President Higgins to lead State Commemoration of 1913 Lockout

Public invited to attend event and to avail of the shopping and hospitality facilities in the city centre

The President of Ireland, Michael D Higgins, will lead the State Commemoration of the 1913 Lockout which will take place, subject to permit, on Saturday, 31 August next – 100 years precisely to the day of Bloody Sunday 1913 – at the Larkin Statue on O’Connell Street, Dublin.

The commemoration will begin at 12.30 pm and the public are invited to attend, however, members of the public are advised to be in position by 12 noon. The city centre will remain open for business, including Arnotts’ car park. Those who attend the commemoration are being encouraged to avail of the shopping and hospitality facilities in the city centre.

The State Commemoration will involve a wreath-laying by the President of Ireland at the Larkin statue followed by a minute’s silence. It will also include a number of musical performances; readings from Strumpet City by well-known actors and pieces of drama including an excerpt from ANU Productions’ critically acclaimed Living the Lockout and a scene from the Risen People. Those attending will be able to hear Jim Larkin address the crowds from a 1913-era tram!

Immediately after the official 1913 Lockout commemoration, there will be a re- enactment of the events of Bloody Sunday – which took place on 31 August 1913 – when police baton-charged crowds on Sackville (now O’Connell) Street. This part of the event is being organised by the North Inner City Heritage Group with Dublin Council of Trade Unions.

Full details of the programme for the State Commemoration of the Lockout will be released in the coming days once they are finalised.

The event is being coordinated by the 1913 Lockout Commemoration Committee whose members are Joe O'Flynn (SIPTU General Secretary), Sally Anne Kinahan (Irish Congress of Trade Unions Assistant General Secretary) and Padraig Yeates (historian of the 1913 Lockout).