Catriona Roberts and Hannah Taylor allegedly vandalised the James McCune Smith Learning Hub (JMS) last Thursday. As part of Youth Demand, they spray-painted the exterior of the building and glued themselves to the ground. The pair have a history of direct and disruptive activism and have been involved in multiple criminal protests.
Catriona Roberts, 22, was found guilty of damaging the glass cabinet containing the Stone of Destiny and the Crown of Scotland, in November of last year. The incident in Edinburgh Castle led to Roberts being found guilty of maliciously causing damage, but acquitted of breaching the peace. She received 180 hours of community service.
As part of This Is Rigged, a direct action campaign group who target the Scottish Government, Roberts was protesting against food poverty. The trial also revealed Roberts is a student at the University of Strathclyde, despite Youth Demand telling Hillhead Review that she is enrolled at the University of Glasgow.
In March 2024, Roberts was arrested for spray-painting a UK Government building in Edinburgh. The protest was pro-Palestine and also led by This Is Rigged, aiming to accuse the government of being “complicit in genocide.” The protestors replaced the Union Flag on the HMRC Queen Elizabeth building with a Palestinian flag.
As part of another This Is Rigged protest in August 2023, Roberts glued herself to the road during the UCI cycling championships. The race was halted, and Roberts was convicted of breaching the peace. The protestors also discharged powder cannons and chained themselves together. Outside the court hearing, Roberts told media outlets that she planned to take further action over the climate and cost-of-living crises.
Hannah Taylor, 24, also has an activist past. In July 2023 she climbed over 30 metres to the top of one of the Kelpies in Falkirk, attaching a “This Is Rigged” banner to the statue. Taylor was found guilty of causing a breach of the peace and fined £420.
Also in July 2023, Taylor forced entry into Grangemouth depot of Certas Energy. As part of the This Is Rigged protest, she spent two hours glued to a decommissioned tanker lorry. She was found guilty of vandalism and criminal damage, and fined £480. Certas was forced to shut down operations.
Taylor was also found guilty of covering the Scottish Parliament in red paint in August 2023. Alongside three other This Is Rigged activists, around £7000 of damage was caused. They were fined £210 each.
In March 2024, the activist smeared jam and porridge over a bust of Queen Victoria in Kelvingrove Museum & Art Gallery. As part of This Is Rigged, Taylor was also involved in the word “c*nt” being written on the stand.
Taylor was convicted of malicious mischief, and received 80 hours of community service. The charity Glasgow Life paid around £600 to reverse the damages.
Following Thursday’s protest at the JMS, Catriona Roberts and Hannah Taylor were arrested at the scene, and police enquiries into the incident are ongoing.
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