Displaying the possibilities of integration through participation, The Guardian have wonderfully documented the efforts of 'the most cosmopolitan small town in Ireland' and their GAA club; Ballyhaunis.
Although Ballyhaunis became home to Ireland's first purpose-built mosque outside of Dublin in the 1970s, its necessity was commercially driven; a factory preparing halal meat for export required the services of an imported Muslim community. The reality of the current situation, as the documentary states, is rooted in the altogether more complex refugee crisis.
The resulting change for Ballyhaunis has been astonishing. However, this change has been met with an admirable degree of openness and generosity. Darran Conlon, a member of the Ballyhaunis club, contemplated the variety of nationalities now available to him in his younger squads
How many different nationalities? Well, off the top of my head, there's Russian, Polish, Lithuanian, Syrian, Pakistani, Ivory Coast, Congo... I think I counted up fourteen one day.
Take the time to watch the effects of their hard work.
