To remind you all of this BEFORE the Poppy becomes a divisive symbol

I agree with you.

I dont wear one for personal, family related, reasons. I have family who served who respect my choice, so why cant other people?!

I shouldnt have to explain why I am not wearing one above "I dont want to", but as you say it has become expected and a point used to judge whether someone "cares" or not. I dont need to virtue signal to care.

Lots of Irish died in particularly WWI however the poppy is very controversial here due to more recent British military action here.

The poppy is not seen as a universal good, not even for countries with significant participation in British military history.

Nothing is universal. It is naïve to think it is.

Many appear not to know that.

There are, sadly, people in this country who think that anyone with a non-white face should ‘go home’. I would hope that not many of them are on mumsnet, but it is a useful reminder to us to remember the terrible loss of life and suffering shared across ethnicities.

Absolute rubbish.

Women have been left out of memory too. They were only lately allowed to join the march to the Cenotaph.

I appreciate this post on how it shines a light on the role of of people of different ethnicities and skin colours in fighting fascism.
i give money to the poppy appeal.
I do think the poppy as a symbol has been co-opted by Tommy Ten-names and his ilk.
When you have incidents of new-readers,footballers etc being “cancelled” for not wearing one, then it’s become something other than what it’s supposed to be. The wars were fought for freedom, including the freedom to nor wear a poppy.

A quick google has brought up nothing about this so possibly it’s not true?

There are a lot of twats on SM posts writing utter shite normally why would slagging off poppies make any different?
I wonder about the mental capacity of anyone who believes any of it.

I knew this, OP, but it doesn’t get talked about enough.

I’ll be wearing a poppy in honour of all those who fell, and all those who contributed to defending us in the wars, including my two grandads who fought in the Second World War and my two great-granddads who fought in the First World War, one of whom was gassed and left permanently disabled and traumatised, till he died prematurely. All of them sacrificed and endured much.

I don’t give a rat’s arse if others think it’s a symbol of war or any other such rubbish. It only becomes that if we let it, by stopping wearing it for its original purpose.

What!

I didn't know this!☹️

Wish they had a WTAF emoji on here😑

Agree with this very much.

I didn’t know that the Americans tried to impose racial segregation in this country and feel proud that the Brits of the time refused to countenance that.

At Charing Cross station this week there were servicemen and women of all ethnicities collecting which was great to see.

I buy and wear a poppy and I’m Wokey McWokerson.

It’s in aid of injured veterans and widows etc

I don’t really agree with war except in genuine defence (ie the national equivalent of how self defence / defence of another works for individuals) but I want to support those who have made sacrifices for this country.

I see it more as a symbol of the human consequences of war. I live close to the National Memorial Arboretum. I visit frequently, often when I'm struggling. It gives me a chance to reflect and pay my respects. I often leave feeling that my worries are much less significant than I thought.

Some of the lefty extinction rebellion types are not keen on the red poppy. When I worked in a well known supermarket I had a run-in with one of these. We had army cadets in selling poppies and he disapproved of children being "groomed to become murderers" when I told him my son was a disabled war veteran he told me he questioned what kind of parent I must be to allow my son to become a state sponsored murderer. Luckily the manager was in earshot and threw him out and banned him for life 😅

There are a lot of social media posts which would imply that such is the case.

My grandparents lived through the Occupation - I wear a white poppy.

@soupyspoon - you’d be surprised..

Personally, I'd rather commemorate the Post-WW2 Consensus which it resulted in. As this was a period of political agreement in the UK where the major political parties, Labour and Conservative, agreed on a mixed economy with state intervention, a comprehensive welfare state, and a focus on full employment.

Bollocks.

I sort of knew this but I don’t think it gets the airtime it deserves. Thank you for the reminder OP

I knew about the overseas soldiers who joined in the British army but knew nothing about the segregation that the US forces tried to impose so thanks for sharing that

I dont think some people do know that, no. Or they are willingly blind to it because it doesnt suit their narrative.

Not helped by the fact that almost all footage of the second war features white british men.

My father has a friend who was born in Jamaica and fought in the british army. He was too young for WWII but was involved in other campaigns. He sells poppies and has said that some people seem surprised to see him doing it. So now he wears his regimental blazer and medals to make the point.

A lot of people don’t. And there are accusations of “being woke” when people mention it.