I AM astonished that certain commentators contend that the referendum has put the question of Scottish independence to bed for a generation or more.
The referendum has re-energised political debate in Scotland, constructed new forms of activism and enfranchised our younger citizens and groups of the most poor and dispossessed. That 45 per cent of those voting stated proudly that Scotland should be an independent nation means the future of the United Kingdom is not at all a settled one.
For me, the decision to vote Yes was not about party politics, nor about anti-Englishness, nor even about anti-Unionism, but rather it was an aspirational and positive decision about what we, as a nation, could become. Scotland has always followed a different trajectory from other UK jurisdictions, its recent past indicative of a social democratic and inclusiveapproach to matters such as education, social welfare, criminal justice and immigration.
The differences were never more stark than during the Thatcher and Major years, when the democratic deficit meant that Scots and Scotland had very limited voice (remember the poll tax?). They are likely to become equally stark in the future as Westminster parties vie to out-tough each other during the 2015 General Election, with promises of a referendum on EU membership, murmurings about the possible abrogation of commitment to the European Convention on Human Rights and a certain Boris Johnston waiting in the wings.
History tells us that critical electoral moments are often followed by transformation. It is incumbent upon all of us who voted Yes to ensure that the independence referendum becomes the starting point (not the end point) of a transformative movement which can mobilise a vision of Scottishness predicated on social justice, multi-culturalism and a strong commitment to human rights: a vision which unites communities, builds consensus and sustains the hopes of who voted for the first time last week.
Lesley McAra,
14 Eva Place,
Edinburgh.
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