Georges X Chalkboard

The Calkboard Centre, is now closed, but the group are still involved with projects in the area.

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

"The need to know. The publics right to be informed"

Public meeting organised jointly by "Georges X Chalkboard" and "Save our Homes Campaign" Thursday 16th March 7: 30 at the Woodside Hall, 36 Glenfarg Street, Glasgow G20 7QF (Map)
The meeting was called to address and demystify a range of issues including: Second stage transfer - What is the future of your home and your community.

"Save Our Homes Campaign" is a group who recognise the need for joined up thinking, and cooperation, and that the housing problems and confusion that tenants are experiencing, is city wide and systematic.

Georges X Chalkboard is a small drop in social centre, set up and run by volunteers. We have been involved in a range of activities, from local history projects, music, local group meetings We cater of all ages.

What the group is finding more and more, through talking to local people, is a need to discuss housing problems. In as much as it has becoming one of the staple occupations of the shop. The confusion and insecurity of local folk who are unaware of. Where they will be in a year or two, whether there house will be demolished, or whether they will they get one of the new houses that have been promised, is having a drastic effect on the community. This insecurity, compounded by the private development, that is sprouting up all around them, the lack of repairs to rented property, or the over pricing to house owners, when repairs are done, is creating frustration to both rented and house owning tenants and has fueled and created the need for the above meeting.

The Chalkboard has risen to the challenge of doing what is necessary in trying to help people understand from an independent point of view, of what is involved, when tenants have to decipher the plans, strategies and promises, of organisations such as the Glasgow Housing Association, and Glasgow City Council, who spend great deals of money, selling ideas to the public and very little, on allotting costs towards public representation.

This meeting will attempt to address and explain the wider issues that will eventually have an effect on all of our houses and financial costs to ourselves by the upheaval of property development that is consuming our city.

The indications are that people are getting sick of the constant barrage of council led attacks on social infrastructure: Hamiltonhill where a public meeting attracted 70 angry residents with more unable to get in, who are fed up being ignored by housing bosses. Or the outrage at a public meeting when the council put forward an idea to tarmac Victoria parks football pitches as a 260 permanent car park, and space for 400 more cars, for use by a sports complex. - While ten minutes from the stadium (Scotstoun) the Clydeside has an abundance of space for thousands of cars. It is in this context that the public will have to start informing each other of the ramifications of these events and their detrimental effects on community life. The Chalkboard as a community social center, feels it has a responsibility towards these aims.

The Georges X chalkboard is in receipt of no public funding, is independent, and is not affiliated to any political party.


Georges X Chalkboard,
34 Clarendon Place,
Glasgow, G20 7PZ,
T: 0141 332 2902
email: info@chalkboard.org.uk


---------Info on flier---------------

What does GHA's business plan mean for you?

Is your home under threat of demolition, and if so why?

What is second stage transfer
and what does it mean for
Woodside?

What is the future of GHA
rental guarantees – will rents
go up?

GHA's planned doubling of
charges for homeowners, what
does it mean for you? Are
you already being charged too much?



Whether you are a tenant of the GHA or a homeowner GHA's latest business plan
is likely to have implications for you. This is a joint meeting being held by
the Save Our Homes Campaign and the George's X Chalkboard.

Invited speakers include:-

- Sean Clerkin (Save Our Homes Campaign, Chair)
- The George's X Chalkboard

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Bob, 2:23 AM | link | 0 comments |

Monday, March 13, 2006

Women fight for the right to feel safe

Yesterday, as a symbol of solidarity and remembrance, a group of about 100 women, children and some male supporters gathered near the river to protest at violence against women in general, and their inability to exercise their right to use the walkway in particular. Before the heavy snowfall on Saturday night, organisers had intended to "Reclaim the Path"
Women march for the right to feel safe
ELEANOR COWIE March 13 2006
The Kelvin Walkway winds unobtrusively through Glasgow's urban landscape. For generations it has afforded its users a welcome break from the bustling city streets nearby. A green and pleasant path popular with runners and cyclists, the nine-mile stretch links the north bank of the River Clyde with the start of the West Highland Way, in Milngavie.
However, on a grey, cold autumn morning last October the local walkway – specifically, a secluded stretch running through Maryhill – assumed national significance in the most macabre of circumstances.
At the point where lock 24 of the Forth and Clyde canal meets the River Kelvin, 34-year-old Farah Noor Adams was brutally raped and murdered by Thomas Waddell, a local teenager, while out power walking in broad daylight. The savagery of the incident – Waddell raped the single mother twice and smashed her nose with a brick before killing her – sent shockwaves through Farah's local community of Maryhill and beyond.
Almost immediately, hundreds of female users felt in grave danger – the simple act of using the pathway unaccompanied was now out of the question. If something so terrible and so random could have befallen Farah, then it could just as easily happen to one of them, the thinking went.
In recent months, women have rarely used the pathway alone, either through personal choice or at the behest of concerned relatives. It is a highly unsatisfactory situation, one reminiscent of a time where women were afraid to go out at night unaccompanied in safety.
Yesterday, as a symbol of solidarity and remembrance, a group of about 100 women, children and some male supporters gathered near the river to protest at violence against women in general, and their inability to exercise their right to use the walkway in particular. Before the heavy snowfall on Saturday night, organisers had intended to "Reclaim the Path" by marching from the Botanical Gardens to the spot where Farah's battered body was found. There, they had hoped to hear tributes from colleagues of the Citizens' Advice Bureau where she worked, and then drop flowers into the river.
Instead, those who were able to surmount the whiteout conditions had to settle for a low-key affair. The police ban on marching the walkway necessitated a stationary protest outside the Botanical Gardens, but the wintry conditions failed to dampen the collective warmth and united front of those gathered. Jude Stewart, an organiser, was delighted at the turnout. "When we saw the depth of snow we couldn't believe it, but we just wanted to carry on. It just goes to show the strength of feeling about the issues involved. We want this event to inspire confidence in women of all ages to get back out using public spaces. We enjoy the right to exercise and the right to enjoy the fine, green spaces we have in Glasgow. That's what Farah was doing that day. We need to get out there and not be afraid."
The group's brightly coloured woolly hats were only outshone by their smiles and laughter. The power in the protest was not only to be found in its sincerity but also its positivity. Susan Douglas-Scott bravely sang Reclaim the Night by Peggy Seger unaccompanied, while protesters – holding carefully-made placards and banners bearing solemn messages such as 'WE WANT JUSTICE', 'WE ARE ANGRY' and 'STOP MURDERING WOMEN' – joined in with the chorus. "We are here because we care. We are not just here to commemorate Farah, but all women who are victims of violence and to protest at the unacceptable number of women murdered annually," said Gerrie Douglas-Scott, opening the proceedings.
In so many ways, Farah Adams lives on. On witnessing yesterday's event it is clear she has become an emblem – not just for the women of Maryhill, but for all those who defend and cherish the right to venture out unaccompanied in public, whether that be first thing in the morning, as Farah did, or last thing at night.
The event's organisers from the Crossroads Youth and Community Association, where Farah worked, and the Cailleach Collective, a local arts group, say they will continue to fight for safer public spaces and greater awareness of the horrific violence suffered by thousands of women every year in Scotland.
Janet Hay, a lay worker for Maryhill community health project, was at the march. Prior to Farah's murder she often used the walkway on her way home. "It was more scenic than the main road. Walking along there gave you a chance to calm down and unwind before you got home for the evening. I think a lot of women miss using the pathway. It never crossed my mind that the walkway would be unsafe. You just assume you're safe. I think that is what has knocked so many women in the area. Farah was super-fit and streetwise, it was in the morning, she had her mobile phone with her. I still think there are many women who are struggling to know what to do in terms of getting some exercise. There is a lot of fear out there," she says.

Sue McVie, a criminologist and a senior research fellow at Edinburgh University school of law, says there is a saying in the criminal-justice fraternity. "'The fear of crime is often more of a problem than the crime itself'. The truth is, we do not really know what constitutes the fear of crime. But we do know that it inhibits people from doing what they would normally do and in this case that means fewer people using the Kelvin Walkway. Walking to reclaim the Kelvin is such a positive statement, those involved should be very proud," she adds.
"This sort of crime could have happened anywhere as these sorts of attacks are so rare and the chances of being attacked in that way are so low. By avoiding places such as the walkway for fear of a crime happening to you could actually increase the number of attacks because people [like Waddell] think they have a better chance of getting away with a certain crime because no-one else will be about. Of course, it is important that people take personal safety seriously, but if as a society we start to avoid places that have been a crime scene then we all lose out."
Although it is unclear just how women can practically and safely reclaim the Kelvin Walkway in their everyday lives, the belief exists that it can be done. "The message today is that we will not lose the walkway. In the short-term, a way forward could be to set up a buddy system between joggers and walkers in addition to increasing police patrols of the area," says Ms Hay.
Areas around the Kelvin Walkway in Maryhill are gradually being cleared and pathways widened and extended. While such measures may not ultimately deter a criminal such as Waddell, every step helps in restoring public confidence.
Superintendent Peter McLaughlin, a sub-divisional officer, concludes: "Following Farah's death we implemented high-visibility policing on and around the Kelvin Walkway and canal tow paths to reassure the public and reduce their fear of crime. I can assure members of the community that we are committed to reducing crime and the fear of crime and these patrols, with the exception of the mounted branch, are still deployed. We are continuing to work closely with Glasgow City Council and British Waterways in an effort to improve the general area and make the walkway safe." Herald

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Thursday, March 09, 2006

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Thursday, March 02, 2006

What do "we" get out of the Games


IN 2014, Glasgow intends to host the Commonwealth Games. In 2007 and 2008, Glasgow intends to prepare for that great event by selling off football pitches at Maryhill Road, North Kelvinside; Acre Road, Summerston; and Cowlairs Park, Springburn.Pitches next to recently closed primary schools are also planned to be built over.

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Bob, 10:04 AM | link | 0 comments |

Burgh Angel

Download (pdf) version of the Burgh Angel here. Next one out soon!

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