Another Scotland Is Possible

Andrew Redmond Barr presents his new illustrated poster, ‘Another Scotland Is Possible’, marking 10 years since the referendum.
This week marks the 10-year anniversary of the Scottish independence referendum, a moment when, briefly, Scotland was probably the most exciting place to be on earth.

In 2011, at the age of 19, I became a co-founder of National Collective, the cultural campaign for a Yes vote in the run-up to 2014. It was one of the first Yes groups to emerge.

National Collective’s core was a mixture of students and early-career creative types, so it took on a particular kind of energy – an energy which elected politicians probably wouldn’t get away with, but which actually chimed rather well with the broader Yes movement and reached a young audience which might not have otherwise engaged with anything too official. It’s an experience I wrote about in my first book, Summer of Independence.

Over the course of that campaign we found that creativity, joy and humour were some of the best rebukes to the overwhelming negativity and disbelief which surrounded us. Independence as a project was colourful, spirited, rebellious, and fun – something which I think we need to remember, especially now.

As Gerry Hassan recently wrote: ‘Joy should be a pivotal part of the story and tapestry of Scotland and independence, reflecting the prospect of a country and future in which people are empowered, represented and see themselves as the authors and makers of their own destiny.’

I also think we should remember that the cause of independence exists as an idea of its own, deeper and richer than the day-to-day political cycle, larger and more profound than elections, referendums, polls, political leaders. It’s that deeper independence, that spirit of empowerment, which keeps me feeling creative and inspired.

In the ten years following the referendum I put myself to work on various Scottish cultural projects, not always with a particular independence focus, but rather just trying to contribute, in my own small way, to a sense of Scotland knowing itself better.

Part of the reason I was able to do all this, I think, was because the independence movement (and National Collective in particular) ingrained in me a kind of do-it-yourself creative world-view. It taught me how to put my work out, how to make things without permission – a kind of democratic creativity where you can find an audience for your work outwith traditional structures and institutions.

So on this anniversary I’m reflecting on what an astonishing and unlikely journey it has all been, for me and for every campaigner as well as for the country as a whole. I’m feeling all the grief and gratitude, all the enrichment and loss, all the frustration and hope.

We didn’t win the vote in 2014, but I’m so grateful that we caught even a glimpse of it, because a glimpse is all we needed to know what it’s like for Scotland to feel empowered, and what we’re capable of as campaigners. It was a glimpse of colour and vitality in this country which is so often stereotyped as barren and grey. We completely flipped what Scotland meant and we can do it again.

That’s why I’ve decided to mark this anniversary by going back to those four simple but powerful words from the grassroots independence movement: Another Scotland is possible. Because no matter where we are on the road, it is the one thing which remains true.