MASSACHUSETTS
Irish Central
Taking a side in a Boston Irish row – Kevin Cullen’s attack on Eugene O’Flaherty
Larry Donnelly
What I’m about to write might not be too popular in the Boston Irish community – or elsewhere, for that matter.
On the pages of the Boston Globe last week, columnist Kevin Cullen blasted Massachusetts State Representative Eugene O’Flaherty (D-Chelsea). Cullen accused O’Flaherty of “stifling a proposal to eliminate the statute of limitations on prosecuting child sexual abuse crimes” in his capacity as co-chairman of the Judiciary Committee. O’Flaherty responded by stating that he took issue with being depicted as someone “unconcerned about the murder of children’s souls” and by announcing that he would resign his chairmanship at the close of the current legislative session.
Kevin Cullen and Eugene O’Flaherty have very close ties to their ancestral country. Cullen was based here as a Globe correspondent for a number of years and is regarded as one of the most knowledgeable journalists in the United States on all things Irish. He continues to contribute regularly to Irish newspapers and is a frequent guest on national radio.
O’Flaherty was born in Boston to emigrants from Co. Kerry, spent nearly as much time in Kerry as he did in Boston growing up and is a first cousin to the McEllistrim Fianna Fáil political dynasty in Kerry. As a state legislator, he spearheads a number of different initiatives to foster cooperation between Massachusetts and Ireland on several fronts.
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