For Better or For Worse?

We are living in unique times. What we have been through over the past year; as individuals, as communities, as nations and as a global population, has been a huge trauma. We have lived with fear and massive anxiety. Many of us have been ill ourselves and suffered the tragedy of loved ones dying. We have felt our lives shrink as restrictions and regulations have impacted on every area of our lives. And it’s not over – we are still going through this.

What Comes Next?

We are all tired of it. We all want this to be over soon. We all have days when it seems never ending.

But I think it is high time we all started thinking about what comes next. What kind of world do we want to live in when the Covid-19 pandemic is over?

For a long time in 2020, my friends and I talked about when we get ‘back to normal’. That was back when we thought it would all be over in a few months. It has now been a year and I no longer think that ‘back to normal’ is a viable option. I am not even sure what ‘normal’ was now, but I do know that it wasn’t all that great.

It is time for change.

Now Is The Time

I saw a video from George Monbiot recently which has churned over and over in my mind. I cannot word it better than George Monbiot himself:

The only opportunities we ever get for sweeping political change are in the wake of a major crisis.

George Monbiot on Double Down News. 21st February, 2021.

He talks about the aftermath of the Second World War and Clement Atlee rebuilding the nation on new lines, not the old lines. I will be the first to say that I do not know anywhere near enough about political history to discuss the details or accuracy of this. But I do get the point that the Covid-19 pandemic is a major crisis, and its aftermath will be a unique opportunity for massive change.

Let’s not miss this opportunity.

I think there is massive change coming. But change is not always positive. It inspires me how much better our society could be if we choose change for the better. But it terrifies me just where we could go if we choose change for the worse.

The glimmers of change are already there.

For Better?

When I was at University in the 1990’s, the Environment was not high on the agenda. Very few students even recycled. Recycling was a faff as you had to take everything to recycling points because the only bin you had at home was a waste bin.

It has taken a very long time, but the reduce, reuse, recycle message has become mainstream. We all have multiple bins and most people do recycle what they can. Shops like The Refillery are catching on and becoming the norm. Supermarkets are trying – at least on some level – to reduce packaging. Although there is much, much more to do, and it needs to be done faster, this is progress.

People are far more aware of issues around the Environment and climate. Most importantly, children and young people are passionate about these issues. The tremendous growth and impact of the school strikes for climate movement started by Greta Thunberg is testament to this. My own children, at eight and six years old, are very aware of these issues, and this has not come from me, but from the changing culture around them. To me, this is far more than a glimmer of change. I have high hopes that the next generation will clean up the mess that those of us who precede them have made. They shouldn’t have to. But I think they will.

The Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way we view transport. As a passionate cyclist, seeing the sheer numbers of people – especially women and children – who took to their bikes during the first lockdown was amazing. Many of them have continued to build active travel into their lives. Programmes like Spaces For People have contributed to this in creating safer infrastructure and changing priorities. In my home city of Edinburgh, there is certainly a move towards putting people above motors, and there is a political will to push on with this despite horrific personal abuse on social media from those who disagree.

Issues of equality which have been brushed under the carpet for far too long have been dragged into the spotlight in recent years. Black Lives Matter has seen people standing together against inequality in a movement which spread around the world, and which will not be ignored. In the past week, the tragic murder of Sarah Everard has prompted an outpouring of rage. Women have shared their stories of daily fear and intimidation, and are demanding change. Reclaim These Streets quickly gained over 20,000 follower on Twitter, with vigils planned around the country.

For Worse?

The glimmers of change for the worse are also easy to see. And they seem to be increasing every day.

Just when reduce, reuse, recycle had become mainstream, the pandemic hit. Now we have disposable masks littering the streets and the return of disposable cups for our takeaway coffees. Perhaps this is necessary right now, but it is a massive step backwards.

We have seen massive steps backwards in women’s rights. Women have taken on a greater share of domestic work, including home learning for children, and have been disproportionately affected economically. Beyond our own homes, we have seen UK government briefings led almost entirely by men. What message should we take from that?

While we had a move towards active travel during the first lockdown, many of the people who started cycling then seem to have given up. Levels of aggression from motorists have risen and many view the roads as unsafe for anyone but drivers. The backlash against schemes like Spaces For People has been horrific. Many drivers seem to be furious at the prospect of their options being in any way limited, and they are prepared to spout vitriol across social media in making their point. I get that change is hard, but name calling and verbal abuse is both childish and unnecessary. Those who support proposed measures in my area are often afraid to speak their opinions for fear of finding themselves on the receiving end of this abuse.

It also seems that, for every issue of inequality raised, and ugly sidekick arises. #AllLivesMatter and #NotAllMen being prime examples. Possibly more frightening than this, is the attitude of those in power to movements for equality. Priti Patel attacks the Black Lives Matter protests as ‘dreadful’. Then just last night we saw the shameful Met Police response to the Clapham Common vigil for Sarah Everard.

With the pandemic, we have had to get used to rules and restrictions. But you could be forgiven for thinking that the rules do not apply to all. A few phrases which spring to mind are; Barnard Castle, bullying in the workplace, and unlawful actions around the publishing of contracts.

I have followed the rules throughout the pandemic. I have stayed home, I have missed family and friends, I have worn a mask, I have washed my hands. I have no objection to this. There is a pandemic on and we have to protect each other. But, there are restrictions…and there are restrictions. It is starting to feel uncomfortably like some restrictions are not about protecting others and not even about Covid-19, they are about protecting the establishment and limiting dissent.

In the UK we are seeing the continued rise of poverty and reliance on foodbanks. It certainly seems that the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. We were encouraged to clap for NHS workers for months on end, but the appreciation stops when it comes to pay. Apparently there is no money. But there is money for billions on contracts issued to those who appear to have links to the government.

Whose Choice?

Governments do not spring from nowhere. At least for now, in the UK we live in a democracy and we have the right to vote for those who will rule over us.

Sometimes this does not seem much of a choice. Vote for the bad, the worse, or the unlikely. In Scotland right now, it seems that we are voting for Scottish Independence or the union – nothing else matters.

When I was a teenager and involved in protesting various issues, the thing to do was to spoil your ballot paper in protest at the lack of choice and the appalling policies of all the parties. You simply scribbled on your ballot slip to show you thought they were all a complete shower. Looking back, I see what a stupid thing this was to do. I might as well not have turned up. Nobody registered this as a protest. Nobody recorded it as a protest. I simply gave up my right to have a say.

In the 2019 UK General Election, voter turnout was just over 67%. Where were the other 33%?

It may not seem like much of a choice, but failing to vote is giving away your power.

Overcoming Apathy

I used to be a campaigner. I stood up for what I believed in and I shouted about it. I spent much of my time in my teens and twenties waving banners and attending marches.

Sometimes I look back and wonder if that was really me. It seems so far distant from who I am now.

I do still stand up for what I believe in. Sometimes.

When it comes to transport I do pretty well. I have a car, but my default mode of transport is bike. If I can get there by bike, then I get there by bike. My cargo bike has been the best thing I have ever bought as it enables me to do the school run, and the weekly shop, by bike. I am a Breeze Champion and in this role I lead free rides for women, to support those who want to cycle but lack the confidence. Until Covid hit, I ran a monthly Bike Bus to School, and this will be back once I am confident that it is responsible to restart it. I write this blog in part because I want to be a part of sharing the love for cycling.

But in August 2020 I lost the will to keep campaigning for changes to infrastructure for sustainable transport in my local area. I gave up. I walked away from the local School Travel Action Group, and I left it to others, because it all seemed pointless. The pace of change seemed glacial and the shouting and abuse from those opposed to change was endless.

When the school strikes for climate hit Edinburgh, I didn’t go. I didn’t take my children. I didn’t even ask them if they wanted to be a part of it. I can list a number of reasons why, at that time it was too difficult to disrupt our routine to take part in the protest, but I know deep down that these are excuses, not reasons. Looking back, it seems inexcusable to me – not so much that I didn’t go along, but that I did not consult my children. I am aware of the issues around climate change, but only vaguely. This is not through a lack of information out there. It is through choosing to look away.

Even in my home I don’t do enough. I turn a blind eye despite being far from blind. I have a list of reasons as to why I will make changes in my life at some unspecified time in the future, but I know deep down that these are also excuses, not reasons.

I do need to make changes in my home. To reduce our plastic use, to switch to less environmentally damaging cleaning products, to think more about the little things which all add up.

But that is not enough.

It is time to stand up and start shouting again.

Voter, Inform Thyself

Once we shake off the excuses and apathy about our own futures, the next step is to make sure we know what we are on about.

I use my vote. I have taken my children with me when I went to vote since they were tiny and explained to them what I was doing and why it was important.

But if they were to ask me to explain the policies each party stands for, I honestly couldn’t do it. I am actually embarrassed to write that. This is almost as bad as failing to vote at all. I am failing to inform myself as to what I am actually voting for. Again, all that information is out there, readily available. I just don’t look at it.

More than that even, I don’t really even understand how the system of representation works in the UK. I have no idea how it all fits together. I am aware that we have local MPs and MSPs and counsellors, but I haven’t a clue who does what. Again, I am embarrassed to admit this. It is inexcusable.

Then there is the whole basis of the voting system used in the UK. It is high time I learned more about the ‘First Past the Post’ system we currently use, as opposed to the system of ‘proportional representation‘ used by must democracies. I know the phrases but I know nothing else – and this is the basis on which my vote counts.

Inform Thyself Now – Voter Or Not

It’s not just about being informed whenever an election comes around. I don’t think I am alone in not making a point of knowing what those in power are doing with that power.

As I said above, there are restrictions…and there are restrictions. I have been as appalled as all women (and many men) by the murder of Sarah Everard. When I heard that there would be a vigil held in Edinburgh, I shook off my apathy and was determined to go. I would go wearing a mask and keeping my distance, but I would go. Then it was cancelled. I completely understand why the organisers cancelled it. There would be no support for the vigil from the police, and to go ahead would be to risk arrests and fines.

So what did I do instead?

Nothing. I did nothing. I stayed home and watched TV and drank some wine.

It did not take much of a threat for me to give up my convictions. To do nothing and say nothing. I think I retweeted other people’s outrage instead.

Perhaps this is OK during a pandemic. But last Tuesday, the government announced the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. This bill has been described by civil liberties campaigners as a ‘staggering assault’ on the right to protest. This is not emergency legislation to prevent the spread of Covid-19. This is permanent. This is what our Government really stands for.

For Better Or For Worse

One way or another, change is coming.

It is high time that we all insisted on change for the better.