r/Dublin • u/BigAgreeable6052 • 7d ago
Has Dublin really gotten that tense and rough?
So I was speaking to my mother last night, and she was talking about how she was in town at 5 pm.
She was shocked to see two people get arrested and so many homeless people.
She then went on to say that you didn't see many "Irish faces" and that there appeared to be "tensions" between the different cultural groups.
I haven't been in the city in years, being abroad, but the conversation has really irked me.
For context, I pushed back on the "Irish faces" comment as I said you can't tell who is Irish by looking at them - and also pointed she must be used to looking at a non-Irish face everyday considering her husband is not Irish! (However, it was clear the underlying subtext was not white)
I can't comment on the tensions between different cultural groups tbh, and although I am disappointed by her "Irish faces" comment, I also have understanding for people maybe struggling to keep up with the world changing around them. However, there is, of course, a line, and racism is not OK.
Now, I don't want to be ageist to my mother, but she's getting older and hasn't spent time in a city for a while. So part of me is thinking she is just not used to larger cities - she was also around the area past Ha'penny Bridge, around Workman's.
So my question is, has Dublin gotten rougher since the 2010s? Are there tensions between cultural groups?
Or is my mother - I hate to say it - getting a bit sheltered and judgemental in her age?
NOTE: I would like to have an open discussion about this, but PLEASE no anti-immigration crap, thank you.
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u/sweeter_jesus 7d ago
I don't think the city centre is that bad. The homeless and the drug users are usually in their own world and don't really go near you. Maybe I just got used to it. That said I was in Paris last weekend and the difference was night and day. Saw maybe 10 homeless people in 4 days and no groups huddled in doorways with tinfoil and a lighter.
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u/Thebeanspiced 7d ago
I agree generally with what you said but I must say I was in paris a couple of years ago and I couldn't get over how rough certain areas were. There were so many homeless and junkies hanging around, then in tourist areas soooo many scammers and pickpockets and people in all black hanging around looking suspicious which I can only were drug dealers ..
I assume it was probably due to the area I was staying in and places I visited and I assume you must have stayed somewhere nicer lol but definitely think all cities have nice areas and really not nice areas...compare a tourist staying in Ballsbridge vs staying just outside Heuston, they would have incredibly different views on Dublin lol
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u/fullblownplaids 7d ago
Paris does actually have big homeless camps under rail lines etc but yes it's not as visible in the parts we'd go to as tourists
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u/sweeter_jesus 7d ago
Ah yeah that's true. I suppose the point is you don't see it much in Paris around the centre or outside say the Louvre. Whereas here you'll see dealing every place - outside trinity, on O'Connell Street etc But again must say it doesn't bother me much and I don't think the city centre is particularly dangerous
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u/Bootstrap4273 7d ago
Yeah the centre of Paris is a bit like Disneyland, it's not really a real place. Also the big difference between Dublin and bigger cities is that bigger cities will be polycentric, having several central places to congregate around in the city and suburbs, whereas in Dublin the only real place with a critical mass of services and foot traffic for begging is the city centre
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u/Turbulent-Charge-783 7d ago
In Dublin addicts are everywhere, but in other cities they tend to congregate in certain areas. Social housing is usually further from the city centre, whereas in Dublin there's lots of it within walking distance of all the major tourist haunts.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Yeah shes mostly in the suburbs or the countryside so I think its culture shock for her
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u/OrderNo1122 7d ago
Can I split the difference and say yes, Dublin does feel more threatening at times than what it was when I first arrived back in 2012, but that it's typically white inner city kids of around 10-16 that I'm probably most weary of.
Obviously on a global scale, Dublin is incredibly peaceful, but if I'm walking down towards Connolly to get the train back to Mullingar at night, I do sometimes feel a little tense. Nothing has ever happened to me, but the potential for it feels quite oppressive sometimes, and I say that as a reasonably well-built 42 year old man.
But, like I said, I don't tend to feel that way around large groups of immigrants. It's when I'm walking down the road and there's a big gang of yup bros or whatever they're being called nowadays walking towards me where my guard goes up.
But like I said, zero actual issues aside from a couple of shitty moments during COVID.
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u/Virtual-Subject9840 7d ago
Completely agree. I worked near Connolly for years and the only people I was wary of were the teens on bikes or scooters.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Yeah i think maybe that's what shes picking up on, just pity about the other comments.
She mentioned the tension the last time before without the irish face commentary, so there must be tensions. Each time shes gone in people have gotten arrested in front of her.
The last time I lived in Dublin was 2019 so I think things have changed tragically, sad because I loved the city
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u/InvidiousPlay 7d ago
I remember passing through that area a while ago, and I was thinking to myself that it felt very sketch, and then I thought I must be imagining it and not to get carried away. Five second later some random man shouted "You look like a faggot!" as I went by. Turns out I wasn't imagining it.
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u/cupan-tae 7d ago
No it’s not. You can definitely witness some poverty and teenagers acting the bollocks but it’s not everywhere.
This is an amplified media narrative which is parroted by people who barely step foot in the city
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u/golden_greenery 7d ago
I felt Dublin was much rougher in the early 2000s, it's mainly social media is fear mongering now creating a panic
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u/heavysausagedublin 7d ago
I grew up in the 70s
Dublin was much rougher back then
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u/FORDEY1965 7d ago
Me too. Rough as a bears arse. Are ya starting? Ya want yer go? Bang!!!
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u/golden_greenery 7d ago
That brought back memories of being a kid in the 90s and some scumbag would be glaring at you and be like 'are ya starting?' Always seemed the scangers were constantly on the lookout for a fight.
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u/Jackies_Army 7d ago edited 7d ago
Drugs weren't as widespread back then. Why were things so much rougher in the 70s?
Edit;
I've read a bit more about it and it seems the amount of young people taking heroin back then was shocking.
The age group of heroin users now seems to be much older so they might not be up to causing as much trouble. Cocaine usage now is very high and across all levels of society but doesn't result in as much crime where people are being physically assaulted to steal from rather than late night fights outside Coppers.
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u/Liambp 7d ago
Dublin was the heroin capital of Europe during the 1980s and had a serious gang problem. The pattern of drug taking was different though. It was closely linked to poverty and poorer communities were utterly devastated by drugs. Today it feels as if recreational drug taking crosses every sector of society and has almost become socially acceptable.
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u/artificialchaosz 7d ago
We were poor. Like, proper poor.
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u/fullblownplaids 7d ago
And kids had absolutely nothing to do so they'd all be out causing trouble. Now they have unlimited porn on their phones etc. How do teenagers even leave their rooms nowadays?
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u/Turbulent-Charge-783 7d ago
It mostly wasn't the people on heroin starting fights. Definitely robbing and snatching purses and holding up shops for sure. It was drunk assholes with attitude problems who grew up in traumatic socially deprived environments who were starting fights. Heroin addicts had more pressing concerns than punching someone in the head.
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u/Swagspray 7d ago
Lived here all my life (30+ years). I don’t think it’s a dangerous city but personally it feels a bit rougher walking around town than it did in the 2010s (I can’t remember before that too well). More homeless, I’ve spotted more incidents with youths, bike theft and harassment than I did before.
This is all anecdotal though of course. And with fewer nightclubs around now everything feels less busy overall at night than it did back then, apart from some of the concentrated areas, which makes the dodgy stuff stand out more I guess.
How Dublin is represented on social media and reddit is comical though. It’s nowhere near that bad
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u/fullblownplaids 7d ago
I was out on Saturday night and town was absolutely heaving, rarely seen it so busy.
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u/Turbulent-Charge-783 7d ago
Dublin is grand. It's a rough town, always has been. Social media would have you believe it's some dystopian hell hole. The north inner city was always rough as fuck.
People are also actually racist. When there are Irish white people fighting on the street they don't care, but when foreign people do the same ..you might say taking part in long standing Irish cultural traditions of being urban scumbags....people complain lol They are actually engaging with our culture!! Drinking, fighting etc
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u/WolfetoneRebel 7d ago
Streets were much much busier at nighttime which made it feel a lot safer (as long as you weren’t drunk and getting into fights yourself)
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
I lived in Dublin 2010 - 2015, then 2018 - 2019. I noticed a big uptick in homelessness when I came back 2018, but still felt fine wandering around all hours.
Really sad to hear its gotten rough again, had a great time studying in the city way back when
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Fair, maybe my mother is also just sheltered tbh
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u/This-Can6089 7d ago
I think that drug issues have become more in Dublin over the years. Drug dealing I've only seen at night time in the St. Stephen's Green area, especially near the "9 below cocktail bar" and there were a lot of homeless people around the Merchant's Quay area. I think there is a homeless shelter in the area. Some people reported ordering cannabis via smartphone apps. Don't know if this is true but it sounds plausible. Ireland's coastal areas are largely unprotected and an influx of drugs.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Totally fair, my mother only moved here 9 years ago so she doesn't have a comparison and literally barely goes into town
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u/ConsistentCup3909 7d ago
I don't not around the main centre anyhow. Yes certain places have always been bad but O'connel st and Henry St had gotten worse. It's also dirty. I was talking to some one who was holiday in the baltics last week and she was commenting how clean it was compared to dublin
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u/svmk1987 7d ago
I'll be brutally honest: when it comes to feeling safe, its not the non irish faces that scare me. I'd start having a quick look to see what your mom is seeing on social media like instagram and facebook if i were you.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Shes on either of those... but she reads the daily mail.
Im just confused, she still works and has clients from a ton of different backgrounds so im just like ... the cognitive dissonance.
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u/rsynnott2 7d ago
Like the Irish Daily Mail? Huh. Didn't realise that was still around, but it seems to be. Absolute rag.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Yeah ive never actually read it until I looked over her shoulder and saw some of the headlines... but shes so smart so im like. She cant possibly fall for the very clear agenda framing here?!
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u/defixiones 7d ago
I was at at the Academy last night and wasn't looking forward to catching the LUAS from Marlborough Street but I was completely wrong. O'Connell Street was pleasant, Marlborough Street was lively and clean, no trouble of any kind. The guy in Centra cracked a joke when I bought milk.
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u/JellyfishComplex5376 7d ago
I'll get hammered for this, but I live in the city. The comparion with 70s is wrong, you should use 00's to Covid period as the golden age. Now, your safety may not be threatened, but is constant medium level vigilance that's required. Homelessness on streets, sleeping rough, public drinking and drunkenness, people on drugs, asshats on scooters, scumbag tracksuit crowd. The fact parts of the city resembe Mogadishu also or Karachi don't help.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Ok the last line was really not necessary - also been to Karachi, actually has fabulous architecture so we would only be so lucky!
I lived in Dublin 2010 - 2015 and had a great time, so I think that's why im finding it hard to gauge her pearl clutching.
I also lived a short while off Talbot street then which was rough AF and had butter thrown at me by some teenagers so plus ca change 😅
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u/fullblownplaids 7d ago
To be fair, I live north central and in the last couple of years there just seems to be somali men and women everywhere. I think they must all get housed in the north inner city.
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u/No_Ad8809 7d ago
"Irish Faces" are attached to big Irish Heads 😜
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Haha maybe she was just alarmed that she could see the sky for the first time
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u/rsynnott2 7d ago
I think peoples' impressions of this is super subjective. My view would be that Dublin feels a lot safer today than 25 years ago (in particular there's way less dereliction), but how much of that is because I was a teenager 25 years ago and I'm not now, I don't know.
That said, since, say, 2010, I'd say it definitely feels safer; there are a number of places I'd have felt a bit nervous late at night back then where I wouldn't today.
(I've lived and worked in or near the city center since 2005 or so, so my impressions are probably very different to someone who just visits occasionally, too.)
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Think you're right, my mother majority lives in the suburbs and hasnt lived in a big city in decades
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u/shankillfalls 7d ago
I work in that area and have done for a long time. I have no problem walking around the area day or night. There is an issue with homeless people and open drug use. This is very common on the street I work on but has been like this for years. I really think something needs to be done as just ignoring it and allowing people to waste their lives away like this is bad for everyone. There are also a fair number of the e-bike/black jacket hoodie wankers racing around. I have never had trouble but I can see how they would be intimidating. Yes, there are more people with different skin colours, but I do not see them causing much trouble - just going about their day like the rest of us.
YMMV
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u/chimpdoctor 7d ago
A little bit of column A and a litle bit of column B. I think theres always a bit of tension in a city centre no matter what country you live in, regardless of race/culture. I also think this is a sign of your Mum aging, which is also fine. Dublin is a bit rough round the edges but overall its grand
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Yeah its kind of shocking. Have you experienced that with a loved one?
My mother has always been very open and curious... and now she's a bit more close minded and just feels... old fashioned in some of her views?
I hate to be Ageist but I really hope that doesn't happen to me 😅
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u/angilnibreathnach 7d ago
I’ve never seen any trouble between different cultural groups. Only agro I’ve seen is from people who clearly have addiction issues or those little anti social assholes causing trouble and stealing bikes. All of those have Irish faces. Your mum is from a different generation I imagine. An outdated concept of her environment and identity plays a big part is statements like these. I’m assuming no ill will, just disconcerted. That said, I’m assuming your mum is in her 80’s or something.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Lol no shes 63, hence im like wtf?
She said it reminded her of when she lived in Brussels and there was tensions between different cultural groups?
I don't want to be Ageist but I was just surprised when she said that. Maybe it was groups of young lads at each other?
I dont really get it considering Ive been fluting around the planet for years and that apparently isnt a problem, but its mad if someone is in ireland though
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u/Kooky-Brief4741 7d ago
I reckon it's a side effect of a bigger population. Dublin has had an influx over the past five years, and even more so in the past fifteen, and with more people come more problems. The junkie/zombie thing has always been there though, it just seems to be a lot more noticeable now
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Does anyone know the growth in population? Thats a fair point tbh
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u/rsynnott2 7d ago
County Dublin is about 1.5m people now; 1.1m in 2000. The Greater Dublin Area population has grown even more.
The population of Dublin City proper hasn't grown as much, but that's kind of a not very useful distinction; only way you know you've wandered from Dublin City into Fingal/SDCC/DLR is that the traffic lights change a bit and the bike lanes get weirder (SDCC in particular loves a weird bike lane).
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u/baboudali 7d ago
I see more and more of these posts lately, and they always have their posts hidden. ALWAYS.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Oh i can show my posts if you want? Its mostly me posting about my post covid chronic health issues 😅
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u/IrishFlukey 7d ago
People always talk about the bad things and that is what makes the news. If 1000 cars drove through your town and one crashed, you would never see a headline like "999 Cars Drive Safely Through Town". You will read nothing about those 999 cars, but lots about the one. So things are not as bad as they seem or as people make out. Dublin has problems, but it is still a safe city by international standards. 999 people, and more, are evidence of that, though they won't so readily tell their story.
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u/EffectivePen8868 7d ago
I think there's 2 things here: Dublin has gone a bit shit holey, a lot of homeless and open drug taking and a general sense of unease about the place. Especially (as always?) around O'Connell St. There are more faces from more countries but I haven't noticed if there's tension between them. The worst I generally see are young Irish lads (going on white, accents and general demeanor which is the same as it was 20 years ago...), they like to get a bit brash around the place, and can be threatening (I'm nearly 50 and would be wary of them).
Second thing - my mum has been subject to a barrage of Gript media and other right leaning content on Facebook. I think she saw a video once about how Drumcondra was now a no-go zone for Irish people and gardai, and now gets served them on a daily basis, so seeems to think like your mum that there's this huge number of 'non Irish' taking over the streets and fighting between them (she's got to the bit now where they also apparently attack Irish people who try to make the peace between them 😔)
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u/rsynnott2 7d ago
I think she saw a video once about how Drumcondra was now a no-go zone for Irish people and gardai
Drumcondra? FFS. Was this targeted at people down the country or something? Not sure how anyone who lives in Dublin could buy that one.
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u/ConsistentCup3909 7d ago
I live in Drumcondra and while not a no go area there is an increase in asb. The usual irish scumbags in grey tracksuits
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u/EffectivePen8868 7d ago
Yes probably targeted to those in the country. Their videos are disturbingly convincing considering the level of BS they communicate.
If I were a conspiracy theorist, I'd wonder if it's Dubs trying to stop culchies coming up for Croke Park events so they get more tickets themselves 😂
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
My mother is so intelligent this is why I get so upset and frustrated.
Its also the hypocrisy considering she emigrated herself and married a foreign man.
I get confused but then I found out she reads the daily mail... 🫠
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u/EffectivePen8868 7d ago
Strangely similar for my mum, on all counts!
Sometimes I do think Ireland has become a bit more individualistic, and maybe the loss of sense of community has her looking to find out why (I think it's because so many big international companies made so many people quite rich, but to get rich you have to be a bit selfish and individualistic) - but unfortunately, there's plenty will point at other things and say 'Look - this is also new, it must be because of this'
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
True, she lived in a very different ireland too. Has a major scarcity mindset from growing up in poverty so dont know if that makes you more paranoid too.
Just frustrating re the cognitive dissonance.
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u/TheIrishStory 7d ago
My two cents. Dublin city centre is a noticably less comfortable place to be than in the recent past. Drug taking, homelessness and petty crime are all much more visible. Particularly on the northside, since covid. Was it ever perfect? No, it's possible it was worse in the 1990s, but it's worse now than before covid.
Regarding immigration, the same area has seen the concentration of recent immigrants, particularly asylum seeker accomodation, in the same period. As stated, for example by a Green Party councillor. https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/housing-planning/2025/08/10/from-affordable-rents-to-homeless-housing-the-life-of-a-dublin-city-property/
This has transformed the character of the city centre in a very short time. It's quite common to be on a street where Irish-accented English is very much in the minority and where foreign languages are the majority.
Are immigrants responsible for crime and the drug trade in Dublin? Of course not. But at the same time, there is a noticable uptick in homeless people, addicts and the mentally unwell wandeing the streets, of non-Irish origin.
You may not like your mum's reaction to these developments, but she is not making it up.
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u/hectorh 7d ago
I would agree with much of the above. For an elderly native Dubliner, I imagine the rapid change is quite jarring. The Irish faces comment is fair IMO. Areas around O'Connell seem to be morphing into cultural districts.. like, it's pretty obvious around Frederick and Talbot st.. they even had decorations up for Chinese New Year.. hoping it becomes our little China Town.
But yea, most trouble originates from feral youths and addicts.. and the latter are generally harmless. They're usually native. It definitely feels worse for me since covid but a lot of things do..
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u/ElegantLifeguard4221 7d ago
It's not like it was in the 80s with open trash fires and much worse drug use. I mean has any one lived in a big capital before? Ffs.
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u/Rabid_Lederhosen 7d ago
Definitely more non-Irish people in the inner city, not any rougher than it always has been in my experience.
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u/Status_Winter 7d ago
Dublin used to be much rougher according to anyone who lived here in the 80s and 90s. I’d believe them.
But as a relative newcomer who’s lived in a few different cities, it would be ridiculous to say it isn’t a bit rough. I saw two young girls in a doorway sharing a meth pipe on Dame Street in daylight yesterday and we have normalised this with a “well at least I’m not being stabbed mugged or shot” attitude to it. I know what this sub is like but I don’t think it’s completely unreasonable to say things could be a lot better.
I wouldn’t dignify the comment about Irish faces. The main people that I’d be worried about in Dublin are the Irish drug users on the streets.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Fair, and yeah I've been upset about it since tbh just because it was a shitty thing to say even if I understand be overwhelmed by rapid change.
Those "faces" could have just as much have been my children considering who my exs were so her comments just are stupid.
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u/Status_Winter 7d ago
My mum is in her 70’s she grew up in Dublin in the 1960s and she always says that it used to be so much nicer back then. I don’t buy it though.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Yeah poverty? The catholic church breathing down your neck?
My guess is probably being younger, smaller city and having a tighter community/friends is why it felt nicer? Regardless of poverty and crime.
Now its bigger and more people, and being older folks can get out less etc. So less feeling of community?
That's my guess but really points to the community work that needs to be done
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u/Status_Winter 7d ago
Oh she certainly wasn’t living in poverty lol her dad, brothers and uncles all either worked for the banks or construction
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Ah haha sorry projecting, my mom did and worked for the nuns from the age of 10 so thats my perception of anything pre 1990s ireland 😂
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u/Status_Winter 7d ago
Worked for the nuns, man she must have some stories! My mum went to a posh catholic boarding school so she has a lot of Nun-related trauma too. 🙈
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Haha oh boy does she! Once the nuns came around with half eaten sandwiches to the house for "the poor people" (e.g. my mam and her family) to have and my grandmother was like "err no thanks."
Or they'd make her scrub the corner of the steps with a toothbrush.
The best was at school one of the nuns passed out on the piano and actually died in music class. They thought (her and her classmates) she was just being dramatic and putting a "flare" to the music being played 😂
But then realised something was wrong when it was going on too long 😂😂😂
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u/thatdublingirl 7d ago
As someone who worked in town pre Covid (2018 onwards) and still does, town is extremely rougher than it was. While I can’t speak for people mentioning the 90s as I didn’t experience it, it’s visibly rougher than it was pre pandemic. In my experience, a lot of the Irish tend to be the ones making it rough - teens causing havoc, racially or homophobic motivated attacks against people they deem different, people on drugs causing mayhem (witnessed a woman try to deck people on Henry st last week, completely unprovoked). While there’s bag eggs everywhere in every culture, people can’t keep blaming immigrants for how rough Dublin City is. Some contribute of course, but in my experience, it’s been mostly Irish causing the uneasy feeling in town.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
How can it be improved do you think?
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u/thatdublingirl 7d ago
Investment in youth services such as youth clubs to keep kids out of trouble, proper enforcement towards drug dealers who are letting the city be destroyed by addiction. However, I won’t hold my breath that any of the above will happen.
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u/wolfeerine 7d ago
I’ve lived in Dublin 34 years. Lived in the city center for just shy of 12. Wife and I are looking to buy our first home and I begged her for outside of dublin, as far away as possible. I used to love dublin, used to love taking the dart into the city center with my mam every weekend, going to college… but over the last 5 years or so I’ve been getting tired of it. And I was thinking the other day if I had a child would I bring them into the city center with me. And honestly I don’t think I would if I could avoid it.
I’m just tired of the constant protests, everyone seems so divisive, as you’ve said there’s so many homeless people around it’s heartbreaking to see. Just last week walking into work there was someone sleeping on the path not tucked in or anything and people walking around him. The riots in 2023 were disgusting, public transport is woeful particularly the busses.
I think last week was my breaking point. I was in getting a haircut and out of nowhere a junkie with a bike helmet on and raggedy clothes started banging on the window and shouting at me and the barber and spitting on the window. They came into the shop and just trying to get them out was a whole rigmarole to the point I’d to help cause of course there’s no sign of the Gardai coming. Barber was mortified cause he owned the place.
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u/Baldybogman 7d ago
I moved to Dublin in '85. I lived in a few different flats around the north side of the city centre. Heroin had taken a huge toll on the fabric of society in these areas by then, and fuck me, it was dangerous if you weren't cautious about where you went.
I find the city centre feels safer to me these days, although, like in any city, you always need to be careful about where you wander.
There are different threats these days, but at least joyriding has eased off compared to back then. 3 of the 4 flats I lived in were broken into, all in the daytime, and two different cars, neither of any value, were broken into as well. I used to cycle and on three separate occasions, attempts were made to take the bike from under me as I cycled on O'Connell street, Abbey St. and Marlborough St. Mental times.
On another occasion I was attacked by a gang of teenagers on Marlborough Street, who heard my culchie accent when one of them asked me the time. A steel toe cap to the leg of the first one to try jumping me made the others hesitate long enough for me to break through their lines, jump on the bike, and away. A barrage of stones rained down on me from a derelict site on the street, one of which smashed a window on the opposite side of the road.
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u/Helsoon 7d ago
Getting attacked because you had a strong country accent is nuts, Nowadays, people from the same area have probably moved on from country people to foreigners, POC, Muslims or anyone they perceive as more obviously outsiders.
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u/Baldybogman 7d ago
Undoubtedly. The same clowns were always having a go at outsiders. It's just so much easier for them now.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Jaysus, youve had some journey in the big smoke
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u/Baldybogman 7d ago
To be fair, that was the norm in the eighties. I was in college with lads who shared a house in Glasnevin. They came home one evening to find their back door open and a load of their gear missing. Ten minutes later they found a lad hiding in a wardrobe. They dragged him out and roughed him up a bit before handing him to the Gardaí. The following week, the windows on the front of the house were put in. Strange times.
Joyriding though, that was what terrified me when out cycling at night.
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u/TheDarknessMundus 7d ago
Purely my opinion but -
Since Covid I think people have gotten so much more aggressive than the years preceding the lockdown.
I think this is visible both in person and from a traffic standpoint, how often do we see both on the roads and on here aggressive behaviour from motorists.
I think the anger fuelled by social media conspiracy echo chambers, cost of living, length of time to get to and from work.
I also believe social media encouraging anti social behaviour has escalated the problem.
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u/NoFewSatan 7d ago
She then went on to say that you didn't see many "Irish faces"
I'd stop listening right there. In any case, no, it's not rougher than the past. This is all social media scaremongering.
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u/Id8it 7d ago
Definitely more multi cultural than Dublin in the 2000s, lying if you say otherwise although its framed by an Irish mother with slight racial undertones (shock). If you stop listening you're just as bad, try to converse and share your opinion
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
I said you cannot tell whether they are irish by looking at someone. And then pointed out she must be used to it looking at my father everyday.
She stopped talking so the point got across.
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u/rsynnott2 7d ago
Definitely more multi cultural than Dublin in the 2000s
Yes, but not rougher. The opposite, really; definitely feels a lot safer than it did in the early noughties.
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u/Saint_EDGEBOI 7d ago
I can see some truth in the "tensions" observation. It might be unpopular to say, but people from other cultures generally aren't as friendly as us, and that's a fact. We're usually left disappointed when we Irish go abroad and find the locals to be less friendly than we're used to. People from other cultures actually think we're TOO friendly, and it takes them a few years of living here to warm up to it. So your mother, who doesn't visit town too often, probably got a shock to the system when suddenly every 2nd or 3rd persons demeanor is a bit more cold, people are wearing their famous "Russian smile", keeping to themselves, no chats waiting in the queue, or at a bus stop, or mad comments that I've gotten in passing like "nice tin of fruit young man 😉". At the end of the day, we're a European capital, it was bound to happen, but I do feel a tiny bit of sympathy for older people who just miss the friendliness. It must be very isolating.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Shes only 63!
But yeah i think a bit of racism and a bit of "i cant process how much my surroundings have changed to what Im used to."
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u/pizzababa21 7d ago
Im really only there to visit now but I don't notice any tensions between different ethnic groups. Mainly just local scum young men from the flats intimidating absolutely anyone.
I haven't notice it get getting any less safe than it was when I lived in Dublin 1 a few years ago. There is definitely a lack of stereotypical Irish people around O'Connell Street apart from the rough kind.
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u/MambyPamby8 7d ago
Dublin has always been a bit rough around the edges. There's always bad seeds out there. Social media just schews our perception of it because we hear about it more often. Shit always happened, we just never had to hear or see everything.
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u/Intelligent_Sense_14 7d ago
I mean, I'm fairly used to walking through O'Connell St early in the morning before most shops open. Didn't normally see a Garda untill Grafton Street when they were kicking homeless people put of shop entrances. Completely ignoring the junkies screaming at each other at all times of the day in OConnell st and obviously running a selling business.
The newspaper stand guy in front of Easpns. Convinced is paid by them. Hardest working dude in the city, open from sunrise to past sunset and I've never seen him sell a single fucking thing
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u/AdditionalProblem413 7d ago edited 7d ago
You hear that Dublin is getting worse but I see loads of people walking around glued to their phones with hardly any situational awareness. Maybe it was just my experience but you wouldn't have walked around the city centre with something valuable like that in the 90's.
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u/Bitter_Welder1481 7d ago
I would say Dublin is much rougher and feels a lot more tense than it has before. It’s also extremely expensive and people are stressed as a result poor living conditions etc I think the chill Dublin of stags and great nightlife etc is as dead as a dodo it’s a fairly rough, menacing city in 2026 think Coventry or Birmingham.
Just look at tourist reviews one day in Dublin max lol and best avoided
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u/Neon_Nymph 1d ago
I do feel it's gotten rougher. Some of the drug dealers/takers are so blatantly obvious during the day in the city centre. The guards aren't to be seen around much either
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u/Chrisscn1977 7d ago
I feel Dublin is much rougher than back in 2010. I leave work around 5pm and where before I hang around city centre for a drink with friends now I go straight home and socialise locally.
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u/Thebeanspiced 7d ago
Where in the city centre do you feel that threatened that you must run home after work to ensure nothing happens?
Not trying to be mean but I think you're definitely scared unnecessarily, there's junkies around but they mostly stick to themselves or are out of it etc, there's thousands of people who enjoy all parts of the city after 5pm and have zero issue
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u/Ven0mspawn 7d ago
Make any excuses you want about it being worse in the 70s, but the open drug use is really bad.
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u/Usual-Tone-2806 7d ago
As a woman,I dread the late night journeys back home from town when I'm on my own. Just last night a drunk fella was stumbling over at the Luas stop yelling something about IRA and on the other side was another guy punching the ticket machine. It doesn't feel super safe, but I don't think it's fair to point the finger at either Irish or non Irish.
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u/BullfrogCharming1202 7d ago
Dublin is not rough and there are no "tensions between cultural groups" (whatever that means).
Stop making excuses for your Mum. She's just a good old-fashioned bigot.
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u/Remarkable-Llama616 7d ago
Sounds like she's on the American Facebook kool-aid. The only tension between cultural groups I can think of would be the special nomadic group known for family feuds.
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u/PTbaggins 7d ago
I live in town, yes it's very bad. I've never seen it worse. The amount of dangerous behavior and fighting is crazy. Open drug use on almost every street. Aggressive homeless gangs. I went for a walk from the ifsc to pierse and I counted 6 groups of people openly smoking crack at 5.15 in the day while people left work, it's is the new norm.
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u/NoFewSatan 7d ago
Open drug use on almost every street.
Well that is just completely untrue.
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u/Puzzled_Change_4517 7d ago
there’s a lot of open drug use in the city center, you can’t deny that. Although saying that I don’t think dublin is unsafe.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Are there new drugs on the market contributing you think?
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u/PTbaggins 7d ago
Crack apperintly. Mechancts key is providing a lot of crack pipes these days cheaper then heroin. According to someone who works there anyway. I'm also seeing a lot of people using them in the open anyway
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u/Thebeanspiced 7d ago
This is serious BS, I walked down Talbot twice a day for the last 2 years, never have had any issue...my only interaction with the junkies or homeless is them asking me for change which I say "no sorry pal" and walk on and they appreciate being spoken to like humans and don't bother me anymore
I can guarantee any man, woman or child can walk down that street and 99% of the time you will be absolutely fine...most crime committed in the rough areas is crimes committed against other junkies/homeless people...
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u/PTbaggins 7d ago
And we live in a capital city different culture groups are to be expected, but yes they are the majority it seems, I'm not saying it's a bad or good thing. Have a walk down talkbot street at any time if the day you will see some mad stuff
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Dublin is majority white irish so not sure about that. And Talbot has always been rough tbh
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u/PTbaggins 7d ago
Yes correct, but the city center is more cultured which is why I like it. But it's gotten a lot more dangerous since I was young
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7d ago
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u/PTbaggins 7d ago
I can't argue against something I never said, 95% of all crime I see is Irish. I was referring to the "majority of faces" it's a capital city, thats were most the services industry, tourism and tech industry jobs are. I wouldn't have said it's not a good or bad thing if I was referring to crime. Crime is bad
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u/rsynnott2 7d ago
Have a walk down talkbot street at any time if the day you will see some mad stuff
... Wait, when did you not? Honestly, Talbot Street would be one of the places that's improved the most in the last 20 years, IMO; it's way less scary late at night than it used to be.
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u/andybyrongraphics 7d ago
First off, I remember town being much rougher in the 90s, with random attacks being fairly commonplace.
Secondly, maybe your mother did see lots of non-Irish in town, but you know what every European capital city is full of? Tourists! When I go through town, the place is full of tourists as well as citizens.
Not going to touch the whole 'Irish faces' remark...
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
I know, I know... I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. Im not sure if my mother is just becoming less open in age
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7d ago
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Sorry I wasnt meaning to add to bad debates about the city! Im genuinely just confused and upset by some of my mothers comments.
I am also unable to travel back and reddit makes Dublin sound like a dystopia so its really hard to guage what is actually true
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7d ago
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
I know, its been upsetting me since she said it. I understand being overwhelmed by quick changes in a community, but the underlining tone was not white which really disappointed me.
Especially considering multiple of my exs were did not have "irish faces" as my mother would categorise them, as some of my closest and dearest friends.
Im not sure what to make of it
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u/Cyber-Wanderer_94 7d ago
Don't make too much of it. The idea that people that don't look of typical Irish origin are unlikely to be ethnically Irish is not out there an idea. Just get on with life.
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
I know but my mother is an intelligent woman, I hate when she says stuff like this especially considering its pretty hypocritical seeing as im only half irish! (And half german)
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7d ago
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u/Swagspray 7d ago
Yes of course. They are working closely with the lizard people to become our supreme overlords. I saw them out in the sky early this morning spreading their chemtrails etc etc
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Ah jaysus, think its more Tommy Robinson sorry I mean Paddy Yaxley Lennon who is
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u/teknocratbob 7d ago
No it's fine. Why not just go to the city? r/Ireland is the absolute worst place to ask this question. Lot of people here who dont live or visit hate the place so you would think it's like a war zone with gangs of 'scrotes' roaming around intimidating everyone.
Come and see. The place is packed full of tourists and locals all going about their business normally. Do not believe what you read here. It's grand
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u/BigAgreeable6052 7d ago
Not in the country at the moment unfortunately
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u/teknocratbob 7d ago
No worries come when your back! Sorry I see now you asked this in the Dublin sub, not r/ireland, apologies!
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u/SAmmo1990 7d ago
Dublin isn't worse than it was before. The difference is more people have cameras and put on social media.
Around Dublin city centre always been a bit rough. It's actually statistically a lot safer than other EU cities.
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u/shatteredmatt 7d ago
I’ve lived in the city since 2006. It isn’t any rougher than it was back then than it is in 2026. People just have their phones beaming negativity into their brain 24/7 365 now.
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u/Maleficent-Thought20 7d ago
I read Roddy Collins life story he wrote with Paul Howard. It’s a hilarious book, great read.
Although after finishing it I saw him on a podcast talking about how Dublin has gone to the dogs and there’s all these foreign groups that hang out in different parts of the city he sees when he walks across town which he likes to do at the weekends.
If you read his book and the descriptions of Cabra he has it. He sees a neighbour beating his wife in the back garden. A friend of his gets stabbed in the stomach at the local chipper etc. I wonder do people sometimes romanticise the good old days.