The CUNY Institute for Irish-American Studies in conjunction with the W.B Yeats Society of New York, presents a lecture by Mr. Declan Foley entitled George William Russell-AE & The American Farmer Lecture Tour on Monday, September 19, 2005 at 7PM at the CUNY Graduate Center, rooms C202 and C203. The graduate center is located on Fifth Avenue between 34th and 35th Streets. This event is free to the public. Reservations are appreciated but not required and can be made by calling 718-960-6722.

George William Russell (1867-1935), also known as A.E. or "The Socrates of Dublin" was a lifelong "friend and enemy" to W. B. Yeats and his contemporary in many projects in the great renaissance of Irish nationhood. AE was an avid writer of articles and letters for many causes from farming to poetry. This year marks the seventieth anniversary of the death of this internationally renowned philosopher, poet, painter and playwright, who has left behind him a legacy that lives on today.

Declan Foley was born in Sligo in 1950. One of sixteen children, he grew up in the pre-television era in a political household where great conversation was to be enjoyed. He lived in Sligo until 1987 when he moved to Melbourne, Australia, with his wife Helen and children. There he founded the Australian Yeats Society and found time to satiate his desire for Irish literature and the history of Irish political events in the 19th and 20th century. He organized the first John Butler Yeats Seminars at Chestertown, New York in 2001 and 2004.

Visit our website www.lehman.edu/cunyiias for more on our Fall 2005 Public Events.