180 Years Apart
Transportation
Paula Craig
Airplanes
Ease & Speed
Paula Craig used to visit every year with her kids
Now she and her family visits every other year
While leaving her family was hard, the speed and ease that airplanes provided made the sacrifice more bearable
Irish Immigrants 180 Years Ago
Coffin Ships
Nicknamed coffin ships because the ships passengers, "were only flying from one form of death" (Irish Times)
Disease ridden, cramped, and dirty
Over 20,300 people died on these ships
The U.S. government saw these immigrants as disease-ridden
Raised the price to 7 pounds
Too expensive for more than one journey. Most immigrants knew that they would never come back
Housing
Paula Craig
Paula Craig lives in a comfortable, clean home
4,000+ sq ft
Large backyard
Tenement Housing
Irish were forced into tiny homes called tenements
Unsanitary conditions
Horrible heating
Cramped
Discrimination
Paula Craig
No problem whatsoever with her accent
People often make connections with her culture
Her accent is a talking point, compared to 100 years ago when it would be frowned upon.
Americans often drum up St. Patrick's Day to an offensive level
It annoys Paula, however she doesn't mind
Irish 100 Years Ago
Irish faced violent and verbal abuse
Portrayed as drunkards, and non-human
Because of this, Irish were forced to perform manual labor and carry out often dangerous, low paying jobs