Irish and Native American Choctaw nation bonded with sculpture unveiling in Midleton

The Irish people and the Native American Choctaw nation are bonded by the difficulties they have endured in their respective cultures and the resilience they have shown to overcome hardships, the Chief of the Choctaw Nation told a gathering in Co Cork yesterday.

Chief Gary Batton told of the similarities between the two people as a special feather sculpture was unveiled in Bailick Park, Midleton, Co Cork. The ‘Kindred Spirits’ sculpture commemorates a donation made by the Choctaw people to Ireland during the great famine.

Chief Gary Batton said he became emotional when he saw the sculpture.