A Glasgow loyalist walk has been ‘rerouted’ from a Catholic Church where a priest was spat on due to safety fears amid a huge protest and police presence.
Th council faced backlash after allowing the loyalist group, The Bridgegton Apprentice Boys of Derry, to march past a Catholic church on November 10, where its priest was spat on and subjected to sectarian abuse in 2018.
Angry protestors gathered outside St Alphonsus in the Calton area on this morning, many with signs reading “No anti-Catholic marches past Catholic Churches”, prompting the loyalist march to be rerouted around London Road and Bain Street amid safety fears.
We previously reported that Priest Canon Tom White slammed Glasgow council’s decision to allow The Bridegton Apprentice Boys of Derry to march past his church after he was previously spat on and subjected to sectarian abuse after a mass on Saturday, July 7, 2018.
Bradley Wallace was later jailed for ten months after his DNA was found to match the saliva on the vestments worn by the priest that day.
He spoke out over the plans for the controversial march.
He said: “There has been no community engagement whatsoever as far as I am aware. I’d love to know how they evidenced this decision.
“It certainly can’t have been by looking at the arrest figures for these events. Nor, can it have been by looking at the historical divisions caused by them either.
“The council are driving Glasgow into the ground. You just have to look at the dirty streets in the city-centre, and this is another stink they have created by allowing this march to pass churches in the Calton again.
“Glasgow gets this reputation for bigotry but it isn’t fair. People come from all across Scotland to attend these marches so the council are letting people down by hosting them.”
Canon Tom, who was appointed parish priest of Holy Cross in Croy in September after 25 years serving in the Calton area, has tried hard not to be defined by the incident in 2018.
A number of applications for marches in the area were denied by the council afterwards but one was granted in May, 2019, and following further disorder Police Scotland advised processions should be banned from passing St Mary’s and St Alphonsus.
However, Glasgow City Council decided to allow the procession to go ahead despite objections from the Parish Council for both churches.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We are in attendance in the London Road/Gallowgate area regarding the ongoing Apprentice Boys of Derry parade. Other than advising that a proportionate policing plan is in place, there is nothing to add at this time.
“We will however be issuing an update on conclusion of the event.”
Don’t miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond.Sign up to our daily newsletter.