YESTERDAY saw the close of nominations for the Scottish Parliament elections. The deadline to submit nomination papers was 4pm, and it was then a case of waiting (and constantly refreshing the Council website) to find out which candidates had thrown their hats into which rings.
This is usually a fun part of the campaign, but my heart sank when I saw that one of the candidates for Glasgow Southside was a notorious convicted racist, Jayda Fransen.
Glasgow Southside is the most ethnically diverse part of Scotland. From Ibrox to Govanhill and from Pollokshields to the Gorbals, the constituency is home to people from a wide range of backgrounds – Asian, African, Eastern European and all parts in between. It’s a buzzing, vibrant, cosmopolitan urban mix and I love it. But that very diversity is what makes it a target for the hard right.
I should declare an interest in this as councillor for Southside Central, a ward which is completely contained in the Glasgow Southside constituency. But it’s really not a party-political matter. No-one involved in political or community activity in Glasgow Southside has any time for racists. We have stood together against them before and we will stand together against them now.
READ MORE: Convicted racist Jayda Fransen to stand against Nicola Sturgeon at Scottish election
Being targeted by fascists isn’t a new situation for us. For many years, the far right was desperate to demonstrate in Pollokshields - keen to exploit the awful murder of Kriss Donald to try to stir up racial hatred. That they were willing to capitalise on such a raw wound to try to foment hate shows you exactly the kind of people they are. The community told them where to go in no uncertain manner.
More recently, our Roma community in Govanhill has become the favoured target of the far right, amplifying vile rumours and unsubstantiated allegations of systemic child abuse to try to drive a wedge between Roma families and their neighbours. They failed. They will always fail. But it doesn’t stop them trying.
None of this means that Glasgow Southside is an area lacking in challenges. It isn’t. We face many challenges. But none of them can be overcome by racism. And the considerable progress that we have made in tackling these challenges has been powered by communities working together, neighbour with neighbour.
As a local councillor, I am left in no doubt that my constituents are absolutely sick and fed up with the genuine challenges that they face being exploited by those who don’t give a tuppenny damn for local residents, but just want to stir up hatred and division.
If I could make a plea on their behalf to the media – please don’t amplify this individual throughout the course of the campaign. It might provide some sensational news coverage, but elections are primarily about local communities deciding who they want to represent them. Fransen has no real connection even to Scotland, never mind Glasgow Southside. She doesn’t speak for anyone.
A final point. My initial reaction to the news was to wonder whether Fransen had chosen to stand in Glasgow Southside because of Nicola Sturgeon or, as someone with a history of vile Islamophobia, because of Anas Sarwar. But it doesn’t matter.
As an SNP activist, I will be campaigning hard for Nicola Sturgeon in Glasgow Southside and against Anas Sarwar at the ballot box. But I will stand shoulder to shoulder with Anas - and anybody else - to see off racists trying to disrupt our election.
Even in the midst of an intense political competition, let’s remember that we have much more in common than divides us. And, in the words of the late, great Bashir Ahmad – a Glasgow Southsider - let’s also remember that it doesn’t matter where you come from, it’s where we are going together that counts. Glasgow Southside is the proof of that, and the racists will never prevail.
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