Glasgow should promote cultural tolerance, but not tolerate a culture of hatred.

The 19th of September was a dark, gloomy day for much of Glasgow. The city that had voted yes the day prior in Scotland’s Referendum awoke to a no vote. There was a palpable sense of misery that hung in the air, compounding the already dreich Glaswegian weather. And then, as the day wore on, scenes of Union Jack-clad No voters began to filter across social media. Within hours, Scotland had been served a sharp antidote to the weeks of progressive political debate that had preceded it, as Scotland’s Orange vote partied, and then fought in the city’s George Square. These were not your typical No voters, they were an undesirable element that even the Better Together campaign had largely shunned, but they were indicative of one of the least edifying aspects of Glasgow culture. Saltires were burned, Nazi salutes were made and songs usually reserved for Rangers’ Ibrox Stadium were chanted with fervour amidst a sea of Union Jacks. This was the other side of Glasgow: that of sectarianism and deep-seated prejudice.

This Saturday, thousands are expected to return to George Square as part of a celebration dubbed OrangeFest. Organised by Scotland’s Orange Order and sanctioned by Glasgow City Council, the event aims to “demolish a few myths and give people a better understanding of who we are and what we stand for,” according to one organiser. Yet, for all the cries about cultural heritage from Glasgow’s Orange community, the sectarian nature of the organisation’s yearly walks is something that you barely need to scratch beyond the surface to discover. For many, Saturday will be yet another reminder that Glasgow has a long way to go in tackling bigotry — a problem that has blighted Scotland’s largest city for too long, dating back to the first influx of Irish Catholic immigrants fleeing the potato famine in their homeland.

The context of that influx remains relevant today, as little under 5 months ago a chorus of “the famine is over, why don’t you go home?” rang out from the Rangers’ end in their much-hyped League Cup Semi-Final tie with Celtic, Glasgow’s traditionally Catholic club. In Glasgow, the subject of sectarianism and football cannot be separated: for many attendees of Saturday’s OrangeFest, it will simply be an extension to their football season.

For years Glasgow’s sectarian problem has been painted as a problem in which both sides should be apportioned equal blame. The ‘Two Sides of The Same Coin’ argument, however, is arguably one of the biggest hindrances that Scotland, as a nation, has when it comes to tackling this problem. There are, of course, bigots on both sides, but to claim that they are even in numbers not only lacks any evidence, but would also contradict the typical nature of racial or religious discrimination in any other part of the world.

It is time that Scotland began to recognise the true nature of Glasgow’s sectarian problem. It is not Protestants that are 1 in 6 times more likely to be the victim of a sectarian attack. Nor was it Protestants, or Jews, or blacks, or Muslims that were met with signs saying they need not apply for positions in Glasgow’s shipbuilding industry throughout the 1900s. And no one from any of the aforementioned races or religions would have had much problem signing for Rangers Football Club prior to 1989. Simply put — Glasgow’s sectarian problem is not two sides of the same coin, but overwhelmingly one of discrimination against Catholics, largely of Irish descent. And there are few organisations that attract such bigots in their droves than the Orange Order’s annual slew of parades, which is why most fair-minded Glaswegians are truly baffled that their City Council has decided to let Saturday’s events go ahead.

While everyone has a right to celebrate their cultural heritage — even those who choose to celebrate a Dutchman’s 1690 military victory in 2015 Scotland — the facilitation of such events in Glasgow’s main square shows worrying levels of ignorance. As a city, Glasgow cannot airbrush its history, but it can look to a better future. Large signs loom over George Square that read “People Make Glasgow” –which is true, both in its best and worst sense. Meanwhile, as George Square’s orange party rumbles on, just a little over a mile down the road a group that many would point to being the most radical of Celtic’s support, the Green Brigade, will be hosting their annual anti-discrimination tournament in Glasgow’s Garngad. The tournament will bring together teams from all over the world who have settled in Glasgow, celebrating the city’s diverse nature, as well as hosting a collection for food banks in Coatbridge, Maryhill and Royston. Far from being a tokenistic PR stunt, this will be the group’s third food bank collection. And within that square mile, a microcosm of Glasgow will be shown to those who wish to claim that bigotry is an even-handed affair.

It is quite clear to anyone who has bothered studying the subject of sectarianism in Glasgow, beyond a cursory glance at the nation’s tabloid newspapers, that the problem is far more nuanced than a perpetual struggle between hard-line Catholics and Protestants. It is unlikely that many of Saturday’s OrangeFest attendees will be at their local Church of Scotland the following day — because, as much as it sounds like an oxymoron, sectarianism in Glasgow is only partly to do with religion. Factors such as football, Irish history and the schooling system must all be considered. For too long Scotland has turned a blind eye, reassuring itself with the mantra, “well, they’re both as bad as each other.” The burden of proof suggests otherwise: there is not equivalent organisation to Scotland’s Orange Order that commands even a modicum of its popularity. And I suspect it is that level of strength in numbers that has ensured Glasgow City Council has repeatedly cow-towed to the demands of Scotland’s Orange Order.

Not all Catholics, or Celtic fans, are saints and, equally, not every Ibrox season ticket holder is a Catholic-hating loyalist. However, Glasgow City Council’s repeated facilitation of en-masse bigotry, under the guise of cultural heritage, undermines the wave of progressive, populist politics that has swept over the nation in the past two years. To allow such an event to take place, at such a prominent location, is indicative of an out-dated attitude of appeasement that is unwilling to recognise that the majority of Glaswegians do not want this in their city. A tolerance of other cultures is the hallmark of any good society, but it should not be confused with tolerating a culture of hatred.