On Nov. 23, before most Americans had even begun celebrating Thanksgiving, trouble was brewing in Dublin Ireland. It all began with a stabbing that occurred in the afternoon in Dublin City Centre. A lone man in his 40s stabbed a woman in her 30s as well as three small children (all three 5 to 6 years old). Citizens restrained the man before police arrived to arrest him.
A terrible incident, to be sure -- Ireland Minister for Justice Helen McEntee called it 'an attack on innocence itself' -- but it only escalated as hundreds of protesters began to gather at the crime scene. The protest devolved into a full-on riot before too much time had passed.
Motives for the riot have been attributed to a number of things, but the early prevailing theory was that people were gathering at the crime scene to protest Ireland's immigration policy and a growing concern about violence committed by migrants. Some protesters were seen holding 'Irish Lives Matter' signs.
The Gardaí (Irish police), on the other hand, claimed that the riots were due to 'a hooligan faction driven by far-right ideology.' Because of course, that's what they said.
As events unfolded, Twitter seemed to side with the first explanation, as #EnoughIsEnough was the top trend on Twitter for hours.
Record immigration figures today.
— Laurence Fox (@LozzaFox) November 23, 2023
The great replacement is a conspiracy theory.#EnoughIsEnough
https://t.co/vgcTbNvadY
This tweet goes out to my ancestral countrymen in #Dublin tonight. #EnoughIsEnough pic.twitter.com/5ZWMnC43BI
— 👣ℙ𝕖𝕕𝕣𝕠'𝕤 𝕄𝕦𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕔𝕙𝕖🇺🇲 (@OfAthenry) November 23, 2023
Irish MMA star Conor McGregor, who hails from Dublin, also chimed in to express his dissatisfaction with the police's version of the events.
Innocent children ruthlessly stabbed by a mentally deranged non-national in Dublin, Ireland today. Our chief of police had this to say on the riots in the aftermath. Drew, not good enough. There is grave danger among us in Ireland that should never be here in the first place, and… https://t.co/ac6j1GIjXD
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) November 23, 2023
For full disclosure, the identity of the attacker has not been officially released yet, so it is not confirmed he was a migrant. Some people have said he is a recent Algerian immigrant. Others have claimed he is an immigrant, yes, but an Irish citizen. But the protesters definitely believed he was the former.
Thinking of the victims of this attack 💔 however #EnoughIsEnough #Ireland blaming #FarRight is disgusting #Dublin police. Shame on you 🤬 https://t.co/TX5qE0e2Fz
— The_Lady_Of_London (@Lady_London_7) November 23, 2023
🇮🇪 There has been a complete collapse in social order in Dublin tonight. This is entirely the government's fault.
— Keith Woods (@KeithWoodsYT) November 23, 2023
They flooded our country with unsustainable levels of migrants, planted small communities with migrant centers, responded to legitimate concerns by labelling all… pic.twitter.com/MbCEEaeqAC
No matter what, the scenes out of Dublin were disturbing.
Dublin Ireland is sending a message about open boarders today 👇#EnoughIsEnough pic.twitter.com/EmCYQUUuQv
— Vince Langman (@LangmanVince) November 23, 2023
🚨Absolute shame on you Sky News for calling them Far Right Group. Holiday Inn express, rumoured to be housing migrants is set ablaze in Ireland. #EnoughIsEnough pic.twitter.com/1ghSnSEPs1
— Sociat USA 🇺🇸 (@SociatUSA) November 23, 2023
Twitchy recently detailed how dishonest Sky News is, so it is not a surprise that #ScumMedia was also trending on Twitter, though many of those tweets contained lots of NSFW language.
People are ANGRY.
The Irish people are angry, sending a very clear message to politicians.#EnoughIsEnough pic.twitter.com/to3uTsyrBf
— Paul B 🇬🇧 🔴 (@pauldbowen) November 23, 2023
#EnoughIsEnough
— Rob (@Robbopaloobop) November 23, 2023
Islamic immigrants who think they can invade a country like Ireland and impose their backwards, violent, intolerant beliefs and customs are about to find out.
Solidarity with our Irish brothers and sisters.
God protect them. pic.twitter.com/fVqDb5cvuD
Another police car set a blaze in Dublin City Centre after woman & children were stabbed. #IrelandBelongsToTheIrish #Ireland #Dublin #ExitUNRefugeeConvention #NHPUK #Algerian #EnoughIsEnough pic.twitter.com/LyK4rEejPD
— 🇬🇧 National Housing Party U.K. 🏴 (@NHPUKOfficial) November 23, 2023
The Fighting Irish are starting to awaken after the Dublin attack. #EnoughIsEnough #DublinRiots #Dublin #Immigration pic.twitter.com/S7sMHaxZVw
— Scottish Warrior (@ScotsWarrior17) November 23, 2023
Tonight three young children are in hospital in Dublin with stab wounds.
— BLAIM GAME (@BLAIMGame) November 23, 2023
If you care you’re a Far Right Lunatic apparently.#EnoughIsEnough
We are not going to let them take our children. #EnoughIsEnough pic.twitter.com/0lI6o0wOdB
— Kimmi Diamond 💎 (@Kimmi520381244) November 23, 2023
One thing is clear from the violence: when the government fails to act, people will only tolerate so much before they take matters into their own hands.
This has been pinned to my profile, and never has it been more poignant. We are citizens and patriots who have been taken for granted for too long. It’s time to make a stand. #EnoughIsEnough #Dublin pic.twitter.com/vsVvek1GYu
— Pete Parker🇬🇧🏴🇮🇱👽 (@cheekyblinder11) November 23, 2023
My thoughts are with the victims of the heinous crime that has surely rocked #OurCity to its core today.
— Patrick Quinlan (@PQuinlanNP) November 24, 2023
The fallout of today's horrific assault on our people lands squarely at the feet of the government. #EnoughIsEnough
The #DublinRiots is nothing to do with far right fascists. It's to do with ordinary Irish people who feel that the government doesn't listen to their concerns. #EnoughIsEnough
— Thomas King (@tommo_king) November 23, 2023
The scenes of violence are disturbing, and in this writer's opinion, probably counter-productive. But to paraphrase the famous words of comedian Chris Rock, 'What they did was wrong ... but we understand.'
No matter what additional details come out -- both about the stabbing and about the protests turned riots -- the Irish government has a big problem on its hands. With its own people. And just simply shouting 'far-right extremists' isn't really going to solve anything.
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