Right after Halloween and just as every store is switching from its fall motif to Christmas-themed displays, most Canadians adorn the red poppy until November 11.
The poppy, crystallized as a symbol of war and remembrance from John McCrae's poem In Flanders Fields, is worn by most Canadians for a few weeks leading up to November 11.
Most Canadians, except me.
Growing up, I was deeply involved in Remembrance Day ceremonies in my hometown. Twice, I went to Holland to sing at Remembrance Day ceremonies. I spoke at Legions on the importance of remembrance as being necessary to peace.
But, as the Canadian government has demonstrated its support for foreign wars, the symbol of the poppy has been hijacked. While it remains a symbol of peace and remembrance for many, it has also become a symbol of support of Canada's current war ambitions.
Wrapped together with the yellow ribbon and a maple leaf, the poppy symbolizes a great myth: that there exists "just war" and that, through war, Canadians have been granted their freedom. Canada has been engaged in such a war for a decade, in Afghanistan.
When I see billions of dollars spent on fighter jets, the same amount of money that could eliminate tuition fees for all Canadian college and university students, I question what exactly we are remembering.
When I see veterans dying as a result of suicide, that Canadians are coming home with post-traumatic stress disorder and are being deserted by the government that sent them to Afghanistan, I question what exactly we are remembering.
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When I see statistics of the quality of life in Afghanistan or the rise in civilian deaths since the invasion in 2001, I question what exactly we are remembering.
Because, if we truly meant that we supported an end to all wars when we wear our poppies, surely Canadians could prevent our government from marching toward war. If our desire to remember led to a stated political will to end war, Canadian troops would have never been sent to Afghanistan in the first place.
The red poppy has instead become so normalized that it's simply something that we wear. We leave them on our sun visors in our cars. We lose them. We buy others. We say we remember but we don't do what's next to turn our remembrance into action.
Remembrance isn't enough to stop war.
In 1933, in England, the Cooperative Women's Guild started to distribute white poppies as symbols of peace. Rather than glorify and honour the dead of one particular country, the white poppy commemorates all war dead and calls for and end to all war.
The Peace Pledge Union continues to distribute these white poppies and, in 2005, actually came to an agreement with the British Legion on distributing the white poppy. In Canada, many pacifist and anti-war organizations make their own white poppies and distribute them in time for Remembrance Day.
Remembrance Day remains a political public holiday that, for me, is an important time to talk about Canada's role in war today.
My white poppy has turned a little grey as I wear it on my jacket year-round. But wearing a poppy isn't enough. All Canadians who support peace, whether they wear a white poppy, a red poppy, a poppy with a fleur-de-lys in the centre or nothing, must actively oppose any government agenda that seeks to send more Canadians to participate in foreign conflict.
Otherwise, wearing a poppy is an empty gesture, a socialized custom that has become as normal as dressing up for Halloween.
Follow Nora Loreto on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@nolore
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Canada is full of oil. Why would we have gone half way around the world to get something that we already have plenty of? Your conspiracy theories don't make any sense.
I would guess, given what you wrote, that your time in Holland was when you were quite young but take a moment to reflect on what the people of Holland suffered, where their family fled the war and what Canadians did then, and to a great extent do today, for people around thew world.
I understand that "a convert is the most pious of all" but your point about the virtue of the poppy is lost when you equate Remembrance Day to active promotion of war; it shows the more educated and literate readers your ignorance and lack of worldly experiences.
will disagree, but I think it's just one more step to normalizing war, and making it a part of daily life.
Today I've discovered the alternative: the white poppy, for the promotion of peace. I think that will be my November pin from now on.
1. for the men & women who by no fault of their own were sent to war or peacekeeping missions in various parts of the world.
2.for my husband who is a serving member
....so ...you refuse to see that who those that died & fought gave you the right to say your piece.
I didn't want to send my husband off to a war I disagreed with but its his JOB.....that's what he knew & signed up for because he loves his country so much & wants to keep it safe for his family..
The poppy is a symbol of that honour....love & duty & when we wear it - we honour thoem.
Please learn your history & then write....
I'll assume your opinion is informed by your young age -- I remember taking many unpopular positions when I was younger merely to tweak the nose of authority and established opinion. As I got older, I studied more and realized things are rarely as simple as the seemed to me when I was younger. War is one such thing. It is entirely logically consistent to be opposed to war yet believe there are times they must be fought to protect things, not the least of which is life and, at times, a way of life.
Anyone who has studied the Holocaust and still thinks war is never justified has no moral ground from which to argue.
Tying it to the government's military decisions does a huge disservice to veterans and members of the Legion.
Men of the past generations were sent to war either voluntarily or be conscription. many of them disagreed with war but they went to be of service to their country.
Ms. Loreta , you are entitled to your opinion about the government and its policies but leave the poppy out of it. If you don't think the sacrifices of many young men and women was worthy , keep that to yourself also.
Your right to disagree with the all aspects of Canadian involvement is a right that was not always guaranteed 60 years ago. There are many people in the world who don't have the right to publicly air their opinion like you do and ultimately fighting may be the only way they have to obtain what you take for granted.
I don't give a rat's behind for the politicians who sent them there or the wars they start. Enjoy the peace that you take for granted.
Right, because the poppy is a symbol of patriotism, and its close relatives, nationalism and militaryism. It's basically the only Canadian equivalent of the American flag lapel pin, albeit one that you only wear for one month every year.
You're free to wear a poppy but you should also respect people who take a different view. I don't assume that everyone who wears one supports the war in Afghanistan but I prefer to avoid all military and national symbolism and can't help feeling disturbed by it, whatever the intentions of the wearers.
I don't wear one either, unless directly asked by a veteran to do so. I also have difficulty with war in general. However, I am not so naive to think that it is an EMPTY gesture. Canada is more complex, and people more nuanced than you give them credit for.