Hello, dear readers. What would your Mondays be without brief mention of the quotidian weekend activities of The Bell’s intrepid reporters? Robbie was in the bonnie Borders at a food and drink fair on Saturday, where he immediately sought out the most Glaswegian libation he could find: a delightful beer from Muirend’s Simple Things Fermentations. He also managed a soggy jog around the River Tweed on Sunday. As for Calum, he was at Akbar’s — the Glasgow branch of Bradford curry chain that comes highly recommended by Curry Heute — followed by a rather raucous birthday party.
This morning, we dispatched Calum to the scene of a picket at Dalmarnock primary school’s gates for our big story. Also, tickets for our first ever Glasgow Bell quiz night on 4 December are almost sold out — we’re down to single digits! Dither not.
Now, onto your briefing.
🪧 ‘Kids before council convenience’
You might think teaching English as a foreign language would be a fairly innocuous activity. Not so in this heightened political climate. A ‘Read Write Count’ session for families held in Dalmarnock Primary School has become a flashpoint for local parents and far right influencers. This morning, up to 50 people protested English-as-a-second-language classes, which take place at the primary school and are offered to pupils’ whose family members don’t speak English as their first language.
Arriving at quarter to nine on what appeared to be a normal Monday morning at the school gates, Calum saw little drama, despite reports of a planned morning picket. He was about to head on his way when he saw some women in puffer jackets holding a stack of laminated signs reading ‘kids before council convenience’ and ‘protect our kids’. Over the next hour, over 40 people gathered into two distinct groups. Directly outside the school gates were around 30 people, mainly women. On the other side of the street was a group of men dressed in dark clothing. The group of women were vocally hostile to reporters, shouting away a cameraman and vigorously challenging Calum about media “lies”. They described themselves as concerned “mums and grannies”. They explained they are not, as reported, ‘far right’, instead they fear for their children’s safety given the presence of foreign-born adults at the school. Calum spoke to one man who told him he’d kept his child out of class today in protest, and because he believed the English class was happening as they spoke — posing a risk to children.
Attacks from within
The group of men on the other side of the street had a more political analysis of what was going on. They spoke of how Tommy Robinson was splitting the right wing vote for parties like the far right Advance UK. They also spoke of “getting attacked from within”, referring to young men coming to the UK without documentation. One man told Calum that his Bridgeton housing scheme was “full of it” — referring to foreign-born residents.
Far right influencer Alex Cairnie was in attendance. Upon arrival, he marched towards a journalist he recognised, accusing him of abuse by printing lies about him. He proceeded to accuse the Scottish government of “diabolical corruption” for allowing the classes to happen. The air of conspiracy theories pervaded the protest. When Calum asked a group of men why they thought the classes were being held at the primary school, they said they didn't know, but suspected an ulterior motive from the council — but further details weren’t forthcoming.
Everyone Calum spoke to seemed angry and genuinely frightened at the prospect of immigrants being in the same building as primary school children. The blonde man told him “you saw what one of them could do, imagine 30” — referring to the brutal killing of three young girls in Southport by Axel Rudakubana, a British citizen of Rwandan heritage
A familiar face
Podcaster Craig Houston also arrived part-way through the protest. If you’re not familiar, he was charged with targeting a councillor with racist abuse in June. He also inserted himself into the Royston protest earlier this year. Cairnie, meanwhile, a self-styled paedophile hunter from Spartan Child Protection Team, previously gained notoriety for his Govanhill dispatches in which he attempted to stoke racial division. At the protest today he said that “sticking 20 to 30 adults in with children ain’t f***ing right”.
Both Houston and Cairnie referenced St James’ primary school in Renfrewshire. In October, a similar protest against adult education classes being held in the community learning centre (which is connected to the school but has separate toilets and entrances) led to the classes being stopped. Clearly, they want the same to happen here.
By 11.30am, most of the crowd had left. Some members of school staff were talking with Cairnie and another protester in a heated exchange. Police eventually escorted the staff members back into the building. The Monday morning protest, which started as parents were dropping their children off for class, might be over — but don’t expect this to be the last of it.
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council told The Bell that the classes are for parents and carers of children at the school and nursery, “not strangers”. They added that, as the adult attendees are not left unsupervised, “they do not need a PVG”, which is a document a person is required to have if they work with vulnerable groups, such as children. “This campaign is misguided and toxic,” they told us, adding, “We will also not tolerate strangers and vigilante groups coming into our schools claiming to keep children safe when they have a clear hidden agenda to incite fear and alarm by spreading misinformation and inciting violence which is bigotry fuelled and inflamed.”
Stories you might have missed:
‘Tinder Swindler’ ex-councillor jailed over £188k romance scam, Daily Record
£1.4m plan to revamp historic Govan dockside landmark, BBC
Missing items from George Square statues deemed ‘inappropriate’ won't be reinstated, STV
Podcaster kicked woman off bed for refusing cuddle, trial told, BBC
Would a new gate ruin Glasgow's Necropolis - or give it new life? BBC
More than 3,000 Empty Homes brought back to use in Glasgow, GCC
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Read/listen/watch: Karine Polwart - The Well Within
As if releasing regular albums isn’t enough, songwriter Karine Polwart also has an excellent, essayistic Substack, Pockets of Wind Resistance. Most recently, she was ruminating on old Glasgow, the Molendinar Burn and an ancient well discovered beneath Glasgow Cathedral, heretofore hidden for centuries. Tickets for the upcoming concert inspired by St Mungo’s well are available here (our review will follow), and Aproxima Arts also plans an exhibition of the objects recovered from the well that shed new light on the city’s origins. In the meantime, enjoy Polwart’s musings, and a preview of her song, The Well Within.
We also rec:
- Macbeth review – a terrifying lock-in with bloodied, boozed-up gangsters
- Clydebuilt needs your help. Watch the video
Catch up and coming up:
- Iain McGilp took a forensic look at Glasgow’s murder mile, to ask why the Gorbals has the most unsolved murders in Scotland. “What an incredible, vivid, gripping piece of journalism,” wrote reader Claire. “So beautifully done. I’m left wondering where the next area will be in Glasgow to earn this reputation, as so many of the issues that came together in the Gorbals, like the murders, remain unsolved.”
Iain McGilp
- Later this week, Calum is back at Homeless Project Scotland, looking into accusations of lawfare.
- Robbie is going un-dough-cover with another pizza-themed dispatch for you this weekend.
Re:view: Loom, 128 Maryhill Road
It was the stickers on the windows advertising “coffee and empanadas” for £6 — and most importantly, an affirmation reading “mastery, autonomy and purpose” — that first caught my attention. Thankfully, I wasn’t disappointed. Loom’s coffee is stellar and the empanada, although petite, was delicious. I opted for a spinach one, but you can get spicy chicken, goats cheese and pumpkin, or a more traditional beef filling. The overall vibe isn’t typical of a specialty coffee house; there were barely any pastel colourings and nary a monstera in sight. Instead, a cut out of a mention in a Glasgow Times article, and a small group sitting on the only table deep in a game of Settlers of Catan. Leaflets celebrated their Guatemalan roots and the small-scale coffee growers they work with. And so, the initial intrigue is satisfied: Loom honours the indigenous Guatemalan women who weave their dresses with handlooms. Consider them honoured because the price, vibes, and taste of their coffee and empanada was excellent.—Calum
Glasgow Calendar: Colour Theory
This three-day exhibition celebrates the incredible work of BPOC artists across Scotland, spanning painting, illustration, photography, film, and more.Throughout the exhibition – an opportunity to connect, be inspired, and experience diverse voices in visual art. Free. November 28, from 6:30pm. November 29, panel discussion. Info here.
Other dates for your diary:
- Architecture Fringe Autumn Assembly, 27 November, free
- Animation workshop with found and foraged objects, plants, seeds and creatures, 29 November, £ by donation
- Watching the waves: citizen science and dolphins of the Clyde, November 26, free
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