Notice board Education is what we need – not Orange marches

l Glasgow and West of Scotland Historical Association will hold their next meeting at 10.30am sharp today at Kelvinside Parish Church, Saltoun Street. Dr John Clark will be giving a presentation titled ‘'From the Long Wood to the Hill Head – Napoleon and Glasgow''. Arrive early for tea/ coffee. Free event, all welcome.

l The Radical Independence Campaign (Edinburgh branch) are hosting a public meeting on Scottish Independence and Internationalism from Below at 7pm on Wednesday, March 13 at Augustine Church, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh. There will be speakers from the campaign against the arms trade, SNP trade union group, and Ukraine Solidarity Campaign. All are very welcome.

l Author Kate Foster will be talking about her new book The Maiden, which is Waterstone's Scottish Book of the Month, at 6pm on Wednesday, March 13 at Waterstones, Perth. The novel is a 17th-century-set whodunit revolving around a noblewoman accused of the shocking murder of her lover.

l Lesley Riddoch is touring with her new film Denmark: The State of Happiness. There are screenings at 7pm on Friday, March 15 at Adelaide Baptist Church in Glasgow; 1pm on Saturday, March 16 at Erskine Arts; and 6.30pm on Thursday, April 4 at Cameo Cinema, Edinburgh. Lesley will be doing Q&A sessions after the screenings. To book see lesleyriddoch.com/events.

l Screenings of To See Ourselves, Jane McAllister's documentary about the 2014 independence referendum, are taking place at 7pm on Friday, March 15 at Ayr Town Hall; 7pm on Saturday, March 16 at CCA, Glasgow; 6.30pm on Friday, March 22 at Strathearn Arts, Crieff and 2pm on Sunday, April 7 at Cameo Cinema, Edinburgh. Each screening will be followed by a Q&A with the director. For tickets see tosee ourselves.film/see-the-film

IT was gratifying to note that common sense is not a stranger to at least one local authority in Scotland, Aberdeenshire Council, in its decision to block a proposed Orange March in Stonehaven on economic, safety and decorous grounds.

The council worker behind the application to host the march has reportedly posted a series of anti-Catholic and anti-Muslim remarks over recent years, embodying the essence of traditional Orange marches in Scotland in my experience.

Proponents of an independent Scotland like to declare that it will be a multi-cultural, inclusive and tolerant country when it eventually arrives. However, the sectarian bile that typifies the marching season demonstrates the deep-rooted level of bigotry still inherent in our country and the tangible difficulties that lie in the immediate and long-term future.

As ever, basic education regarding the anti-social and pernicious nature of racism and sectarianism must be vigorously addressed in our schools’ personal and social education programmes and in individual subjects.

In my experience, most pupils are ill-informed or ignorant of key historical facts about events such as the Battle of the Boyne, upon which much of the skewed mythology of sectarian organisations such as the Orange Order rests. Factual clarification showing that the Pope supported King William as part of his power struggle against the French who lent their assistance to James VII would be a good place to start.

The Pope later celebrated a mass to demonstrate his (and presumably God’s) delight at hearing of “King Billy’s” victory at the Battle of the Boyne where more than half of William’s armies were made up of Spanish and Italian mercenaries.

How many young people, or indeed adults, are aware that at least one-third of Irish people who emigrated to Scotland due to the appalling famines of the 19th century were of the Protestant faith? Would that put the singing of the dirge-like Famine Song by some who attend

Orange marches into some kind of perspective?

I understand that the formation of a Parades Commission to try to demonstrate transparent reasons for decisions on Orange and other parades is still in its nascent stages.

Yet this would be a very welcome development, though obviously not without its problems or controversies, particularly in its early stages. The decision by