News / Campaigners’ protest song against schools cuts
A MUSIC video created as part of a widespread protest against the possible closure of secondary schools in rural parts of Shetland has attracted almost 3,000 views in only two days.
‘Chasing Cuts’, a rewrite of the well known Snow Patrol song ‘Chasing Cars’, was put together by Faye Cox from Unst with the help of Communities United for Rural Education (CURE) and the Unst Action Group.
The video (below) features a host of children holding up messages outlining some of the activities and experiences they would miss out on if they end up living in hostel accommodation while attending the Anderson High School through the week.
Cox said the singer who voices the song is a member of the Unst Action Group but does not wish to be named as she is shy.
Consultations on either closing junior highs in Aith, Sandwick, Whalsay Unst and Yell or reducing them to S1-S3 schools are currently taking place ahead of a crunch SIC meeting in early November.
Cox said the idea came about following CURE’s protest march back in June, and said rural communities “feel they are no longer being listened to by the council and that the current consultation process is just a tick box exercise with the decision already made”.
“All the kids in the video will have to go to the hostel if the proposals go ahead,” she said, “and their messages in the video are their own words.
“We re-wrote the ‘Chasing Cars’ song and aimed it towards the councillors as if we were speaking to them and hope that if they watch the video it may change their perspective on things.
“We would love this video to go worldwide and become a massive viral hit so if we could get everyone in Shetland to watch it and share it with friends and family then that would be amazing!”
She said CURE campaigners felt the SIC had not “explored all methods of cutting educational costs and are continuing to threaten rural communities”.
“People are living in fear of their community dying and it is time the decision makers looked again at these proposals and we hope this video will help us achieve that,” Cox added.
“Unst, Yell, Whalsay, AIth and Sandwick junior highs are all affected and really want to raise awareness that the existing method of delivering the curriculum is not needing to change from S1-S4.”
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