ON a day for which the word dreich was coined, Scotland’s people woke up to the reality that this was our last day in the European Union for the foreseeable future. Yet the weather did not dampen spirits in the nation’s capital as many hundreds attended a vigil called Missing EU Already.
It seemed only fitting that people from all walks of life chose to go to the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood to show once again that Scottish citizens are being removed from the EU against their will.
The mood outside Holyrood at the evening vigil was one of defiance tinged with sadness at this harshest of outcomes for our country, but, as with all Yes events, there were plenty of smiles and laughs, too.
As the crowd began to gather for the event organised mainly by the Edinburgh Yes Hub, there were plenty of people willing to voice their opinion about Brexit. One woman with a pink balloon on her head – it was that kind of event – sang and then cried out: “It’s such a sad day – we’re broken hearted. But we will be back.”
Saltires and EU flags flew alongside each other and there were banners with a point to make – one read: “Boris and Brexit can get tae feck.”
READ MORE: Huge crowds gather at Scottish Parliament to mourn European exit
Compered by National columnist Lesley Riddoch, the event mixed music and speeches, with no fewer than three choirs on stage at one point singing Auld Lang Syne. The crowd joined hands as tradition demands.
SNP MP Joanna Cherry said: “My message is ‘do not be despondent’. There is hope for Scotland’s future and there is hope for Scotland’s future in Europe. This is not our Brexit, it’s something that has been forced on us against our will.
“And the polls earlier this week showed that support for remaining in the EU in Scotland is now at 73%.”
MSP Michael Russell, Scotland’s Constitutional Relations Secretary, told the crowd: “In the last three-and-a-half years I’ve been of the view that we could stop Brexit, and I have to say that today is a day that I never wanted to see happen.
“But it’s happened, so what we need to do tomorrow morning when we get up is say ‘we are going to finish the fight’, and the fight is to make sure that Scotland rejoins the EU as an independent nation.”
That got the loudest cheer of the evening to that point.
READ MORE: European Friends of Scotland group meet to strengthen post-Brexit ties
Russell continued: “At the end of the day, there is one thing that Scotland has to do for itself – it has to choose independence.
“There is no shortcut to getting into the EU. You have to be an independent state, so we have to go out there to persuade every single one of our fellow men and women throughout Scotland that it is in their best interests, not just their economic interests but their interests as human beings with shared values across Europe, to choose independence and then reenter the EU as number 28.”
Valentina Servera Clavell, the young Catalonian activist who made such an impression at The National’s own rally in George Square in Glasgow in November, also contributed.
Despite breaking her foot on Thursday, she attended on crutches and spoke with humour and passion: “I have to say today we’re feeling a wee bit sad. We’re feeling lied to, we have anger, and I would say to you that these feelings are not wrong. I completely understand them. We just need to hold on to them until indyref2 comes and put those feelings in a ballot box because that’s how we will win.
READ MORE: Jeane Freeman pens letter to EU workers in NHS urging them to stay
“Scotland doesn’t deserve this. We voted to Remain, we want to be part of the European family. The European Union is the only union we should be part of.”
SNP MP Alyn Smith told the crowd about his visit on Thursday to Brussels, where he was formerly an MEP.
“I was in Brussels to grieve alongside colleagues,” he said, “and I say grieve quite deliberately because I feel we are all losing something.
“A lot of people across Scotland are feeling anxious, nervous and afraid. This is why events like this are so important because this will give people hope that we have another choice.”
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