A PRO-independence group is selling a variety of Yes-branded products online as they have had to stop running street stalls during the pandemic.
Yes Pollok is donating 25% of the sales of items including jewellery, cards, pin badges and flags to local food banks. The other 75% will go towards its running costs.
“In years past we have held fun Christmas social nights and our talented team created beautiful handmade indy-themed items for us to sell,” Linsey Wilson, Yes Pollok’s secretary, told The National.
“This year, with things being a bit different, we decided to sell our items online. We wanted to cover all bases so we sell Yes flags for when we can march again, gold pin badges for all genders and three talented ladies make jewellery and greetings cards made from paintings on Yes stones and slates.”
Wilson said that before being sold online the items were sitting in the group’s treasurer’s shed as they couldn’t run their usual street stalls.
She added: “I am the group’s secretary and a web designer so I thought I could put it online.”
The reaction so far has been positive and they have even hand-delivered a few items locally. “A guy who bought Christmas cards from us and received them the same day was thrilled,” she said.
“It is mostly in the Greater Glasgow region but someone ordered from Dundee the other night.
“We haven’t done any paid adverts for it – we’re just sharing on social media.”
Wilson said it is “hugely important” to keep campaigning for independence during the pandemic. Yes Pollok chipped in with Yes Southside and they ran events on Zoom during the summer.
She added: “As soon as we can we will get back out there. With the older age demographic of our group we’ve not been able to get back out there right now. It also won’t send the right message. We will hopefully be fully back up and running next summer and hopefully the SNP will win the Holyrood election [in May].”
Wilson also said there are more women than men involved in the group. Some of them make jewellery for the shop and some are involved in the Yes Stones movement which involves painting stones with pro-independence messages and leaving them in public places.
“Gender balance has become a big thing,” she added. “When I got involved in Yes Pollok in 2014 it was mainly men and it is important that we got women more engaged in it.”
Wilson said Yes Pollok’s for next year include as much campaigning as possible in the run-up to the Holyrood elections. The group will run Zoom events in the meantime with speakers who have not been confirmed yet.
Yes Pollok’s products can be bought at yespollok.scot/shop
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here