Today we dig into the origins and the history of America's Irish Mob.  We begin centuries ago in Ireland, when a series of oppressive, discriminatory laws designed to break the backs of the Irish and leave them too powerless to rebel against British rule, followed by the Great Famine that was greatly intensified by these same laws, led to hundreds of thousands of Irish fleeing the Emerald Isle for America to avoid certain death. Impoverished and often malnourished, these new immigrants were met with an increasing amount of anti-Irish sentiment in the United States, and to overcome this, they ended up banding together and working with gangsters and politicians who would help them get jobs and food in exchange for votes. And thus, the Irish mob was born. Cue 150+ years of underworld violence! We cover SO much territory today. A good one for both the true crime and the history lovers. Hope you like it! Want to apply for the Cummins Family Scholarship fund? Click this link!: https://learnmore.scholarsapply.org/cummins/  Deadline for application is April 24th at 3PM CT. Wet Hot Bad Magic Summer Camp tickets are ON SALE!  BadMagicMerch.com Get tour tickets at dancummins.tv Watch the Suck on YouTube: https://youtu.be/GNCtRyNgyIEMerch: https://www.badmagicmerch.comDiscord! https://discord.gg/tqzH89vWant to join the Cult of the Curious private Facebook Group? Go directly to Facebook and search for "Cult of the Curious" in order to locate whatever happens to be our most current page :)For all merch related questions/problems: store@badmagicproductions.com (copy and paste)Please rate and subscribe on iTunes and elsewhere and follow the suck on social media!! @timesuckpodcast on IG and http://www.facebook.com/timesuckpodcastWanna become a Space Lizard?  Click here: https://www.patreon.com/timesuckpodcastSign up through Patreon and for $5 a month you get to listen to the Secret Suck, which will drop Thursdays at Noon, PST. You'll also get 20% off of all regular Timesuck merch PLUS access to exclusive Space Lizard merch. You get to vote on two Monday topics each month via the app. And you get the download link for my new comedy album, Feel the Heat. Check the Patreon posts to find out how to download the new album and take advantage of other benefits.