In the wake of a knife attack, allegedly perpetrated by an Algerian national, that left a group that included three children injured, protesters across Ireland began demonstrating against the nation’s immigration policies.
Officials quickly denounced the protesters as far-right extremists and began calling for even stricter regulations impeding the free speech of Irish citizens in the name of fighting hate speech.
Billionaire Elon Musk shared his thoughts on the effort in a post on X, the social media platform he acquired last year when it was known as Twitter.
Language being proposed as law in Ireland means this could literally happen to you for having a meme on your phone https://t.co/qz9sKyjw62
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 27, 2023
This week, the response to one message left by protesters seemed to lend credence to Musk’s admonition. Whereas the “Black Lives Matter” slogan became ubiquitous and attracted praise from prominent political figures around the world in the wake of George Floyd’s death in 2020, a similar statement —- “Irish Lives Matter” — has prompted a hate crime investigation in Ireland.
The statement has become a rallying cry for some protesters, and authorities in Belfast confirmed that they were “treating the matter as a hate incident.”
Gerry Carroll, an Irish Parliament member in the People Before Profit party, rejected the assertion that Irish life has any value, insisting there is “no place in our society for this kind of racist poison.”
Of course, his stance on the matter was roundly rejected by individuals across Ireland and around the world who empathize with the protesters’ outrage over the impact that unchecked immigration has had on the United Kingdom nation.
Lara Trump, the daughter-in-law of former President Donald Trump, was among those who weighed in on the controversy. During an interview on Monday, she cited the unrest in Ireland as “all the more reason that people are now starting to wake up” to the ills of lax border policies across the West.
“I mean, borders matter,” she said. “And you know, it’s funny because at one time, the borders of this country did matter to those in charge. Borders of a country like Ireland matter as well. And we have our own unique system and ways of doing things. We need to know who’s coming into our country.”
Conservative pundit Auron Macintyre offered an even pithier take on the issue, writing: “If saying ‘Irish lives matter’ in Ireland is a hate crime, that’s the definition of a conquered nation.”
