This Is Who We Are

See some sample pages from this book

One generation is short but the generations are long. 

Initially intended simply as an imaginative way to record genealogical research, This Is Who We Are turned into an appealing, story-based narrative.

‘The more I wrote,’ says Kathy Galloway, ‘the more I realised that my family was in many regards an archetypal Lowland Scottish family. They represented almost all the main occupations of Lowland Scots over 300 years. They were both bystanders and participants in wars, religious conflicts and huge economic and social developments, and in changing class and gender roles. Most interesting to me was discovering the extent to which their lives were affected by the British Empire, by colonialism and neo-colonialism, and inward and outward migration, and by the impact of plantation slavery in the Caribbean. 

‘All of this seemed so pertinent to the current debate about Scotland’s relationship in and to the United Kingdom and in the aftermath of Brexit that I thought that others might either see their own families replicated in our story or find it an interesting lens through which to view these debates.’ 

This Is Who We Are is a book for those looking back, those looking forward, and for the ones to come – and will inspire readers to investigate and discover their own family’s social and political history. 

Kathy Galloway is an activist and writer. A member and former Leader of the Iona Community, she is the author of a dozen books on justice issues, spirituality and poetry. She lives in Glasgow. 

Also includes a chapter on researching a family history.

See some sample pages from this book