Red and white

The parallel histories of two poppies

Aaron Levere, Staff

The conventional idiom is that we remember the past so that we can learn from it to prevent ourselves from making the same mistakes in the future.

Worn in remembrance of victims of war, a red poppy has been a widely-recognized symbol since 1921, when the British Legion adopted the tradition from widows in France whose husbands had died in the recently-ended war.

British soldiers were not well-supported by their government upon their return home from the Great War, and the British Legion — like veterans associations in other countries — was borne of a need for social support. The Legion decided to commission the production of thousands of poppies as a fundraiser for their organization, which at the time existed to support wounded and disabled veterans and their dependent families.

The French widows who had initiated the poppy-wearing tradition were hired to produce thousands of artificial poppies to be worn on the lapel in honour of all who had died in the war. Once production of the flowers had started, the women making them contacted veterans associations in other countries to suggest a similar fundraiser. In that same year, Canada’s Great War Veterans’ Association (which became the Canadian Legion in Winnipeg in 1925) adopted the wearing of a poppy as a symbol honouring those killed in the war.

Today the red poppy has become a symbol for the Royal Canadian Legion itself in its mandate (as stated on their website) to recognize the “valour and sacrifice of veterans” and honour the “memory and deeds of the fallen.” In it’s current form, the Legion continues to support and advocate on behalf of veterans and their families, but also continues a forward-looking mandate of reminding younger generations of the “sacrifices made by those who gave their lives.”

Another poppy shares a similar history. The white poppy, less common and not as widely recognized, is also worn on the lapel for Remembrance Day. The white poppy is also a symbol honouring those who have been killed in battle, but its intent is also to recognize those non-soldiers killed in and because of war. It is intended to honour and remind, but also to make a statement for peace.

The idea of the white poppy originated with the No More War organization in Britain in 1926, just a few years after the very popular red poppies became common. The anti-war organization suggested to the British Legion that each of their poppies could include the words “No more war” in the centre. When this idea was refused, it was decided that an anti-war symbol was needed, one that recognized and honoured the fallen soldiers, but also called for efforts to end war altogether. This other symbol was created a few years later by the Women’s Cooperative Guild (WCG) in London.

The WCG was started in Britain in 1883 for some of the same reasons that veterans’ associations were later formed: there was a need for a network of support and a unified lobby organization. Originally organizing in support of women’s rights, the WCG later expanded their mandate and became a major opponent of the Great War, issuing a statement in 1921 demanding the “cessation of the provocative competition in armaments,” while “purging politics and education of militarism in all its forms,” “abolishing force as a remedy for social unrest,” and “eliminating private profit-making from the industrial system.”

In 1933, it was the members of the Women’s Cooperative Guild who came up with the idea of the white poppy to recognize the horrors of war — the millions of soldiers and civilians killed — and to advocate the movement toward peace.

Due partly to its dissident history, the white poppy has been and sometimes still is seen as a sign of disrespect towards the meanings symbolized by the red poppy. The red poppy is a widely-revered symbol, and wearing an alternative has not come without controversy. But it is important to remember that both poppies came from a dissident history, from people who were victims following their governments’ wars. And the contrast of the white poppy does force us to give pause and reconsider the meaning of remembrance.

Today the white poppy is still worn, and has been adopted by many peace advocacy groups worldwide. Some people have taken to wearing the red and the white poppies side-by-side out of respect and gratitude for veterans and killed soldiers, while also remembering others killed in the pursuit of war. The white poppy makes the statement that in remembering, we must also look beyond the battlefield and to the future.