Song 7: Paddy's Lament

Wow. This song, written in 2002, captures a view from immigrants coming over from Ireland, which, due to the potato famine of the 1840's, saw a great number of settlers heading to the United States. Most of these settlers came looking for a new opportunity to rebuild their lives that had been completely uprooted (no pun intended) by the terrible conditions. The typical American view of this phenomenon was that most of these settlers were successful, and the American dream lived on.

However, this song seems to indicate the opposite. The ballad-style lyrics tell of Paddy, who immigrated to the United States, only to be taken advantage of during the Civil War, which saw great bloodshed. Paddy, who had left his family completely, only to be used in war, was obviously angry. However, it was too late for him to do anything, so the song serves as a warning to later generations. As Americans I think it is important that we realize the difficulties immigrants have in this country. While the Statue of Liberty symbolizes openness toward diversity and other people, many people are not allowed into the United States, even as they have a great desire to enter. Also, it is not necessarily easy for the immigrants once they actually do reach the states. There is an entire language and culture barrier, and unfortunately, not all Americans are as tolerant as they should be. To sympathize with America, I do think the Irish immigrants were unlucky, and had poor timing. Perhaps if they hadn't come during the Civil War, their opinions would be different.