Britain is my home and for that, I will always have a fond attachment to it. This is a place I know; there are many people I love here and the many experiences I've had in this country have made me who I am today. I love the English language and English literature is one of my life’s passions. Is this to say that I am patriotic? No. Not even a little bit. In fact, the more I learn about the United Kingdom, the more ashamed I become.
I find patriotism a bit arbitrary. I would probably have the same mentality if I were born and raised in another country, spoke a different language, and enjoyed another country’s literary heritage. When I consider my country’s history, the legacy it has asserted on the rest of the world, the way we run our education and prison systems, and the way we have treated people who have less than ourselves, I find it difficult to root out patriotism in anything that isn’t fictional.
Do you know about the Bengali Famine? If you do, how old were you and how did you find out? I was nineteen years old and I found out through social media that one of the most iconic and glorified historical figures of all time was a white supremacist. I was horrified when I saw thousands of people fervently defending a man who consciously and enthusiastically let millions die.
History books around the world are not as flattering to Britain as we are to ourselves... just ask our nearest neighbours in Ireland. Fundamental parts of our history that have led us to our present moment are casually swept under the rug while we cling desperately to a warped version of World War II. Can we truly be patriotic if we are not familiar with the accurate, unbiased foundation of our wealth, our culture, and our legacy?
Why do so many people in Europe speak more than one language but we don’t? Apart from immigrant families who pass down their mother tongue to their children, English people do not learn foreign languages and we are notorious for it. The arrogance of linguistic imperialism will offend me until my dying day. Shrugging and saying, “well everyone speaks English anyway” is no excuse to underfund the education of modern languages and to refuse to learn the languages of our neighbours. Everybody else can manage it so why can't we? This is one of several things that upsets me about Britain.
I tried to cling on to some semblance of patriotism for a few years, trying to be grateful for what I have and proud of the place I call home, but what is the feeling of pride without the substance to show for it? Am I proud of our prison system based on retribution rather than rehabilitation? Am I proud of the increasing presence of cruel and expensive anti-homeless architecture rather than lending a hand to homeless people? Am I proud of a media industry that has infamously demonised the working class, single mothers, refugees, gay, trans, and disabled people and anyone who does not fall into the "middle-England" demographic? It seems my fortunate life in Britain does not stand a chance against the bones of the country I was born in.
I don’t mind seeing patriotism in other people, but in what specifically? I like it when people revere our NHS by reaching into their wallets after clapping their hands. I like it when people praise our diverse cultural sector by donating to their local theatre and pushing to keep it well-funded. Informed patriotism can be the foundation of many beautiful things, like people who show love for their country by keeping the streets clean, volunteering, and engaging in community projects to make their country better.
What I don’t like is belligerent, maniacal ravings about Britain being the best country in the world at the expense of all others. I don’t like when people portray the United Kingdom as a heroic underdog that has been unjustly treated by… Europe? I don’t like it when people decide they are the arbiter of who gets to be British and who is the "other." This sort of patriotism is dangerous and easily exploited to sway our votes towards policies that harm our country both culturally and economically.
Rather than ending with another complaint, I pose a question: does patriotism have to exist in opposition to something? The British patriotism I see often comes with an aggressive resentment towards mainland Europe, people who don’t speak English or racism. I fear that the blind love of a country results in the blind hatred of the foreigner, the outsider. I would love for this to be a conversation that we can have as we look to how much damaged misinformed patriotism has caused.
By Elizabeth Sorrell
Image courtesy of Skitterphoto via Pexels
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