The white poppy has been around almost as long as the red, which was first adopted as a symbol of remembrance in 1921. After British pacifists failed to convince the British Legion to print a peace message on the red poppy, the Women's Co-operative Guild began producing white poppies in 1933.
"The white poppy was not intended as an insult to those who died in the First World War - a war in which many of the white poppy supporters lost husbands, brothers, sons and lovers - but a challenge to the continuing drive to war.
War is a crime against humanity. I renounce war, and am therefore determined not to support any kind of war. I am also determined to work for the removal of all causes of war."
- from the British Peace Pledge Union
I absolutely agree with your comments above and those in your previous post...however...what do we do if confronted with a monster like Hitler? In a ideal world, we would not allow things to get to that state and we should all work to avoid it ever happening again. And it would be a great start if more and more people become less materially minded and more altruistic. Yet I do buy a red poppy every year and I am grateful to the likes of my two uncles who gave 10 years of their lives to ensure that we could live in peace and not under the Nazi regime, in fear of concentration camps...I'm grateful to their many, many comrades who did not return. I don't feel that this is glorifying war and would gladly wear a white poppy too, if they were available here. I think the media has a lot to answer for, too. Statistically, the world is presently in a very peaceful phase. But who would dream this from the news? Only 'bad' news leads to hand wringing, apathy...war. Wouldn't it be great to hear more stories of human kindness, trust, generosity and love? Two years after the end of WW2, my Mom went on holiday to Germany (friends said she was mad) and met Gertrud, who became her lifelong friend. The following summer, Gertrud sent her two children, alone, to England, to stay with my mom (friends said she was mad!), years later, Gertrud's grandson insisted on doing voluntary work, rather than military service...trust and love have a knock on effect, as does war.
ReplyDeleteCharlotte,
DeleteFortunately situations like the Nazis have been fairly rare in history. I agree that prevention is the best policy, and also that diplomatic channels should be the method of choice for settling disputes. But I can also see where this may not work and firmer measures may be something we need to look at.
But if there is fighting, send the politicians first.
What a wonderful story of cross cultural cooperation with your mom and her friend. That is how regular loving people without a selfish agenda operate all round the world. Trust and love have always worked for me.