With the trial over, Helen and Sylvia re-focus their energies on campaigning and decide to surprise RAF Fylingdales by arriving under the cover of darkness to display banners outside the base. It seems, for now, that their humour, wit and cheeky banter has returned as they battle against the unforgiving conditions of the Yorkshire moors to try, once more, to promote their messages of peace.
FURTHER INFORMATION
To find out more about Fylingdales please visit the official RAF site
To find out more about Yorkshire CND and their campaigns against Fylingdales please click here
EPISODE TWENTY SIX: “Dedicated, thoughtful and whatever”
The women begin their first day as convicted serious organised criminals by protesting outside another US Base, this time Fylingdales. The ironic contrast between verdict and sentence raises questions among fellow campaigners as to the outcome for future arrests under this legislation. By making trespass onto military bases an ‘act of terrorism’ yet punishing those found guilty with, what is effectively, a slap on the wrist, the message to the peace movement isn’t entirely clear. Indeed with a growing number of campaigners deliberately seeking to challenge the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act, in conjunction with the costs of lengthy court cases, one wonders what the new legislation has achieved; besides uniting protesters young and old to make a stand against their Government.
Three episodes about the grandmothers, their ‘serious organised crime’ and the Spy Base they trespassed into. A starter pack if you will before the series gets under way.
EPISODE ONE: “NUTS IN A FUNNY WAY”
Helen John and Sylvia Boyes are as similar as they are different. This episode looks at the women behind the campaign: their family’s reaction and their reasons for protest with a little military drive by thrown in…
FURTHER RESOURCES
For further information about Fylingdales please visit CND or the RAF website.
Find out why Helen and Sylvia were concerned about an attack on Iran
EPISODE TWO: “A TERRORIST BUT NOT A VIOLENT TERRORIST”
On 6th April 2006, former Greenham Common protesters, Helen and Sylvia walked over a yellow line at U.S Spy Base, Menwith Hill. The yellow line represented the boundary of a designated site under The Serious Organised Crime and Police Act, one which, if crossed, was punishable by up to 51 weeks in prison and/or a £5,000 fine. Helen and Sylvia believe that section 128 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act, which is part of the Terrorism Act, adds a layer of protection to American war fighting and is a backward step for civil liberties. Their act of protest made front page of the Independent, sparked a trial for terrorism and caught the eye of a filmmaker who decided to tell their story.
Read a statement from Liberty highlighting their concerns of Government legislation that works to stifle protest on the news page.
EPISODE THREE: OUTSIDE THE PERIMETER FENCES
This episode examines the US Spy Base, Menwith Hill, in Yorkshire. Hearing from David Cameron (when he was speaking as leader of the opposition) CND and Helen and Sylvia, this episode asks the question whether national security is ever worth compromising our civil liberties for.
Disarming Grandmothers 