On my mother’s side, I am descended from Eoghan Ua Niall (Irish spelling), the nephew of the guy on the left on this 2007 Irish postage stamp. Sheila O’Donnell, a private investigator who like me lives near San Francisco, is related to the guy on the right.

Sheila was the PI that put together the info that in 2002 busted the FBI for framing Judi Bari, the celebrated redwoods activist.

When I was dealing with Wise Use vigilantes in Washington state in the mid 1990s, my Public Good partner Paul called on Sheila to help us figure out the network of figures involved in threatening and assaulting environmental activists there. Sheila came up to consult Paul, but I was otherwise engaged and missed meeting her in person.

I had another near miss prior to meeting Sheila when Ani Mander, my professor at New College of California passed away in June 2002. I went to her memorial at Stinson Beach Community Hall, and at the end of the service Ani’s son said he wanted to thank Ani’s friend Sheila O’Donnell. When I asked him to point her out, he said she had just left.

When we finally met on the plane at SFO in December 2005, Sheila and I flew up to Seattle together to help groups fighting violent anti-immigrant bigots, and had a good chat about our common Irish heritage.

The Hugh O’Neill and Hugh O’Donnell Irish postage stamp depicts my sixteenth century relation and his comrade in arms, eminent adversaries of Queen Elizabeth.

Galicians, comprising the seventh Celtic nation, demonstrated in support of language preservation in public affairs.

Scotland continues to pursue greater autonomy in governance, including the option of independence from the UK.

Cornwall following in footsteps of fellow Celtic nations Scotland and Wales. Cornish autonomy to be taken up at Westminster in October.

Co. Tyrone to host annual commemoration of H-Block martyrs.

Spain’s Celts, the Galegos, celebrate pre-Christian spirituality.

Translated from Irish, we are the noble champion tribe. Our specific lineage is signified by the Irish name for bear, indicating a strong and valiant people. Indeed, Irish stories — written and oral — account for this family distinction over the last thousand years.

Comparing our nEoghan Ua Niall heritage with that of Native Americans, we would be the tribe of Eoghan (noble), nation of Niall (champion), and clan of Ardh (bear). Our traditional homeland is located in the heart of Northern Ireland, historically centered in the town of Dungannon.

One of our most famous modern kin in County Tyrone (Tir Eoghan), is Bernadette Devlin, who organized with the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association and People’s Democracy  in the 1960s, to fight for equality for indigenous Irish people within the militarily-occupied British colony. Her name in Irish, in fact, means “ferocious bear”.

Lisa Hannigan has a website where you can listen to her lovely music.

Salish and Irish oppose salmon farms that are destroying ecosystems in Canada, Chile, Scotland and Ireland, creating coastal dead zones and generating lethal viruses in lakes and rivers.