Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has reached out to viral Irish dancer Morgan Bullock to compliment her "brilliant moves".
And he went one step further, inviting Morgan to perform in next year's St. Patrick's Day parade.
Sharing a video of her performance, Leo tweeted the TikTok sensation:
'Maith thú @Morrghan! Some brilliant moves there. Hope you can dance in Ireland for St Patrick’s Day 2021. We’d love to have you over.'
https://twitter.com/LeoVaradkar/status/1257741155787292672?s=20
Morgan's video blew up online after she posted it at the weekend, but the Virginia-based dancer was faced with racist comments and accusations of "cultural appropriation".
She hit back at the comments in a statement yesterday, highlighting the difference between cultural appropriation and cultural appreciation:
“If you think that a black girl Irish dancing is some form of cultural appropriation, then you clearly don’t know much about Irish dance and what is became over the years. There are Irish dance schools all over the world, including Mexico, China and Africa.
"It has become a very widespread sport in which participants become immersed in the culture, whether or not it is based on ethnicity.
“Irish dance has taken me all over the world. I have been to Ireland multiple times and I was met with so much love and support.”
https://twitter.com/Morrghan/status/1256718076256501760?s=20
We look forward to hopefully welcoming Morgan to the Emerald Isle next year.
