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.

@EasternStandard - my only aversion is to Nigel Farage, Reform and Tommy Robinson and their appropriation of the Union Jack.

I will never ever forgive Nigel Farage for Brexit, and if needs must, I would ditch my career and become a local politician to fight off this plague of manipulation, bigotry and misogyny.

Ok thanks for answering. I do think there’s something in the pp who said we shouldn’t relinquish the flag and it’ll only be taken if people do that.

It has meaning for all of us.

Disgusting comment

If reported that comment for hate speech.

It's called "brainwashing" or as George Orwell would put it "right think". Scary isn't it. And its come from white middle class left wing British women.

@SquishedMallow - you forgot the ”of a certain age” to complete the bingo.

How much context do you want ? The car manufacturer has a plant outside the village. Every year from the mid 1980’s it donated a Christmas tree which was erected in the village, lit, and decorated. Last year it didn’t happen and neither did the local Christmas market. The locals complained and in response local authority made it perfectly clear that it was because it was deemed offensive to non Christian members of the community. So multiculturalism clearly doesn’t extend to those indigenous to the country we all live in does it ?

Is that your only contribution? Or are you suggesting it's black and brown people objecting to white British people celebrating their native culture?

The school is now closed tomorrow due to this incident so I would forsee there will be guidance to schools on how to handle such days if they Indeed occur again.

Naivety from the school? Possibly well meaning teachers trying to be inclusive and not thinking more deeply of consequences?

I would hope it puts them off holding events like this to be honest. It’s well meant to foster inclusivity. In reality it does the opposite if this is anything to go by.

Well, at least one person has said her dress is too short (it's knee-length, FFS) and too tight (implying a twelve-year-old is fat, which she isn't by any stretch of the imagination).

I didn’t say people “can’t be proud to be British.”

I said I personally, am not. Doesn’t mean you can’t be, does it?

I also didn’t refer to people with national pride as “little people.”

There are obviously minorities, or groups who are more regularly persecuted against/experience more intolerance who sometimes events are tailored towards.

As my previous example, I wouldn’t turn up to a pride march with a heterosexuality flag. I wouldn’t have gone to a BLM event with an I’M WHITE poster.

I’m not ashamed to be white, or heterosexual, but sometimes.. you’re not the minority, and it’s not about you. Days centred around diversity or inclusion usually aren’t about the white British.

Ah, but the event didn't say it had to be about black/brown/foreign culture did it ? If they specifically wanted that - they could have said.

As for the rest of your post : it's very naive indeed. Perhaps you could take your blinkers off and see what's happening around you.

What am I missing?

Let me guess..

• I’m somehow becoming a minority?

• I’ve missed some sort of non existent threat to my identity?

• Christmas is cancelled?

Nonsense. 😂

I think the school were well meaning but a bit clumsy. They likely looked at the dress and didn’t think it spoke of tradition or heritage. I don’t think union jack dresses are traditional.

However, they should have allowed the girl to express herself and what she sees as traditional. Even though her Daily Mail sad face was one of the worst I’ve seen.

Worst in what way? She’s only 12

No (yawn) funnily enough I never said anything about 'christmas being cancelled ' , sounds awfully like you're making blanket assumptions about my general opinions.

Oh, good!

Go on then, naive how. What are my blinkered eyes missing?

Exactly, she’s too young to pull off a DM sad face.

@SleeplessInWherever

I didn’t say people “can’t be proud to be British.” I said I personally, am not. Doesn’t mean you can’t be, does it?

The points you made were not just that you aren’t proud to be British, but that it makes no sense to be proud because no-one chooses their heritage, plus that you don’t need to take pride in it becuase you have achievements.

So far, so logical. It’s not the view I take, but it’s coherent.

But wait. This illogical feeling that you grew beyond because you are accomplished. Well, of course the minorities should have it.

That doesn’t seem a bit patronizing to you?

I think it’s great that students of all backgrounds get to celebrate their heritage and culture, because it’s a fun and human thing to do. It bonds us, done right, becuase we all have heritages and culture and stories.

For you, it’s a crutch to be allowed to the unfortunates, for whom every day is not their day.

Drawing the boundaries of British tight to you (“it’s not diverse”), so you then get to be the virtuous in helping them over the barriers.

Why not just have a culture day we all celebrate our cultures together. Draw big, not small.

Except that’s really not what I said.

I choose not to be proud of my national heritage, because I see it as geographical happenstance and not an achievement, which is what I see pride to be.

I also at this stage wouldn’t be proud to be British, because (amongst other things) many of those who claim “proud to be British” spent their summer abusing the Asians in my local community last year, and that is not a group I’d be proud to be associated with.

Other people, are proud of their national heritage. Fair enough, good for you. You do you, etc.

I still don’t endorse anyone who identifies with the group I mentioned above. Those “patriots” and their “community.” And I still believe that even if you do take pride in the British flag, it’s still THE flag, and so you’re really neither a minority nor a “different culture.”

Christmas cancelled? 🙄 If you can point out where I said that I'd be ever so grateful

There you go @SleeplessInWherever . If you could kindly point out where I made a Tommy Robinson esque "can't say nuffun no more. All them immigrants want Christmas cancelled" style rant (as you ignorantly implied) I'd be grateful.

I’ll do that when you answer what my blinkers are missing.

I understand wanting to disassociate from, or feeling ashamed of, the actions of others who wrap themselves in the flag.

But I see two problems with that kind of thinking. First, it cedes British symbolism to thuggish elements (it creates the thing it claims to dislike, basically).

And secondly, if we apply that logic then hardly any kids should take pride in their national heritage either, because there’s a lot to be ashamed of, and a lot of thuggish elements associated with almost all nations’ symbols.

So then you end up with a sort of mandatory hair shirt for everyone, which I think is unhealthy for any society and certainly not helpful for building a successful multiracial or multicultural one.