Vanessa Avilez
Staff Writer

March madness is here and St. Patrick’s Day is the holiday where we wear green if we don’t want to get pinched.

St. Patrick was a patron saint of Ireland who was born in the fifth century in Britain.

At age 16, he was taken prisoner by a group of Irish raiders and was sent to Ireland where he stayed as a prisoner.

He finally escaped to Britain after six years.

In his later years, he became a priest and was sent back to Ireland to minister to Christians and to convert the Irish people to Christianity.

St. Patrick’s Day, March 17, is on the anniversary of his death and was originally a religious holiday to honor him.

Today, St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated by many in the United States, Canada and Australia.

“St. Patrick’s Day is our special holiday,” said Aubry McSweeny, a freshman biology major. “It means celebrating with my family and celebrating our culture.”

Research shows that 96 million consumers celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, and 82 percent wear green on the day.

You don’t have to be Irish in order to enjoy the pleasures of this holiday.

“I think it’s another day to have fun and wear green so I don’t get pinched,” said Lindsey Salt, a junior liberal studies major.

In honor of the patron, a cross stands on Croagh Patrick, a mountain located in the west of Ireland where he fasted for 40 days.

The first St. Patrick’s Day parade was March 17, 1762, in New York, and featured Irish soldiers serving in the English army.

“St. Patrick’s Day is part of the Irish heritage and people should celebrate it,” said Marcie Baldridge, a freshman liberal studies major.

In the earlier years of celebration, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon because it was during the Christian season of Lent.

In modern day Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is a religious occasion.

It is celebrated by wearing green, feasting on corned beef, Irish bacon, cabbage, and Irish soda bread and attending parades.

“I think it’s fun for everyone to wear green even if you’re not Irish,” Baldridge said.

In 1995, the Irish government wanted to use St. Patrick’s Day as a way to attract tourism and expose Ireland to the world.

Last year, almost one million people gathered at Ireland’s St. Patrick’s Festival in Dublin, which featured parades, concerts, firework shows and more.

Another popular way many people celebrate the holiday is by drinking Irish beer.

The most popular beers for the occasion are Guinness, Harp, Beamish, Smithwicks and Murphy’s Stout.

“It’s a big celebration, but it’s not about drinking for some people,” McSweeny said.

“People choose to make it like that, but that’s not what it’s all about because there are other meanings behind it.”

Research shows that drivers have a 23 percent increased chance of being injured or killed by a driver who is impaired by alcohol on this day.

“It seems like a lot of people have made holidays about drinking even if they don’t celebrate them,” McSweeny said.

Many students do think that this holiday is focused on alcohol and do not think it should be based on this alone.

Many also agree that students should be cautious, especially on this specific day.

“I feel like it’s just another day that people have as an excuse to drink,” said Diana Westmayer, a junior business administration major.

“A lot of people, who do go out and drink, do not even know the history of St. Patrick’s Day,” she added.

For those who do choose to consume alcohol on St. Patrick’s Day, please do it wisely.

Remember to be cautious and drink responsibly.

Vanessa Avilez can be reached at vavilez@ulv.edu.