04/08/2026
The Communist Party of Ireland (CPI) will host a bilingual panel discussion, “Culture & Language: a Battlefield for a Progressive Ireland” / “Cultúr agus Teanga: Láthair Chatha d’Éirinn Fhorásach,” on Friday, 7th August 2026 from 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM in St Mary’s College, Falls Road, as part of this year’s Féile an Phobail.
The panel will feature guest contributors Feargal Mac Ionnrachtaigh and Daniel Lambert, with the bilingual conversation chaired by Eimhin Ó Raghallaigh of the CPI.
Feargal Mac Ionnrachtaigh is a Belfast-based community activist, author, and a leading voice in the Irish language revival movement. A Project Worker with Forbairt Feirste (the Gaeltacht Quarter Irish Language Development Agency) and chairperson of Glór na Móna, he is author of Language, Resistance and Revival, which documents the role of Irish among Republican prisoners in Long Kesh.
Daniel Lambert is manager of the acclaimed Belfast Irish-language hip-hop group Kneecap and Chief Commercial Officer of Bohemians Football Club.
The discussion is rooted in a clear political statement from the CPI:
“Culture and language are weapons in the class struggle. While imperialism divides workers through national identity, capital strips our cultural heritage. Reclaim Irish culture and language for the working class — a necessary battlefield to build an anti-imperialist, socialist Ireland.”
“Is airm iad an cultúr agus an teanga sa streachailt aicmeach. Cé go roinneann an impiriúlachas oibrithe trí fhéiniúlacht náisiúnta, scriosann caipitleachas ár n-oidhreacht chultúrtha. Ní mór dúinn cultúr agus teanga na hÉireann a éileamh ar ais don lucht oibre — láthair chatha riachtanach chun Éire frith-impiriúlach, shóisialach a thógáil air.”
The event will be conducted in both Irish and English, reflecting the CPI’s bilingual ethos and the festival’s commitment to inclusive cultural expression.
