Wearing a poppy? Take time to remember – and think
Since I published my first thought piece on poppies back in 2020, the world has become more violent and dangerous than ever. Despite the apparent ceasefire, people are still dying and being killed in Gaza every day. Massacres are again taking place in Al-Fashir in the Darfur region of Sudan. The war in Ukraine has been going on for over 1,300 days. And all that without mentioning places like Myanmar, Central Africa and the list could go on.
Of course, not all these conflicts have a religious element, and they certainly don’t all involve Christians and Muslims. But some do. And the fallout and sentiments surrounding them do affect Muslim-Christian relations. So, it seems appropriate to once again stop, reflect and protest against the suffering, injustice and inhumanity wrought on innocent civilians on all sides by war and violence. And also to reflect on what might be at stake when we choose whether or not to wear a poppy.
As we approach the 11th November, known as Veterans Day in the USA or Armistice Day in the UK and elsewhere, many in Britain – including church-going Christians – are wearing a red poppy. The Royal British Legion, which sells the poppies to support their charitable work with ex-servicemen, explains that it “advocates a specific type of Remembrance connected to the British Armed Forces, those who were killed, those who fought with them and alongside them”. You can read more of their explanation here. Many churches will also mark the occasion this Sunday with a two-minute silence and other special acts of remembrance during their services.
Such acts can obviously be an act of remembrance, mourning and paying respect. They can also be patriotic – or even nationalist – acts, affirming pride in a country and even its military prowess. In the current polarised political climate, the poppy can easily morph from being a symbol of mourning and loss to being a symbol of pride and domination.
For these reasons, others – undoubtedly including some Christians – will choose not to wear a red poppy. Many Muslims will also choose not to wear a poppy. Its connection with the British Armed Forces may be problematic or even painful, reviving memories of Western imperialism, Middle East wars, suffering and injustice. This refusal can easily be interpreted as a lack of loyalty to one’s nation, but it need not be.
Others will choose to wear a white poppy. These are worn by pacifists wanting to encourage a wider remembrance than just the UK armed forces and to start a conversation about alternatives to war. The Peace Pledge Union says that “there are three elements to the meaning of white poppies: they represent remembrance for all victims of war, a commitment to peace and a challenge to attempts to glamorise or celebrate war”. You can read more about white poppies here. Christians might want to reflect on what wearing a white poppy might communicate to Muslims and others. Muslims might do likewise. You don’t necessarily have to be a pacifist to wear the white poppy. Maybe you could wear it alongside a red one and really make people think!
And there are other colours. The black poppy commemorates those who lost their lives from African, Black, Caribbean and Pacific Island communities and the purple poppy remembers all those animals that have been killed in war.
All this is not to say whether you should or shouldn’t wear a poppy or what colour it should be. However, whatever you decide to do, think carefully about what its presence – or absence – may communicate to others, whether Muslims or Christians. What will they understand? How will they feel?
Armistice Day is an opportunity for everyone to reflect on the brutality and futility of war and events in the Middle East and elsewhere today, and to work for peace. It is also an opportunity for us all – Christians, Muslims and others – to revisit our theology, history and practice concerning war, peace and national identity. Reading the CMCS Hikmah Guide to Christians, Muslims and War would be a good place to start.