TO mark International Women’s Day, inspirational single mum Ashleigh Wilson is hosting a city centre walking tour dedicated to the city’s trailblazers.
Glaswegian women have long been a force to be reckoned with, from political movers and shakers to everyday women fighting to make the world a better place for others.
Ashleigh, from Drumchapel, always dreamed of running her own walking tours in Glasgow after starting her career in the industry in London.
Before she could realise her goal and “in the midst of the world falling apart” in 2020, Ashleigh’s marriage ended, leaving her and her infant children homeless.
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She told the Glasgow Times: “At this point, I ended up having to leave the home.
“So I was homeless with a one-year-old, and a six-month-old, and just completely at a loss.
“My life as I built it was just completely gone in the middle of a pandemic, which had broken down the world that I lived in.”
The 33-year-old ended up staying with her “stalwart” mum as she tried to build her life back up, deciding to take the plunge and launch her walking tour company, Turadh Tours.
Ashleigh said: “I realised that this would be a good time to do the tours.
“I want to be able to mean it when I tell my kids that they can do anything they set their mind to.
“So I decided to just go for it, I literally had nothing left to lose.
“And it's been amazing. It's so exciting when I wake up each day and I put on my little tour t-shirt and go out to do a job that I love, that I've created on my own, in the middle of all of this difficulty.
“I feel like I've gotten back on my feet. And you know, the kids are happy, well adjusted, I'm happy and well adjusted, but it's taken a lot of strength, a lot of support from my family and friends.
“And I'm just really happy that I'm finally here and finally doing it.”
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Ashleigh, whose children are now three and four years old, is excited to share the amazing stories of everyday Glasgow women like her who have gone on to do extraordinary things.
She said: “I think Glasgow women are a rare breed, they're absolutely formidable and famous for it.
“And whether it's big things like abolition movements, and suffrage movements, or little things like trying to make the rent in their housing scheme fairer or help out mothers who maybe don't have a father in the household, there's this real spirit of can-do, will-do.
“These women are so inspiring. I come from a long line of working-class Glaswegian women and I see so much of my mum, my aunties and my granny and all of these women.
“And I think that's what makes Glasgow special. It's pretty exciting to finally be writing the walk and doing the walk that's been in my head forever.”
The Some Wummin tour takes place on Wednesday, March 8, leaving from St Enoch Subway station at 6pm.
The tour will be about two hours long, and tickets cost £14 plus fee.
Ashleigh added that the “intersectional” tour is inclusive and stops will be incorporating stories from trans women in the city like bailie Elaine Gallagher.
She said: “I think trans rights are women's rights, and there's absolutely no exclusion to that.”
For more information or to purchase tickets, click here.
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