School "Culture Day' - why didn't school see this coming?

[mids2019]

https://www.joe.co.uk/news/school-issues-statement-after-sending-girl-home-for-wearing-union-jack-dress-496690?fbclid=IwY2xjawLkEB9leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHmXD4szLMfsqNubbE12kCn_Noe5jb2VGlNFVU0_IUIevHxzByCQ-5GXFN8F8_aem_P-q7I_yFCq82TY-Qr8mGdw

A local school state d a huge debate by sending a girl home on school culture day for wearing a union Jack dress. The question is why the school should have naively held an event which actually least a to more division than unity?

My daughter (white British) attended a similar event, for which she paid a pound, and dressed in jeans and t shirt. I asked how she had decided upon the attire and she stated 'well I don't have a culture'. I then had to explain that she did have a culture and even the jeans and t shirt were a product of fashion changes in western liberal society. We had a discussion about all the great products of white British culture, the music,science, results of the industrial revolution, shared experience in great wars, monarchy etc.

There is a white British culture but going into detail about this obviously brings into focus cultural divide and opens up divisive areas whether white British culture benefited from colonialism and past oppression.

Of course culture day probably was meant to highlight minority cultures and act to promote dress etc. from ethnic minorities as a welcoming inclusive gesture but by allowing all pupils to think about their culture we have to define 'white British' culture and by defining 'white British' culture schools have inadvertently started a discussion they didn't intend.

Hear hear. I was put off doing History A Level even though I enjoyed the GCSE syllabus as there was no social history in it, it seemed to be all kings and queens (mostly kings) and politics. So the history of a few very rich and privileged men.

Were they booed for being English, or for their lack of costume?

If the school didn’t send her home, they obviously wouldn’t have gone to the press.

And the school wouldn’t have had to issue an apology.

Absolutely no discernment or foresight

The Union Jack is not like the Swastika. It is our nation’s flag. If the school deem it causes offence they need to take that up with the Government and the King, not the girl wearing it.

I’d say less hijacked by the far right, and more disowned by the left tbh.

Thank you. I hope you don’t mind me learning by asking stupid questions. How does that issue map onto / interact with the independence issue? Can Scottish colours serve as a neutral unifier, or is that complicated too?

If some national flags need to be banned, wouldn’t it be better to have no flags at all.

For example, I wouldn’t have a heritage day at school but ban only India/Pakistan/Israel/Palestine. I’d choose a different theme.

I don't think my culture is particularly linked to the colour of my skin.

If the future holds more sunshine, more melanin sounds useful.

We had culture day at our school last year. My nieces (who go to the same school as my DD) went in kilts as their dad is Scottish and we live in England. But I had no idea what to do with my DD as we have no culture whatsoever.I mean, what else is there than something with a flag on, maypole dancing??

Bizarre reaction by the school. Particularly when the invitation said the students must wear their own cultural clothing.

The Union Jack hasn’t been appropriated, some try to do the same as for the St George’s flag but it’s still fine. Pop stars and interior design still use it. Only on mn are all our flags a no go.

Significant difference though, is the assertion the Cross of St.Andrew is contentious because of Independence overlooks two things -

Unionists claim pro-Indi movements have "hijacked" the Saltire, but nobody has ever suggested Unionists can not or have no right to display it. They appear to have chosen the Union flag as their banner, because it's everywhere on pro-Union paraphernalia. There is nothing whatsoever preventing pro-Union causes also displaying a Saltire, but for some reason only known to them, they opt not to.

Also, and more significantly, the issue of the Scottish Independence doesn't have a long, bloody history of violence and sectarianism associated with it. It does if you include the Jacobites, but that was a squabble over the crown and is significantly distant from the current debate over Scotland's constitutional future that it doesn't really have any relevance. People were not being terrorised and blown to bits as recently as the 1990s because of differences of opinion on the question of Scots Indi, so it really isn't the "same" as Ireland at all, and I don't believe it's anywhere near as contentious or potentially incendiary as religious-based sectarianism.

I thought the speech might be AI too. But ZeroGPT AI checker says "Your Text is Likely Human written, may include parts generated by AI/GPT". Came out as 58% AI-generated. Haven't put it through any other checkers; they do sometimes give different results.

The union flag is the national flag of the British people and I for one am proud of it.
Why the fuck should Britain always be apologising for even existing as a country? Before anyone bangs on about it, I know our countries history, slavery etc but there were plenty of other countries doing the same thing but not exactly falling over themselves with apologising, but that is another well worn thread.
The school were wrong imo, had we been in America there would have been quite a few kids wearing their flag in some shape or form as a badge of pride.

It was mental The spice girls are uk cultural icons.

Yes, that’s the context. But I’m struggling to see how banning specific flags only is a reasonable response.

In a different context, if we had religious sectarianism between Sunni and Shia in some English school, I can’t see the school ever deciding it would be a great idea to have faith days where everyone comes and celebrates their faith symbols except the Muslim ones which are specifically banned. I think I’d just not have a faith day.

I am ethnically Indian and finding this really quite funny having sat through British Culture days at school where we had to read Shakespeare and dance a round a Maypole (yep).

Incredible. What is it with this view.

This girl wasn’t the only one to be sent home
Anyone celebrating their Welsh culture and their farming culture were also sent home
How is a flat cap so offensive you have to be removed from the school.
If you are going to have a Culture Celebration Day then don’t be surprised if someone decides to celebrate British/Welsh/Scottish and Irish culture.

Why were those wearing religious attire not sent home as religion isn’t a culture and what ever country they are from will have their own National Dress

The speech thing seems to be a bit of a red herring anyway. Doesn't seem like there was ever a plan for her to read a speech in the first place.

I think the speech was questionable, a bit of parental input there.

But the school did make the event needlessly bureaucratic. Ask your form teacher for ideas? Must everything be worthy and pre-approved?

In Australia we have harmony day. Kids can wear cultural dress or the colours of their flag. Or something orange which is the designated harmony day colour. Job done.

The school didn’t go to the press. The school isn't doing Daily Mail sad faces.

Do Head Teachers really not understand that anything and everything might get into the press? So naïve.

Except at a Tommy Robinson rally….

And of course the school didn’t. They were in the wrong. It was the girl who was made to feel bad.

My advice to the girl would to dress in something neutral next year, maybe the suffragette colours 🙃🙃🙃🤣

I would be interested to hear of this school's reputation locally. Acts like this is going to cause further segregation in some cities where people feel they are only welcome when with others of similar background.

Also Britpop/spice Girls is actually a reallty accurate high point of British culture from the last 50 years so this is a brilliant outfit!

The school made a bad call. But if there WAS inclement from Tommy Robinson’s lot, it may have been the least worst option. It is fascinating how people are ignoring that possibility.

What can this dress in the form of a flag do exactly?

It’s a 12 year old girl wearing a dress that’s culturally relevant as requested