IRISH DIASPORA: 1. Dr. John McLaughlin, creator and host of "The McLaughlin Group," with its high-intensity, fast-paced discussions of world politics, is a 4th generation Irish-American. His family emigrated in 1825; their counties of origin were Tyrone and Armagh. His family names are McLaughlin and Connolly. 2. Father Joseph A. O'Hare, Pres. Fordham University, is a Bronx native and has been in the Jesuit order for more than 50 years. He was the former editor-in-chief of "America" magazine. He said, "I welcome the Irish sense of both the tragedy and comedy of life - and the Irish gift of language to deal with both." Fr. O'Hare is a 2nd generation Irish-American. His family emigrated circa 1885-95, counties of origin, Limerick and Tipperary. Family Names, O'Hare and Enright. 3. Daniel Keough, Chairman Emeritus, Coca-Cola Enterprises, has a soft spot for Ireland, having established a center of Irish studies at Notre Dame, his alma mater. He is a 3rd generation Irish American. His family emigrated in the 1850s, their county of origin Wexford. His family names are Keough, Foley, and O'Hare. 4. John Sweeney, Pres. AFL-CIO, author "American Needs a Raise" (1996), is a first generation Irish-American. His family emigrated in 1929 from Co. Leitrim. His family names are Sweeney and McMorrow. During ihs youth in the Tremont section of The Bronx, there were three things that mattered in the Sweeney household: family, church and organized labor. "We knew that without family there would be no love, without the Church there would be no hope for redemption, and without the Union there would be no food on the table." Sweeney's father was a NYC bus driver and a proud member of the Transport Workers. 5. Maureen O'Boyle, Journalist & TV anchor, with a home in L.A. in 1998, is a 3rd generation Irish-American. Her family emigrated in 1840, their counties of origin were Offaly (King's) and Mayo. Her family names are O'Boyle, Keegan, Kennedy, Collins, and McGuiniss. "My great-great-grandfather came to America from a small town in Offaly as a young boy in search of a future. At 8, he was working a mule train on the Erie Canal! By the time he passed away, he was captain of his own ship and several barges that worked the NY waterways." Maureen co-hosted the 1997 NYC St. Patrick's Day parade. She said, "As I watched that great pageant up Fifth Avenue, I am reminded of all we have accomplished and how, despite great hardship, there is a spirit within the Irish that survives and flourishes." 6. Roma Downey, actress, "Touched By An Angel," is a native of Co. Derry and has a lovely soft Derry voice. She grew up in war-torn Derry and lived through the worst of the Troubles and has painful memories of the past violence. A survivor who derives great happiness from helping others, she is "America's favorite Irish angel." Her family names are Downey and Reilly. She has lately been active with "Operation Smile," working to raise funds for surgeries for children around the world with terrible facial deformities that have made them "outcasts" in their own societies.