Dublin riots show need to shed cloak of Irish exceptionalism

Confronting the threat of extremism is not just a task for the law enforcement authorities; it requires a whole-of-society approach to safeguard our democracy and vulnerable fellow citizens, writes Ross Frenett, CEO of Moonshot

In the fight against radicalization, civil society organisations’ role cannot be understated. Photo: Sam Boal / © RollingNews.ie

Something changed on November 23.

Children attacked at a school. Fascists running amok in our capital. This wasn’t supposed to happen here. Not in Ireland. Many Irish people believed in a kind of Irish exceptionalism, that meant we didn’t have to confront such scenes and grapple with the complex questions of how to push back.