CHANTING for Charles! Mine is one voice that won’t be joining the ‘chorus of millions’ on Saturday. However, I do wish King Charles well and ‘God speed’ while acknowledging his pioneering stance on the environment and extolling the excellent Prince’s Trust.
Already with a lot of experience, Charles Mk. III will do a pretty good job as King, I believe.
The pledge of loyalty, ‘the Homage of the People’, to me leans towards the gimmicky despite historical precedents.
The idea also makes me feel nervous when it’s referred to as an oath which it isn’t. Conceived, I believe, at Lambeth Palace, it comes over as a bit strong or heavy to me. I swore something similar when I took the Queen’s shilling, which was binding!
It’ll be impossible to assess how many people participate in this ‘national chant’ though I expect many will join in the recitation.
I wonder how many Press readers will intone this solemn sentence on Saturday?
The Americans are familiar with a similar format, constantly swearing allegiance to the flag and asking God to bless America.
Derek Reed,
Middlethorpe Drive,
York,
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Need political will to 'reverse the ban'
ROGER Cook (The Press, May 2), rightly says the human rights area is complex but wrongly concludes this means the needs of the ‘majority’ should prevail.
The city’s Human Rights & Equalities Board (HREB) asked York-based human rights experts in autumn 2021 for a report setting out how the council might approach balancing counter terror needs alongside disability access.
It is to the council’s utter discredit that HREB’s Lib Dem Chair, Cllr Smalley, refused to reconvene the board to consider the report and council officers simply dismissed it out of hand.
HREB has not met since. Next the council dismissed the Martin Higgitt Associates report that it had commissioned, which suggested four possible access solutions.
Finally it dismissed a recent interview study from York Law School with UK experts in counter terror, disability etc that provided great detail of the legal and human rights aspects involved.
All are available at www.reversetheban.co.uk/publications.
Just like anyone else, disabled people want protection from terrorist threat alongside being able to live their lives. The above reports along with solutions found by other cities suggest that this can be achieved, providing there is political will to do so.
Reverse the ban.
Name and address supplied
Coronation of King Charles - share your photos
Have you put up bunting; decorated your street or home; made special cakes - or are taking part in a celebration or street party to mark the coronation in York? Please get in touch and share your stories and photos.
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