Events

Galashiels AUOB March, 1 June

MmH

Haven’t seen any estimates for the numbers at the Galashiels March yet. But P4Indy were there!

So far we have photos of our Glasgow and Edinburgh Group uploaded into our slideshow here. If you were there with another P4Indy group, send us your photos please!

The stall was run by Sheena and her team from our Glasgow Group. And as well as making jewellery, Sheena had been baking including our favourite Scottish sweetie – tablet! Val, another Glasgow group member, recounts this very funny story that happened at the stall…

On our Pensioners for Indy stall today a wee girl wanted some tablet but shook her head when Sheena asked : “Have you not got any pocket money?” So we just gave her some anyway. Ten minutes later back she comes she with a wee boy who asks: “Is this where you get the free tablet?” Wee lassie pipes up: “Only if you haven’t got any pocket money…”

The kids are in good company this is our FM demolishing a plateful of tablet a few months back!

Talks from Our AGM

MmH

The 16 March was that Saturday when Scotland was caught in a jetstream-powered downpour of rain, sleet and snow but 70 of us still made our way to our AGM in Edinburgh. We were very fortunate to have three speakers joining us: Edinburgh City Councillor Ashley Graczyk, Joanna Cherry QC MP, and Paul Kavanagh-Mosson with the Wee Ginger Dug.


You can listen to the talks below:

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Our AGM is on Saturday 16 March in Edinburgh

MmH

Put the afternoon of Saturday 16th March into your diary: 1-5pm at Augustine United Church Rooms, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL. Please come and bring your friends with you – especially if they haven’t quite made up their minds about Scottish Independence yet.

  • Doors are open at 1pm. We’re hoping to have some video footage of the Glasgow Pensioners for Indy Warblers choir. During Burns Week, they sang at three Burns Lunches for pensioners in Glasgow.
  • The formal business of the AGM will begin at 1.20pm. We will also be announcing our plans to expand our activities – encouraging and supporting new P4Indy groups around Scotland, more street stalls, training, and organising national events.
  • Tea Break will be at around 2.25pm
  • Followed by our three speakers
    • Ashley Graczyk, Edinburgh City Councillor
    • Paul Kavanagh, blogger extraordinaire and Yes! activist
    • Joanna Cherry MP, QC

Ashley Graczyk was elected to Edinburgh City Council in 2017 as a Scottish Conservative in the Sighthill / Gorgie Ward. But after a year, she quit the Conservative Party and now sits as an Independent. In 2014 she voted No to Scottish Independence but is now a Yes supporter. We’ve asked her to speak about her journey from No to Yes. This is how she described some of what led to that charge of mind:

Along with all the other City of Edinburgh councillors, we have the privilege to govern the Capital city of Scotland, and in my first year as a councillor I saw with my own eyes how we run our city via the council. We also received some insight into the various roles MSPs and MPs have due to working cross-government on various issues. Over time, it became more glaringly obvious to me the absurdity of reserved matters being dealt with by Westminster and not by the Scottish Government (bear in mind I voted No in the 2014 independence referendum), as Scotland is capable of governing on reserved matters too. I became more convinced that Scotland needs political independence to build a different and better Scotland.

The Scotsman

Paul Kavanagh is well known for his blog Wee Ginger Dug – Biting the hand of Project Fear. And since 2014 he has made many, many appearances at Yes! events. This is a photo of the Dug at the anti-Trump demo in Glasgow last year. He was being very patient as Paul kept being stopped by people expressing their appreciate of what he does for the Yes Campaign. Of course we’re hoping the Dug will be with Paul on the 16th March.

Joanna Cherry is MP for Edinburgh South West has been in the news recently amidst all the Westminster Brexit Bourach. Here she is giein’ it laldy to Sammy Wilson of the DUP (from 3 minutes into the video) with Jacob Rees-Mogg looking dumfoonert.

Please come to the AGM and bring your friends with you – especially if they haven’t quite made up their minds about Scottish Independence yet.

Glasgow Group Kicks Off 2019 with Reframing Works…

MmH

Ever had a simple argument put to you even though there is no evidence to support it? Ever wondered why you had clear facts rejected? Facts alone do not change people’s opinions. What is going on here? How you we deal with these situations?


Reframing is a technique which shows us how to to put our point across without reinforcing other people’s existing preconceptions. In many cases presenting clear facts actually reinforces people’s existing misconceptions. How we reframe establishment propaganda is perhaps the biggest single challenge facing us in working for self-determination for Scotland.

So this month, our Greater Glasgow Group has invited Bill Mills to come and talk to us. The session will introduce the concepts of Framing and Reframing, and relate them to the current situation in Scotland. Followed by Q&A.

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Christina McKelvie MSP Speaking in Glasgow

MmH

On November 9th the Pensioners for Independence were lucky enough to have Christina McKelvie come and talk to us in Glasgow. Members of Pensioners for Indy attended from Edinburgh, Midlothian, Dumfries and other branches as well as Glasgow. 

The talk was organised by Mary McCabe, Co-Convenor of Pensioners for Independence National group. Here is her account of the event:

Christina is Minister for Older People and Equalities in the Scottish Government. However we introduced ourselves to her as a YES group rather than a support group for senior citizens and she addressed us not on behalf of the Scottish Government but as a fellow independence activist. 

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