When is it right to 'dename'?

In April, it was announced that Trinity College Dublin would 'dename' its Berkeley Library, because of the links to slavery of its current namesake, the 18th century philosopher George Berkeley. The news sparked renewed debate about when it is right to change the historic name of a building or institution, with Irish Times columnist Fintan O'Toole arguing, for example, that the dozen or so GAA clubs named after 19th century Irish nationalist John Mitchel should rename themselves, also due to Mitchel's support for slavery and his trenchant racism. But once we start renaming things, how far should we go? When is it necessary and when is it simply impractical? And why was John Mitchel such a racist, anyway?Fintan O'Toole talks to Bernice Harrison. This episode was originally published in May 2023. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.