from people who were just enjoying the music and didn't seem to care at all.

I suppose many people don't know or don't care where the songs or tunes have come from.

Marje, above adds, "I don't think being of "Irish descent" is of any particular significance. Irish history belongs not just to the Irish, but to the Scots, Welsh and English too - we and our forebears were all a part of it to some degree." Which I think is true for many of us (It's up to you to chose whether to take a side or not or whether to just view the tunes with history).

And Terry (Leadfingers) is right about the songs being sung with gusto in the sixties, ignoring the history behind them. The songs were sung in clubs all over the place and with often full audience participation.

Mike Ryan of CARA wrote a song; Exile's son. It sums up his and your right to sing.