ONE SIDE AS BAD AS THE OTHER…..?

"Celtic are a Scottish club playing in Scotland and, whilst their Irish
heritage should be acknowledged, this over emphasis on Irishness is at best
an embarrassment and at worst an excuse for bigotry and violence"

So says Jim Traynor.  Irishness is an embarrassment and an excuse for
bigotry and violence; who is this guy trying to kid?  This genre of
comment is journalistic fashion in Scotland from journalists who see nothing
wrong with their insulting and racist words.

Unfortunately there exists in Scotland a significant antipathy towards
Catholicism.  This is linked to a deep-rooted intolerance of Irish culture,
which manifests itself in an outward and very public prejudice against
anything that is seen to be displaying support for both Celtic and Ireland
simultaneously.  This prejudice only augments when support for Irish
nationalism is expressed.

These prejudices against the Irish culture in Scotland added to the subsequent “sectarianisation” of anything Irish mean that the roots and causes of
sectarianism within Scottish society remain relatively unexplored.  An
example of this may be the common school of thought which gives credence to
the myth that Catholic schools are responsible for sectarianism in Scotland,
when in fact sectarianism existed in Scotland before the existence of
Catholic schools.  Indeed, many Catholic schools exist in other parts of the
world and do not provoke the firebrand reaction that seems to arise at their
mere mention in west of Scotland.

It may be useful at this point to define the word sectarian, since it
appears to be very wide-ranging and perhaps even infringing upon certain
identities and nationalities.  In the recent meeting between the First
Minister of Scotland, representatives of Rangers supporters' groups and
representatives of Celtic supporters' groups, it is believed clarification
was sought from the First Minister as to what the word sectarian actually
meant.  He is thought to have responded, "sectarianism is religious
hatred…and it is religious hatred that I want to concentrate on". He was
told that, if this was the case, then he would receive backing from Celtic
supporters in his attempts to combat sectarianism.

It is imperative that Celtic supporters recognise the need to oppose all
forms of sectarianism. It has no place in Scotland or Ireland and it should
be tackled in a forthright manner.  But it should be tackled in a fair and
just way and should target the culprits as opposed to the victims.

The Irish/Catholic community in Scotland has suffered at the hands of
sectarian bias for decades. That community now suffers a legacy left behind
by the years of shame.  It is the easiest thing in the world to say things
have changed, move on.  However it is extremely difficult to progress until
the truth about the past is revealed.  It is true to say that Catholics are
still largely working-class throughout Scotland.  They have never actually
been in a position in Scotland to systematically and institutionally
discriminate against their Protestant neighbours, because of the simple fact
that the judiciary, police, civil service and major business players
generally still are, and always have been Protestants. 

There are some
exceptions to the rule but the idea that they could be named and numbered
on both hands only goes to prove the vast number of Catholics that have
under-achieved and still live a life of relative poverty.

The Irish in Scotland are unlike so many other Irish immigrant communities
throughout the world in that they have failed to be fully accepted into
Scottish society.  Indeed, it could be argued that the Irish in Scotland
appear to have struggled longer than those Irish men and women who settled,
almost anywhere else in the world.  The Irish in America are widely
celebrated and Saint Patrick's Day has become one of the biggest days in the
calendar.  In Australia, it would be difficult to go five minutes around the
Bondi district without hearing an Irish accent. Try the cities of Sydney,
Melbourne, Canberra and Perth - they are heaving with Irish immigrants. 

Go to England; any city - north, south, east or west.  You will find strong
Irish communities, still living out their Irishness, listening to the songs
of struggle and rebellion.  Now, try Scotland.  Go to Glasgow and keep your head
down, go to Stranraer and pray you’re not stopped, go to Edinburgh airport and
hope the humiliation of another pink anti-terrorism form is not handed to
you in the smug way that it normally is.  Even in Aberdeen airport, four people
travelling from Ireland were asked recently "You here for the football? OK then sir, please fill this form in for me"

Why has this anti-Irish racism never been confronted?  The current First
Minister says he has been the first Scottish politician with the
determination and political courage to confront sectarianism.  However why
were the Irish community allowed to be treated as second class citizens in
Scotland for so long and why now in this confrontation with sectarianism has
the First Minister of Scotland targeted the closely fostered links between
Celtic and Ireland?

Why has this First Minister chosen to suppress sentiments of Irishness that
come in the form of symbols and music?  Why has he led a crusade against
public houses that play Irish rebel music?  Why does he castigate songs
about Irish patriots as sectarian?  Why do Irish Celtic fans continually
experience the degrading and embarrassing process of filling in forms that
they have been filling in for decades?  Is this the First Minister
confronting sectarianism?

The First Minister appears to me to be somebody who may have the courage to
say he is fighting sectarianism, but who is engaging in a process of
dilution.  It is not acceptable to express pro-Irish sentiments in modern
Scotland without being classified as a bigot.  That says a lot more for the
levels of tolerance in Scotland than it does for those who feel an
allegiance to Ireland.

Some commentators believe the whole issue is farcically unclear, it appears
to me however to be crystal clear.  The current First Minister is absolutely
obsessed with the notion of even-handedness.  This means that, no matter how
unjust the situation is or has been, the First Minister will say you are as
bad as each other.  It means that no matter what songs are sung at Celtic
Park and what songs are sung at Ibrox, the First Minister will say, “You are
as bad as each other.”  It means that no matter how many assaults are suffered
by the Catholic/ Irish community, no matter if Celtic and Ireland have a
common bond, no matter if the songs you sing have no mention of religion in
them at all, no matter if all you do is simply wave the flag to which you
pledge your allegiance, you are just as bad as each other.

That approach will simply not work.  Why, instead of introducing legislation
to deal with football supporters, doesn't the first minister deal with the
root causes of sectarianism in Scottish society?  Quentin Oliver, a leading
figure in conflict resolution, believes that it is possible there is now more
religious discrimination in Scottish workplaces than there is in the North
of Ireland.  He comments, "Northern Ireland now has a situation were
workplaces are sectarian free.  This was achieved by legislation making such
discrimination unlawful, and by strict policing of compliance...it is now
widely acknowledged that to tackle the problem, you have to monitor what is
happening".

Perhaps, by tackling serious issues like religious discrimination in
employment instead of cosmetic exercises like banning an individual from a
football ground, the First Minister would start to gain some respect and his
battle with sectarianism would appear all that more credible.

Of course, who stands to lose out if the figures were ever revealed, if the
religious breakdown of the Strathclyde police for example was ever
published? Who would fear such change in the legislative process and in
whose interests would it be for the status quo to remain?  It appears that
only in Scotland the victim is reduced to the status of guilty party, but of
course when journalists can get away with describing the culture and
traditions of the largest minority in the country as an embarrassment, who
really expects anything else but a land filled with bigotry and violence

Belfast Bhoy