Nationalism can be a pretty ugly ideology — a mostly modern invention and often comes with imperialist ambitions. But there’s another side to it too when you look at the independence movements of de-colonisation of Africa and Asia post-WWII, when you have countries that won back their sovereignty from their colonial masters. I’ve heard this called ‘small nation nationalism’ — it doesn’t come with the nauseating rhetoric of Brexit-style flag-waving, but with a sense of communal kinship with other people, like yourself, who have had a guts-full of oppression. A national identity forged on a shared suffering, and a shared willingness to improve their lot. So simply put nationalism comes in two distinct, and contrasting, flavours.

I’d call myself a localist though. As I write in this piece about ‘Extractionism’, I believe in devolved power, and local autonomy. The right of a group of people to self-determine their future — especially when they’re suffering at the hands of an unequal system. And despite the divisive discourse that came out of the late 19th century, labelled Social Darwinism, we’re not naturally (solely) competitive by nature. Many of the earliest human societies, as evidenced by the few remaining nomadic hunter-gatherer tribes that exist in some small parts of Africa and South East Asia, maintained egalitarian social structures. Humans perhaps have an innate need for fairness, despite plenty of evidence that shows an opposing desire for power. We’re a paradoxical species.

I long for the day when there is a Gwerinaeth Dyfed (Dyfed Republic), part of a larger Welsh Republic — an allegiance of smaller Welsh republics — all part of, hopefully, a larger British Republic. The first step towards that is independence from the UK — a corrupt, decaying nation forged on inequality and theft. You can’t save the UK because the UK was always thus. Its intentions have always been imperial and its power structure too ingrained, too parasitic, too oppressive. Everything the UK is doing and has done to people all around the world was first practised on its own indigenous population. We no longer need the red coats as we have the armies of bankers numerically-raiding other nations’ capital — taking it back to their many mansions to feast upon their carrion.

So is the Welsh Independence movement a nationalist one? I mean it is, but only partly. It’s more about a reclamation of power and sovereignty. About the redistribution of the power stolen by the upper class elite. If, in order to achieve that, we must forge a new nation, then that must be our first step. Right now the hunger for a new alternative exists. The times are ripe for a different way forward amidst the coming chaos and crises that are certain to beset us. Do you want to follow a corrupt Westminster further into the abyss? Or do you want to reclaim your rightful independence as a sovereign citizen and community?