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Gazing round the streets of Glasgow at around one in the morning, I fill with shame. Police sirens scream in exasperation and drunken fights cloud my eyes. The smell of alcohol and stale cigarette smoke advances towards me, making the food in my stomach churn. This is hardly a sight to be proud of I think, as I begin to realise just how ashamed I am of being Scottish. Although some people may argue over Scotland's good points. For example some of the scenery we hold is beautiful and that we have kept many historical buildings in tact over the years, for example the Robert Burns cottage in Ayrshire or a large tourist attraction: Edinburgh Castle.
Also, many people are unaware of how traditions, such as the kilt are still worn, even amongst young people. I am one of millions of Highland Dancers from around the world and the majority of my dancing is done wearing the traditional Scottish dress. I feel extremely proud when wearing my kilt to dance as the tartan makes me feel a part of the real heart of Scotland. I feel this has kept tradition alive and is something Scots should be proud of.
However, I still feel little pride in my country. My first argument in the shame of Scotland is the way we are sometimes associated with a high rate of heart disease. This is because of the awful diet of the majority of the Scottish people. Fast food overtakes healthy meals and particularly young Scots eat more food considered junk than anywhere else. Obesity is a common problem in Scotland due to this lack of nutritious food and lack of exercise of the Scottish people. Figures show that one in five children in Scotland aged 12 is clinically obese.
Does this not show that our country isnt valuing its food and health? This in itself is a significant reason to be ashamed of being from Scotland. Alcohol abuse in Scotland also gives me, and many others, reason to feel shame. In Scotland, 93 % of men and 87 % of women aged 16 - 74 drink alcohol, according to the Survey of Psychiatric Morbidity of Adults in Private Households 2000. Alcohol is classed as a drug and I consider alcoholics to be drug addicts for this reason. Scotland is infamous in its struggle with drink.
Violent crimes recorded by the police rose by 11 % in the last quarter of last year, Home Office figures show. The government said much of the increase was due to greater alcohol consumption. I find this highly unreasonable and think that many acts of violence in Scotland come after people have had a few too many. Some Scottish people often find drinking to be sociable, as if you are unable to have a good night out without having a wee dram. Is this something we should be proud of?
A third clear reason of shame is the behaviour of the majority of youngsters in Scotland. Ned's, as the Scottish call them, are troublesome youths, usually in their teenage years. Their hobbies include violence, vandalism, vulgar behaviour and bad language. They terrorism the streets of Scotland making people feel uncomfortable and causing disruption. The loud use of bad language adds to the effect of how much control these people seem to think they have over others.
They also find that discriminating against others is something fun and to be done on a regular basis. Litter is also a common problem amongst youths and they find it acceptable to drop any litter they might have. Outside of my own school for example litter is all over the streets, making them look unclean and untidy. I find this terrible anti-social behaviour for this generation and feel utter shame that the behaviour continues to this day with no attempt for it to end. One of the most shameful things to me in Scotland is the discrimination. It mightnt be obvious to visitors to the country, as many other countries do consider us a friendly nation, but verbal and physical discrimination does take a significant place in the Scottish society.
Whether it be someones colour, ethnic background or even something as simple as football people are discriminated against in Scotland and I find it unacceptable. Scotland, particularly Glasgow has had many violent discrimination acts because of football teams. Glasgow is home to two great teams, with equally good players: the Glasgow Celtic and the Glasgow Rangers. Both sets of fans are equally adamant that the team they support is better than the other.
The basis of these arguments is also due to the religion based fans. Celtic fans are considered to all be Catholics and the Rangers fans to be Protestant. Each side are as abusive as one another and I find no reason for religion to cause an argument. Obviously it is natural for arguments to arise and equally natural for people to support one team or another, but violence is known to solve nothing and as time has gone on the bigotry has continually got worse and people have been known to die in violent attacks...
over a game! For example Thomas McFadden died on Bankhall Street in Govanhill. He was stabbed to death in a brawl on the 29 th of May 2005 and was merely a teenage boy. I find this a complete disgrace and think nobody's life should ever be the price of a sport that people are supposed to enjoy. To conclude my view of Scotland, I think we have many reasons to feel shame. For example the drink culture, the bigotry over football and the violence of youths.
I cant think of any reason why any Scots person could feel pride of this. This country is worth more than the bad name we have given it, this has to change.
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Research essay sample on Scotland Pride Or Shame
