As the republican campaign developed over the course of the late twentieth century, the United States of America and its considerable Irish population became an important actor. The influence of Irish-America helped to direct the path of republicanism, both politically and militarily, particularly during the 1970s and 1980s, as US-based organisations and individuals sent large sums of money to Ireland, much of which supported and enhanced the military campaign of the IRA. When considered alongside the powerful Irish-American lobby that exerted influence over elected representatives, there is little doubt as to the importance of the American dimension to the Northern Irish troubles. In addition to the finance that supported the republican struggle, the legitimacy afforded to Irish republican groups by international support prompted groups to seek to form alliances both east and west. It was therefore of great consequence for republican groups to place themselves in a position from which they could successfully exploit connections with groups in the United States. The tactics deployed by republicans in the United States would establish a platform from which funds could be raised to enhance the republican struggle in Ireland. This chapter considers the establishment of Irish- American support for Irish republicans during the early 1970s and how this aspect of the republican struggle impacted on the recent split in the movement.

Almost thirty-five million Americans claim Irish ancestry, making Irish-America the second-largest diaspora population in the United States after German-Americans. Because most Irish migrants to the United States were Protestant and enjoyed smoother assimilation into American culture than their Catholic counterparts, the majority of the Irish in the United States largely lost interest in Irish affairs over time. The fact that the United States should then become an influential actor in the violence that beset Northern Ireland from the 1970s is a matter of historical importance.