Huge interest in Sinn Féin's US trip
By Mick Naughton.
The level of interest, particularly in New York City, in the six
day visit to the United States next week of Sinn Féin's elected
parliamentary representatives, Caoimhghín O Caoláin, Martin
McGuinness and Gerry Adams has been so high that the Friends of
Sinn Féin organisation have had to change the venue of its 4
September fund raiser in New York from a 300 seat ballroom at the
Plaza Hotel to the Waldorf Astoria's 500 seater ballroom.
Leading political and public officials, labour leaders, business
and community leaders have signed up to many events on the Sinn
Féin team's itinerary in Washington DC, New York, Chicago and San
Francisco and the growing interest was hailed by Sinn Féin's
representative to the US Mairéad Keane when she spoke by
telephone to An Phoblacht.
``We are very pleased to see this level of interest in Sinn Féin's
visit to the US and the effort to establish a lasting peace in
Ireland. This is a high-powered delegation being invited to the
US and we would hope Americans will avail of the opportunity to
hear their message of hope in our future.
``From the tremendous show of support we've received in New York
and throughout the United States it is obvious that Americans of
all ancestry share our excitment about this historic moment.''
Confirming the trio's schedule beginning next Tuesday 2
September, Keane added that several important meetings have been
arranged in Washington DC, followed by a hectic round of
engagements in New York, the American mid-west and west coast.
Meetings with the editoral boards of most of the mainstream
broadsheet newspapers have also been scheduled before the three
return to Ireland prior to the talks beginning on 15 September.
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