A Tory MP said something about white poppies and got schooled – the 17 best replies
Johnny Mercer – Tory MP, star of Celebrity Hunted and man who said he wouldn’t vote Conservative if he weren’t one of their representatives – made a highly judgemental and uninformed comment about the wearing of the white poppy, also known as the Peace Poppy.
White poppies are attention seeking rubbish. Ignore the wearers of them. If you don’t want to wear a poppy don’t bother; they fought and died so you could choose. But don’t deliberately try and hijack it’s symbolism for your own ends. Well done @BrianWoodMC https://t.co/HRK3wW3qY5
— Johnny Mercer MP (@JohnnyMercerUK) October 22, 2018
Whatever the Right Honourable member thought the white poppy stood for, he was soon swamped by replies setting him straight on the history of the Peace Poppy and the reasons people have for wearing them. With stories of PTSD and war, these comments come with a trigger warning.
1.
My great uncle Tommy was machine gunned at Passchendaele, survived, and refused to wear a poppy that he felt glorified the horror. I wear a white poppy to respect him AND the other veterans.
Tell me he was wrong to refuse to wear one.
Tell me I'm wrong to respect him. https://t.co/OS9Fk3yU61
— Russ #FiveQuidFoodbank (@RussInCheshire) October 31, 2018
2.
Maybe you should learn your history before you speak. White poppies have been around since the 1920s and indicate an effort to commemorate not only soldiers but civilian victims of war as well. https://t.co/9nMHtOJVYt
— Laleh Khalili (@LalehKhalili) October 23, 2018
3.
They were first worn in 1933 by the Women’s Co-operative Guild to symbolise a message of “no more war”. Do you think those women, whose lives were so devastated by WW1, were mere attention seekers? #whitepoppy
— Bernadette Meaden (@BernaMeaden) October 23, 2018
4.
My grandpa and his 18 year old brother were at the Somme, grandpa came home, is brother did not.
Grandpa always wore a poppy to honour his brother & comrades – he always wore a white one. He earned the right to make that choice and he was not attention seeking.— mollymoo (the beep beep is here to stay). (@mollyluna11) October 22, 2018
5.
And also, no one fought and died so 'you could choose' to wear a poppy. Total bollocks. Shows a complete misunderstanding and/or complete ignorance about the causes of British entry into World Wars One and Two. https://t.co/z978P20YFc
— swiss adam (@swissadam1) October 31, 2018
6.
If you want to wear a red poppy, your choice.
If you want to wear a white poppy, your choice.
If you don't want to wear a poppy, your choice.If you are criticising people for their own choice, you just sound like one of the fascists who people fought and died against. https://t.co/5UjiIGB0fQ
— Matt Thomas #GTTO (@Trickyjabs) October 31, 2018
7.
yes, johnny. they are attention seeking. they're seeking attention for the forgotten and ignored victims of war. that's exactly the point. https://t.co/0D66hpnJRX
— catriona macdonald (@prawnjolras) October 31, 2018
8.
Poppy laws. Obey the rules people. Do what you're told. Conform. Johnny Mercer served in the army for 10 years so he owns the poppy. He can tell you what to wear. My aunt who served in the RAF and whose experiences of war led her to become a pacifist shouldn't have bothered. Obey https://t.co/IaHPWTMqI5
— Otto English (@Otto_English) October 31, 2018
