After Mamdani's Irish unity dodge, a labor ally says St. Patrick's Day will begin with a history lesson | amNewYork

"It's clear to me that he will support the cause for Irish reunification. He added: We're gonna go over this with him in detail, and he's gonna stand with us. For Samuelsen, the issue goes beyond parade-season ethnic politics and lies within the same tradition of worker justice and Irish republican politics that shaped the TWU itself."

"In his telling, that lineage runs through TWU founder Michael Quill, the Irish-born freedom fighter turned union firebrand who became a New York labor legend after leading the 1966 transit strike that shut down the city for 12 days and helped win a 15% wage increase for more than 30,000 workers."

"Our roots are in Ireland, he said. We're directly named after the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union. At the luncheon, Samuelsen told this paper that while members will certainly differ on certain issues, the rights of workers and the cause of Irish unity were not up for debate."

Mayor Zohran Mamdani's cautious response to whether he supports Irish unity prompted Transport Workers Union President John Samuelsen to plan a direct conversation at Gracie Mansion's St. Patrick's Day breakfast. Samuelsen connects Irish reunification to the TWU's historical roots, tracing the union's lineage through founder Michael Quill, an Irish-born freedom fighter who led the 1966 transit strike. Samuelsen emphasizes that the TWU was modeled after the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union and influenced by labor activist James Connolly. He frames Irish unity and worker rights as non-negotiable principles within the union's tradition, suggesting Mamdani will ultimately align with this position.

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