A former IRA member living in Cavan has spoken out in defence of young people singing IRA chants. Tom McNulty was invited on to the Joe Finnegan Show to respond to a request by Paul Quinn's mother for the Wolfe Tones to remove their "Ooh Ahh, Up the 'RA" lyric from their famous song, Celtic Symphony.
Paul Quinn was beaten to death by up to 10 men in 2007 in what is believed to be a personal vendetta by members of the South Armagh IRA. His mother, Breege Quinn, said the pain of losing her child in such horrifc circumstances, after the IRA ceasefire, has not dissipated in 17 years.
Republican Tom McNulty said he was raised by a mother who lamented every death during the Troubles and who would remark "he was somebody's rearing". He also said he recently asked an 18-yr-old why young people would want to sing IRA chants at a Wolfe Tones concert: "In actual fact, I would have empathy for every mother who lost a son in every conflist, including out own," Tom told Northern Sound, "There's nobody who appreciates peace as much as those who lived without it. Y'know there's a thing going around 'what would young people know?' Well, isn't it great they don't know? When I asked that 18-year-old , a great young fella, why did he and his friends go to Wolfe Tones concert whenever they were here and he looked at me and said: 'It's because of who we are'".
