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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/nov/06/white-poppies-respect-red-peace-campaigners-war
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| I wear a white poppy. It deserves as much respect as a red one | I wear a white poppy. It deserves as much respect as a red one |
| (25 days later) | |
| Why does the anti-war poppy, symbolising peace for all, provoke heated debate in the run-up to Remembrance Day? Among the nationalists and patriotic pin-ups, this upset is most pronounced. Labour MP Simon Danczuk criticised Jeremy Corbyn for wearing a white poppy three years ago because Danczuk felt it was “deeply offensive” to our armed forces. Tory MP Johny Mercer tweeted last month: “White poppies are attention-seeking rubbish. Ignore the wearers of them … and don’t deliberately try and hijack it’s [sic] symbolism for your own ends.” Ouch. | Why does the anti-war poppy, symbolising peace for all, provoke heated debate in the run-up to Remembrance Day? Among the nationalists and patriotic pin-ups, this upset is most pronounced. Labour MP Simon Danczuk criticised Jeremy Corbyn for wearing a white poppy three years ago because Danczuk felt it was “deeply offensive” to our armed forces. Tory MP Johny Mercer tweeted last month: “White poppies are attention-seeking rubbish. Ignore the wearers of them … and don’t deliberately try and hijack it’s [sic] symbolism for your own ends.” Ouch. |
| The angst began this year after Britain’s largest teaching union, the National Union of Teachers (NUT), was heavily criticised for promoting the Peace Pledge Union’s campaign, which calls for schools across the country to endorse white poppies. The thought of children flooding from their school gates adorned with white poppies fills many with dread. Col Richard Kemp, a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, goes as far as accusing the campaigners of “indoctrinating children”. | The angst began this year after Britain’s largest teaching union, the National Union of Teachers (NUT), was heavily criticised for promoting the Peace Pledge Union’s campaign, which calls for schools across the country to endorse white poppies. The thought of children flooding from their school gates adorned with white poppies fills many with dread. Col Richard Kemp, a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, goes as far as accusing the campaigners of “indoctrinating children”. |
| If my grandad were still alive, he would say: “You young folk are blissfully unaware of the grimness of war.” And in some ways, we are. Our knowledge of war comes from our history lessons, documentaries or the tales handed down from our grandparents. We are lucky, and can scarcely imagine what it must be like to be called up to serve in a war, without choice, abandoning our families to defend a cause we may know little about – and with virtually no training. | If my grandad were still alive, he would say: “You young folk are blissfully unaware of the grimness of war.” And in some ways, we are. Our knowledge of war comes from our history lessons, documentaries or the tales handed down from our grandparents. We are lucky, and can scarcely imagine what it must be like to be called up to serve in a war, without choice, abandoning our families to defend a cause we may know little about – and with virtually no training. |
| My grandad was a proud man. So when he was called up in 1948 to join the armed forces, he did so without question. He was supposed to complete three months’ military training in a camp, but instead was thrown into battle prematurely. He narrowly avoided losing his life, and was left with a bullet hole in his leg. | My grandad was a proud man. So when he was called up in 1948 to join the armed forces, he did so without question. He was supposed to complete three months’ military training in a camp, but instead was thrown into battle prematurely. He narrowly avoided losing his life, and was left with a bullet hole in his leg. |
| St John Ambulance to let volunteers wear white remembrance poppy | |
| My mother hands down his stories with pride. But while her older sibling, who remembers his absence, speaks fondly of my grandad’s bravery, she is critical of the way he was discarded after injury and left almost unemployable, with little support. Many will have similar memories to those of my family and the struggles they faced. And it is because of this, I find it difficult to understand why they still choose to pin on the red poppy with pride. | My mother hands down his stories with pride. But while her older sibling, who remembers his absence, speaks fondly of my grandad’s bravery, she is critical of the way he was discarded after injury and left almost unemployable, with little support. Many will have similar memories to those of my family and the struggles they faced. And it is because of this, I find it difficult to understand why they still choose to pin on the red poppy with pride. |
| As a millennial Brit, I am a proud advocate of the white poppy. I believe it represents a generational shift in attitudes towards war. For me it symbolises the realisation that if war is not acceptable locally, it shouldn’t be acceptable globally. I feel ashamed at our country’s recent involvement in wars across the Middle East, and will never understand the justifications for the mass killings of innocent civilians caught in the crossfire of political disagreements. I wear the white poppy with all of this in mind: to make a political statement against the glorification of war. | As a millennial Brit, I am a proud advocate of the white poppy. I believe it represents a generational shift in attitudes towards war. For me it symbolises the realisation that if war is not acceptable locally, it shouldn’t be acceptable globally. I feel ashamed at our country’s recent involvement in wars across the Middle East, and will never understand the justifications for the mass killings of innocent civilians caught in the crossfire of political disagreements. I wear the white poppy with all of this in mind: to make a political statement against the glorification of war. |
| For the officials who keep stamping on the white poppy’s existence, consider why it is there. The white poppy was introduced by the Co-operative Women’s Guild in 1933. Women who lost their fathers, husbands and brothers in war. The red poppy doesn’t include their losses or their sacrifices. Mercer needs to have a long, hard think and stop firing off ignorant shots at white poppy wearers. I think it is offensive and hypocritical that democratic leaders publicly judge white poppy wearers without getting to know their stories. | For the officials who keep stamping on the white poppy’s existence, consider why it is there. The white poppy was introduced by the Co-operative Women’s Guild in 1933. Women who lost their fathers, husbands and brothers in war. The red poppy doesn’t include their losses or their sacrifices. Mercer needs to have a long, hard think and stop firing off ignorant shots at white poppy wearers. I think it is offensive and hypocritical that democratic leaders publicly judge white poppy wearers without getting to know their stories. |
| I find it embarrassing that people have to shake tins in the street selling poppies to look after ex-service members. Why isn’t the government of the country that these people have served and saluted taking care of them? We need to stop accusing white poppy wearers of diverting funds and attention, and instead hold our government accountable for failing our ex-service members. | I find it embarrassing that people have to shake tins in the street selling poppies to look after ex-service members. Why isn’t the government of the country that these people have served and saluted taking care of them? We need to stop accusing white poppy wearers of diverting funds and attention, and instead hold our government accountable for failing our ex-service members. |
| This feud over the colour of the poppy comes at a time when those who actually remember the war, or its aftermath, are part of our ageing population, regularly making the headlines for suffering chronic loneliness. Some say they haven’t had a conversation or a visit in months. Shouldn’t we be focusing on tackling these issues, rather than bickering over the colour of a poppy? | This feud over the colour of the poppy comes at a time when those who actually remember the war, or its aftermath, are part of our ageing population, regularly making the headlines for suffering chronic loneliness. Some say they haven’t had a conversation or a visit in months. Shouldn’t we be focusing on tackling these issues, rather than bickering over the colour of a poppy? |
| Despite the frowns, I pin on the white poppy with pride as I visit my mother in her nursing home, with a red poppy in hand for her. Despite our preferences, we recognise why each of us chooses to wear our poppy. | Despite the frowns, I pin on the white poppy with pride as I visit my mother in her nursing home, with a red poppy in hand for her. Despite our preferences, we recognise why each of us chooses to wear our poppy. |
| • Michelle Harris is a writer, poet, blogger and disabled rights activist | • Michelle Harris is a writer, poet, blogger and disabled rights activist |
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