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We don't refer to just Ireland as Britain, but we do refer to the UK as a whole as Britain.

mtalantikite 4y ago
Well I guess I'm not a part of that "we", and I suspect quite a lot of people of Irish descent wouldn't be a part of it either. As another comment has pointed out, Great Britain does exclude Northern Ireland, and official language refers to it as "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" [1]. People will generally specify Northern Ireland, and I've pretty much never heard anyone say, I don't know, "I'm going to Belfast, it'll be nice to hang out in Britain". Do British people normalize referring to the entire thing as just Britain? Yeah, probably. But the colonizer will always try to normalize erasing you and replacing your language with their own. [1] https://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/united-kingdom https://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/united-king...
- anamexis 4y ago
  Yes, I'm well aware that Ireland is not in Great Britain. That does not change the point that many people in the US (who are of course not Ireland's colonizers) use Britain to refer to the UK as a whole. No one in the US would say "I'm going to Belfast, it'll be nice to hang out in Britain." It's shorthand for referring to the state. As in, "Britain has a new PM."
- implements 4y ago
  I’m British but also of Irish descent (and also an Irish citizen) - might I suggest that you’re being a bit unnecessarily sensitive to find fault with people from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland abbreviating that to “Britain” in day to day usage. Also, “coloniser” from an American, America being literally a far more recent European colonial enterprise built on resource appropriation and African slavery … ? Somewhat ironic that the injustices of Anglo-Irish history seems to resonate more with you than perhaps injustices closer to home.
  - mtalantikite 4y ago
    I mean, I'm not mad if you want to refer to Northern Ireland as Britain, you can do whatever you feel comfortable doing! It's just a subtle thing and I feel that language is important. Reminds me of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QemYNQfix-c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QemYNQfix-c To the rest of your point, it's not my fault I was born here because my family was forced to leave their homelands due to the effects of colonization (in Ireland and Algeria). My grandfather was abducted and murdered by the French due to his involvement with the FLN and the decolonization of Algeria. So that one is closer in historical time and trauma to me, but I think about Ireland quite often as well. And yes I'm critical of US colonialism and enslavement, and this country's continued imperialism around the world. I fully support reparations to all indigenous people in the United States and the descendants of those that were formally enslaved. I've voluntarily paid land tax to Native American tribes that are indigenous to where I live (Brooklyn). It's all interdependent.

Well I guess I'm not a part of that "we", and I suspect quite a lot of people of Irish descent wouldn't be a part of it either. As another comment has pointed out, Great Britain does exclude Northern Ireland, and official language refers to it as "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" [1]. People will generally specify Northern Ireland, and I've pretty much never heard anyone say, I don't know, "I'm going to Belfast, it'll be nice to hang out in Britain". Do British people normalize referring to the entire thing as just Britain? Yeah, probably. But the colonizer will always try to normalize erasing you and replacing your language with their own. [1] https://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/united-kingdom https://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/united-king...

anamexis 4y ago
Yes, I'm well aware that Ireland is not in Great Britain. That does not change the point that many people in the US (who are of course not Ireland's colonizers) use Britain to refer to the UK as a whole. No one in the US would say "I'm going to Belfast, it'll be nice to hang out in Britain." It's shorthand for referring to the state. As in, "Britain has a new PM."
implements 4y ago
I’m British but also of Irish descent (and also an Irish citizen) - might I suggest that you’re being a bit unnecessarily sensitive to find fault with people from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland abbreviating that to “Britain” in day to day usage. Also, “coloniser” from an American, America being literally a far more recent European colonial enterprise built on resource appropriation and African slavery … ? Somewhat ironic that the injustices of Anglo-Irish history seems to resonate more with you than perhaps injustices closer to home.
- mtalantikite 4y ago
  I mean, I'm not mad if you want to refer to Northern Ireland as Britain, you can do whatever you feel comfortable doing! It's just a subtle thing and I feel that language is important. Reminds me of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QemYNQfix-c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QemYNQfix-c To the rest of your point, it's not my fault I was born here because my family was forced to leave their homelands due to the effects of colonization (in Ireland and Algeria). My grandfather was abducted and murdered by the French due to his involvement with the FLN and the decolonization of Algeria. So that one is closer in historical time and trauma to me, but I think about Ireland quite often as well. And yes I'm critical of US colonialism and enslavement, and this country's continued imperialism around the world. I fully support reparations to all indigenous people in the United States and the descendants of those that were formally enslaved. I've voluntarily paid land tax to Native American tribes that are indigenous to where I live (Brooklyn). It's all interdependent.