Viva Che! O'Hara & Fitzpatrick!

The iconic Viva Che! image by my Facebook friend, Dublin artist Jim Fitzpatrick, is now commemorated as an Irish postal stamp, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the death of the revolutionary leader, Che Guevarra. Jim never received a dime for his print, one of the most iconic images of the 20th century. And now it's a €1 stamp! Can't lick that.

Jim Fitzpatrick is best known for his detailed illustrations inspired by the Irish Celtic tradition. Jim produced most of the album artwork for Irish rock group, Thin Lizzy, and Sinéad O'Connor. His most recent work includes commemorative portraits of Ireland's 1916 revolutionary heroes. However, his singlemost famous piece is the 1968 iconic two-tone portrait of Che Guevara, based on a photo by Alberto Korda.

A note on the Che poster, from Jim Fitzpatrick's website:

In 1967 I was outraged by the manner of Che Guevara's execution while a prisoner of war in Bolivia and it led me to create this now world-famous image.
I have now also made this image available for free download so that it can be used by everyone -including those who cannot afford my prints or canvas of El Che: the unemployed, the oppressed, the victims of banker-imposed austerity here in Ireland, the EU and elsewhere, those who fight against the legal/political elite and the corrupt banker cartels who think they rule us -and those who rage against injustice.
This image is yours. Use it!  No resale or commercial usage please -it has been exploited enough. Please remember I do NOT ever license this image for commercial usage. Misuse this image or resell any reproductions thereof and you will be liable for a fine of $10,000 per item sold or for any violation of my copyright of this image.
Time to RECLAIM CHE! Free usage for leftist causes under Creative Commons Licence. No fee for leftist/socialist political usage.—JIM FITZPATRICK. ARTIST. IRELAND.

Jim Fitzpatrick holding up the controversial Che postage stamps.

BTW,  the postage stamp is taking some heat:

That the Viva Che! postal stamp is very much a celebration of one of the most important pieces of twentieth century Irish art, Jim Fitzpatrick’s Viva Che!, seems to have passed many commentators by.
In an Irish context, Guevara is very much associated with Fitzpatrick’s iconic artwork and the words of his father, who proclaimed following his son's death that “the first thing to note is that in my son’s veins flowed the blood of the Irish rebels.” They were powerful words, even finding their way to the painted gable wall of a Derry house in time."  from  A Dubliner encounters Che Guevara in Havana, 1959.

and

The postal service described Guevara, killed by CIA-backed Bolivian soldiers in Bolivia in 1967, as “the quintessential left-wing revolutionary.”
It said demand for the stamp has rivaled that of its two previously most popular releases, commemorating the sinking of the Titanic and Ireland’s 1916 Rising against British rule.
But it was quickly reminded that Guevara remains for many symbol of the violent abuses of Cuba’s communist government, with one Irish senator describing Guevara as “a barbaric interrogator, jailer and executioner of hundreds of supposed ‘class enemies’.”
Cuban-American radio host Ninoska Perez Castellon joined the fray urging listeners to write to the postal service to ask for the stamp to be scrapped. Irish postage stamp homage to Che Guevara stokes criticism

Controversial or not, said Fitzpatrick, "The stamp sold out in less than a week. I'm so proud to have had this happen at all but the response has blown me away! Amazing! They say An Post are going to reprint them as the demand was 'unprecedented'." It's also selling like hotcakes on eBay.

  

When I wore a Ché shirt, my grandmother pointed out to me that Guevara's paternal grandmother,  Anna Isabel Lynch from Galway, was related to the Lynches of San Francisco. How did she even know that? But then, her Irish diaspora knowledge was vast. Especially the Irish revolutionaries. Her husband was an Irish revolutionary too.

Ernesto (Che) was named after his father, Ernesto Guevara Lynch, who famously said when Che was executed,  "…..in my son’s veins flowed the blood of Irish rebels."

From the knee I learned a radically different version of history than what was taught in our Anglocentric school I learned that the founder of the Chilean Navy was Bernardo O'Higgins. One of Ireland's famous Wild Geese, Daniel Florence O'Leary became Simón Bolívar's right hand man. Some 2,500 Irish volunteers joined Bolivar. Then there are the San Patricios of Mexico. And, I learned of the Argentinian rebel, Che's Irish roots, of course.

My grannie told me this in the late 60s, early 70s. Long before the internet. Of course, I didn't believe her at the time. She said it so matter of fact, it was old information. She must've known the Lynches. In 1919  San Francisco was a small town, and all the Irish knew each other.

My grandmother was also a big fan of both the Maureens, Maureen O'Sullivan and Maureen O'Hara. My mother was named after Maureen O'Sullivan, not O'Hara, but then, my grandmother's mother was a Sullivan. The name Maureen was a new addition to the family tradition that recycles a handful of names every generation—which creates massive family tree chaos.

Everyone thinks I'm named after Maureen O'Hara (who was really a Fitzsimmons). I don't mind. I always wanted to look like her. But my red hair of childhood turned dark as I aged,  and my brown eyes only have green flecks. Bits of Ireland trapped in them, my grannie said.

  

Maureen O'Hara met Che Guevara while on location in Cuba. In Our Man in Havana, O'Hara was sent to Havana to investigate British secret agent (Alec Guinness). A bit more on Che in O'Hara's own words:

'When we arrived in Havana on April 15, 1959, Cuba was a country experiencing revolutionary change. Only four months before, Fidel Castro and his supporters had toppled Fulgencio Batista… Che Guevara was often at the Capri Hotel. Che would talk about Ireland and all the guerrilla warfare that had taken place there. He knew every battle in Ireland and all of its history. And I finally asked, “Che, you know so much about Ireland and talk constantly about it. How do you know so much?” He said, “Well, my grandmother’s name was Lynch and I learned everything I know about Ireland at her knee.” He was Che Guevara Lynch! That famous cap he wore was an Irish rebel’s cap. I spent a great deal of time with Che Guevara while I was in Havana. Today he is a symbol for freedom fighters wherever they are in the world and I think he is a good one.' from  A Dubliner encounters Che Guevara in Havana, 1959.

Ché/Shay Guevara as in Seamus O' Meara? Alliterative food for thought. 

  

I found out after I wrote this piece that Maureen O'Hara died on this day, 2015. And another favorite firebrand, Tom Hayden, on Oct 23, 2016. May the roads rise up....

So long, Tom Hayden
You can download the famous poster of Che at his website, or from   Jim Fitzpatrick's Facebook Gallery

Irish postage stamp homage to Che Guevara stokes criticism Reuters

‘What is Ireland doing putting Che Guevara on a stamp?’ Irish Times

Come Here To Me!  Dublin Life & Culture A Dubliner encounters Che Guevara in Havana, 1959.

The stamp and FDC are available from main post offices, from the stamp counters at Dublin’s GPO or online at irishstamps.ie Ernesto 'Che' Guevara, the quintessential left-wing revolutionary was killed in South America in 1967. An Post has chosen the 50th anniversary of his death to issue the stamp featuring the famous image of 'Che' by Dublin artist Jim Fitzpatrick. ... His father was Ernesto Guevara Lynch, a civil engineer of Irish descent.Oct 9, 2017

South American Revolutions