#annibyniaeth cymru

[angiethewitch]

I am absolutely disgusted to learn that crown owns our castles and the profits are sent to Westminster. Wales is struggling, our economy is struggling, our people are struggling, our health services are struggling, and that money could go to the betterment of our lives - instead it goes to England.

despite the fact we maintain the castles and land, we don't own them. they are in OUR country. ownership should belong to us, the people who built them. we maintain them. we work in them. theyre ours and we should be able to use the profits generated by them to help welsh people, not allow the money be funnelled into the monarchy.

the fact the crown owns so much of wales is such an outdated and medieval concept and has no place in modern society.

petition here:

please sign. I am disgusted.

[artezavisions]

[llyfrenfys]

"Fascism and Welsh Nationalism", or "Stop Fawning over the FWA you cont"

This is inspired by things I've been noticing around Aberystwyth lately while out and about.

Some mfer is putting up Free Welsh Army (FWA) stickers and I have to keep on pulling them down. Why? You ask.

Fascism.

Because of the not so subtle links between the FWA and fascist movements (of which those links are quite frankly underdiscussed) this post is necessary.

So, starting with the stickers:

This is just one of three identical stickers I've pulled down this last week in Aberystwyth. They appear more to be car stickers than anything else and must have cost a pretty penny to print and/or purchase. They appear to have been bought directly from a website using FWA imagery and slogans - yet does not claim to be the FWA (that I can see, at least). I'm not going to link to it because they don't need any more web traffic. But we will get onto why this is significant in a bit.

Anyway, returning to the stickers - I pulled down the first one off of an electric box on North Road, opposite Vaynor St in late November. I pulled down the second (pictured) also in late November on Penglais Road off the bus stop near the hospital. And in early December I pulled down the third one off of a wall near the Spar at the end of Vaynor Street. Right off the bat we can assume the guy who wasted a lot of money on these stickers lives local to where the stickers I've found so far were. So they're lazy, for one - not venturing much further than their own front door by the looks of it.

Iconography:

I've written about the iconography of the FWA before here but it bears repeating that if fascists approve of your iconography, then that's a sign your movement is already overrun with fascists.

This is the sticker design which I've been noticing about town. Top to bottom we have "Cymru Rydd/Free Wales" which on its own is fine. No qualms with that. But between the Welsh and English text is a symbol. This one:

Now, this was the symbol of the Free Wales Army. Note that I say *was* because the FWA doesn't exist any more. Yet various actors have tried to resurrect its very unsuccessful corpse over the years. These stickers seem to belong to a new organisation which is the latest to try and capitalise on the ghost of the FWA. Now, if you're like me, you'll have already noticed this design is, for lack of a better word, a bit dogwhistley. The angled, blocky, swastika-like stylisation of what is supposedly an eagle, the black and white void of any other features and the very fact it *is* an eagle depicted all seem a bit *too* similar to the iconography of the Third Reich, don't you think?

Their design choice is no accident. It is a design which appeals to fascists while also has enough Welsh cultural reference for apologists to hide behind with a plausibly deniable reason for why their eagle Looks Like That. The white eagle is a reference to the 13th C. poem Mab Darogan, in which Myrddin prophesises that "a king shall come with heroism from among the Welsh people" and that "generous men shall be reborn of the lineage of the eagles of Snowdonia". The eagle could have literally been drawn in any way. But it rather specifically was drawn like this. That choice is not accidental.

Now this new organisation which is trying to reanimate the corpse of the FWA (we'll call them EW) has incorporated the FWA symbol into their sticker. An endorsement of the failed so-called 'paramilitary' organisation on their part, to be sure. EW also have included a different style of white eagle on their sticker as well - which is blatantly stolen from Wikipedia (the copyright is expired, but 0/10 artistic effort on their part even so). Also not to nitpick but the eagle on the sticker is grey not white so that's also a fail.

Artistic criticisms aside, the sticker is loaded with dogwhistley iconography all round. The Celtic knot border isn't necessarily problematic, however, fascists and/or neo-nazis love to slap Celtic knots onto things because they associate Celticity with whiteness. The colour scheme may also be a coincidence, but it does remind me of the fascist symbol which is the 'Flag of Kekistan" which uses the same colour scheme.

Why does this matter and who were the FWA?:

The FWA were a Welsh nationalist (supposedly 'paramilitary') outfit which formed in Lampeter in 1963 and disbanded in 1969 (just 6 years of activity). They took a lot of their cues from the IRA and were effectively fanboys of them. The group was never really considered a threat and mostly consisted of middle-aged men playing paramilitary dress-up. They did claim to be funded by the IRA and that they had dogs trained to carry explosives. Their claims remain unproven.

HOWEVER - and here's where things get sticky. A lot of the issues the FWA were publicly concerned with were and are actually valid issues (e.g. the drowning of Capel Celyn, the Aberfan Disaster etc.). The problem is that fascists or fanboys of fascists love to get their foot in the door by addressing genuine issues. But what happens is that invariably a minoritised group is blamed for the existence of said issue and naturally that leads to discrimination and violence.

The police started to get a bit antsy with the investiture of then-prince Charles as prince of Wales and the possibility of the FWA doing some terrorism. So some of the FWA's leaders were arrested just prior to this. The group officially ended in 1969.

The nationalism advocated for by the FWA was of the 'blood-and-soil' type. Not just your common or garden nationalism (which still has issues but given context is perfectly able to exist in a non-fashy way). And that's why the idolisation of the FWA in years since is sus. It appeals to romanticised nationalist notions of brave men in uniforms helping free Wales - when in reality they did little terrorism and little to actually further the Welsh nationalist cause. In fact, the leadership of the FWA fell apart after they started to disagree on whether their actions were damaging the cause rather than helping it.

Julian Cayo-Evans founded the FWA and ran it with Dennis Coslett and Gethin ap Gruffydd. Gruffydd went on to found other youth nationalist organisations after he left the FWA due to disagreements with its direction - e.g. he founded the Patriotic Front in 1964 which was later outlawed by Plaid Cymru in 1966. It goes without saying names like 'Patriotic Front' are deliberate nods to other, similarly named fascist organisations like National Front.

Legacy and The Present:

FWA's only legacy is the sycophantic fanclub which ressurects the corpse of the FWA every few years to parade it around and relive the 'glory days' of paramilitary cosplay. But aside from functionally being useless, their iconography and politics are still very much under the fash umbrella and that must be resisted at every opportunity (hence why I'm tearing down their stickers - I don't want fascists to feel welcome here). Part of why people may turn a blind eye to the FWA/sympathise is that they may not be aware of the history of the FWA or see the dogwhistles laden in their work and symbols. Some may even just assume without any other context that they're just another Welsh-language preservation group and may even support them without realising the deeper nature of the organisation beyond just preserving the Welsh language.

Which brings me back to EW. I'm going to put the rest of this under a cut, I do encourage reading the rest though and reblogging to get the word out that

It is always morally okay to tear down fascist propaganda

If you see some in your town, don't hesitate to let fash know they aren't welcome here.

EW:

So, onto the latest in a long line of paramilitary wannabes who idolise a long-dead organisation from the 60s.

The EW website seems... sketch. Lots of banners and sections asking to 'donate now' and 'take action' (with money). So right off the bat this looks like a cash-grab.

Secondly, from their own 'About' section they claim that the Welsh Independence movement has "become inundated with authoritarian Marxist entryists who regard Welsh independence as merely a vehicle for furthering their own political agendas". Which is pretty bold stuff coming from an organisation trying to do The Exact Same. There's also a LOT of emphasis on youth involvement and youth nationalism.

There's also a lot of ahistorical claims in the About section too. E.g. on the prophecy of Myrddin "From this legend derives the very name of Cymru’s greatest mountains, with ‘Eryri’ meaning the ‘Seat of the Eagles’ in Cymraeg." - this is contested as there is no one agreed upon etymology of Eryri. To claim that this is The Etymology suggests that they picked this one just because it conveniently fits the version of the mythology they're presenting. They also claim that "Owain ap Gruffydd, would adopt three such eagles as his royal coat of arms" - this is blatantly incorrect as Owain ap Gruffydd lived before the Age of Heraldry and the three eagles are actually later attributed arms.

In EW's FAQ there's a section on supporting their organisation - with one paragraph saying that you can buy stickers instead "If you aren’t eligible or willing to commit to becoming an activist". Lol at 'if you aren't willing to fully commit to our FWA fanboy club you can put up some stickers instead'. Also the button to buy stickers suggests you pay via paypal "We’ll accept quick payments using PayPal and will have them shipped to you First Class" - which *totally* sounds legit (what do you bet they ask people to pay via 'friends and family instead of through business means?).

And... that's it. There's very little else on their website. It *looks* like they're trying to be a movement, but appear to lack substance (and money, judging from how many different Donate Now buttons are plastered all over the site). A hollow organisation blatantly bending history and mythology to fit their narrative, proudly using symbols designed to appeal to fascists while asking people to trust them with the future of Wales?

Dim diolch.

For further reading on why we should guard against fascism in Welsh language revival and independence, see my other post here.

Reblogs welcome for an antifascist independent Wales.

[creatrixcymraes]

antifascist independence stickers are avail on my website fyi xx

[that-thing-in-the-closet]

I will never forgive school for making me dread learning my native language.

I had to learn formal Cymraeg until GCSE and it was awful but the language itself is so beautiful why would they make the classes so boring and stressful when all they'd have to do was teach us our history, show us our songs and folklore for us to be engaged?!?!

Why did we have to learn for a grade instead of reconnecting with our culture?!?!?

Anyways i highly recommend learning Cymraeg, whether you're Cymru or not, its a beautiful language that barely survived colonization by the Saes

Also our songs and folklore fucking slap not gonna lie to u boys

Might make a little post abt some of my favourite folklore

***

Cymraeg: Welsh language

Cymru: People or Country of Wales

Saes: English people

[garthcelyn]

"Mae hi'n mynd i uffern" and "Annibyniaeth Cymru" is Welsh for rest in peace.

Reblog for the Royal Family in these trying times <3

[tunglo]

Yes Cymru Cardiff Independence march route confirmed - “We will start and finish in Windsor Place, and will march along Queen St, The Hayes, Mill Lane, St Mary's St and back down Queen St for the rally.” October 1st, 12 noon start. #Annibyniaeth

[ioantalfryn]

Ymprydio’r Meddwl

Munud i Feddwl Tachwedd 17eg 2022

Mae ymprydio wedi dod yn rhywbeth ffasiynol iawn yn ddiweddar.  Ond does dim angen iddo fo fod yn farathon hir.  Yn ôl gwyddonwyr mae ymprydio am un awr ar bymtheg bob dydd yn galluogi’r corff i ddechrau ar broses o hunan iacháu ar lefel y celloedd.

Yn llyfr Chuang Tzu, un o ddau lyfr enwocaf Taoistiaieth, a ysgrifennwyd ddwy fil a hanner o flynyddoedd yn ôl, mae’r awdur yn adrodd sgwrs rhwng Yan Hui a Conffiwsiws.  

Mae Yan Hui eisiau mynd i deyrnas gyfagos i gywiro ymddygiad y brenin anystywallt yno ac yn datgan llawer iawn o ddamcaniaethau a rhagdybiaethau ynglŷn â sut y mae’n gobeithio gwneud hynny. Mae Conffiwsiws yn dinistrio’i strategaethau fesul un nes i Yan Hui, sydd wedi cyrraedd pen ei dennyn erbyn hynny’n holi – wel beth mae o’n ei awgrymu iddo’i wneud?  Ateb Conffiwsiws ydy  - cyn gwneud dim byd rhaid ymprydio’r meddwl.  

Roedd Chuang Tzu yn aml iawn yn rhoi geiriau yng ngheg ei gocyn hitio Conffiwsiws i hyrwyddo syniadau Taoistaidd. Roedd hynny fel petai awdur ffuglen gyfoes heddiw yn ysgrifennu nofel lle mae Boris Johnston yn annog trigolion Cymru yn daer i ymgyrchu o blaid annibyniaeth.  

Ond beth ydy ymprydio’r meddwl?  Yn syml ffordd o fyfyrio lle dych chi’n clirio’r meddwl o unrhyw ragfarnau, damcaniaethau, credoau a diffiniadau sy’n medru cymylu’ch golwg.  Eich nod, yn hytrach, ydy bod yn agored i brofi realiti fel ag y mae yn y modd mwyaf uniongyrchol posib.

Os oedd ymprydio’r meddwl yn cael ei weld gan Chuang Tzu fel rhywbeth angenrheidiol i’w wneud mewn oes lawer symlach, faint mwy yw’r angen heddiw a ninnau’n boddi mewn dilyw o ragfarnau ar-lein ar y cyfryngau cymdeithasol a’r we bedair awr ar hugain? Byddai ymwrthod â hyn oll am gyfnod bob dydd yn gymorth i ni i gyd deimlo’n ysgafnach ac yn arwain at eglurder meddyliol.  

[malwen-sosialaidd]

they exploit our natural resources. our labour. and then go. leaving us with nothing but devastated communities. and then mock us. our language. our people. what little industry we have left. say that we're dependent on them. that we couldn't support ourselves. pretend we don't exist. and yet they use our land as their playground. they still drive people out of their communities. and for what purpose? why must we put up with centuries of this? of having our resources taken. our labour used and then cast aside once it's no longer needed. our language suppressed and driven almost to the brink of extinction. being treated as a sponge, despite all this. How many more years of this do they expect us to take?

[angiethewitch]

its just fucking offensive tbh

annibyniaeth cymru

[llyfrenfys]

So quick post since I just woke up- but this is a psa to everyone really (but especially to people outside Wales) to be careful about how you express support for Welsh language preservation. I've censored the name of the reblogger here (this is a screenshot of a reblog of my post about the petition to use only Ynys Môn for the island instead of Anglesey) and I will say, while I (and many others in Wales) appreciate the support from overseas, its important not to accidentally use white nationalist slogans in doing so!

No animosity directed at the commenter, I feel like it was an innocent mistake. But "Keep Wales Welsh" is a white nationalist slogan and we don't do that here.

I can see where the mistake has happened. In English there are no separate words for Welsh (language) and Welsh (person) while there is in Welsh- 'Cymreig' means Welsh in the sense of being of Wales (e.g. 'llaeth Cymreig' is Welsh milk), while 'Cymraeg' means Welsh in the sense of the Welsh language (e.g. 'Ydych chi'n siarad Cymraeg?' means do you speak Welsh?). The commenter probably intended to mean 'Keep Wales Welsh' in the sense of 'Keep Wales Welsh language'. However, white nationalists use that slogan to mean 'Keep Wales ethnically* Welsh'. Which is a big nono around here and on this blog. We don't do that here.

[* There is no such thing as ethnically Welsh either, but it's a line trotted out by white nationalists in Wales to justify their ethnonationalism.]

There are many non-white Welsh people and also many non-white Welsh speakers. Being Welsh and the ability to speak Welsh are not in any way connected to race or ethnicity. Welsh nationalism ≠ white nationalism - there's no justification for using racist, white nationalist arguments to secure Welsh independence. An independent Wales should be a diverse independent Wales - an independent Wales inclusive of all races, nationalities, disabilities, sexualities and genders.

Annibyniaeth Wrthffasgiaid.

[isengrimmr]

HE’S DEAD HE’S DEAD HE’S DEAAAD!!!

[mariocki]

"Speaking on visit to a vaccination centre in Cwmbran, Torfaen, he said "it depends" what the devolved authorities do."

I wish all Boris Johnsons a very fuck you

[thebaconsandwichofregret]

Anyone else ordered a copy of the Independence Commission's report "Towards An Independent Wales"? I felt a bit dirty having to put my English address down as the delivery address 😂

[k1ll-ur-vibe]

ok but....... hear me out

celtic tradwife..........

i wanna be a welsh lady, costume and all, speak welsh and live in a cottage in the heartlands, raise my kids with their first language as welsh and be a doting, serving housewife to a loving husband, baking welsh cakes and serving him caerphilly cheese on everything 🥺 os gwelwch yn dda. dwi’n yn cariad 🥺🥺🥺

(dwi’n dysgu cymraeg, fod braf os gwelwch yn dda 🙏 diolch)