Benjamin Zephaniah - 'Wear a white poppy'
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ม.ค. 2025
- Writer, poet and musician Benjamin Zephaniah explains why he wears a white poppy: "I love wearing my white poppy. I could wear a red one, but I don't just want to remember British people who have died in war. I want to remember all people."
For more information about white poppies visit www.ppu.org.uk...
"Wear a white poppy. You know it makes absolute sense."
R.I.P. - Benjamin. The fight goes on.
Sadly I discovered this awesome intellectual and intelligent man after he passed.
So, sadly, did I.
@@anniehill9909 Same!
Surely seeing this man as an intellectual is subjective,maybe a reflection on your own limitations.
@@hoboheathen8926 He spoke highly of you too.
It doesn't matter. The important thing is his voice is heard. He has got you to engage with his words and think, and that is what he wanted.
I want to remember all people and animals who have dies in wars. I am devoted to peace in the world and in myself. Thank you Benjamin. I wear my white poppy with pride.
Wear a purple one then. Don’t buy any poppy that doesn’t go towards a military charity otherwise your just giving money to people who want to make cash from service men and women whilst not serving a day in their life
@@harveygray7633Your perspective is tragically shallow.
How many Wars were really ingenuous!?..A handful. War's are perpetuated to make money for the closet war mongers spouting rhetoric whilst sending Ur nearest n dearest to get deliberated in combat n then left to rot on the streets.!!🤬🤬
Peace is NOT a hiatus between perpetual conflicts being cooked up by ALL "Leaders"on this planet at some point in time.🫤
This amazing man became a regular to listen to after I read his obituary on bbc . Why did I not know about his profound thoughts? Thing is we humans wage wars but no one remembers the peril of wildlife like I do I grieve it every time there’s a man made war. He is the only person I know who mentions wildlife in a war. Respect and sorry I didn’t know you in life . ❤
Brought up in care, I found out when I was 66 that my father had been a conscientious objector in the war.
If only the world had been graced with thousands more like this great man, sad loss to humanity.
There are thousands of us, we are dismissed as nutjobs.
If there were there would have been a lot of burglaries and stealing and then when those thousands got out of jail never do a days work on their life.🙄
How heartening! This man was a blessing to the world.
Not so much to women and houses.
Right on Benjamin!!! Love and peace.
Such strength in considering not just remembrance but also working to a better world where war doesn't dominate and destroy so many lives. Thank you Benjamin, you're a great guy ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
There is no way to peace, peace is the way. pure genius so few words I’ll always remember them.what a beautiful person god bless❤
peace is cool,,,War is insanity;; Benjamin Zephaniah is a great man,,,,,
Awesome. I want in. I once wore a white feather on remembrance day, to commemorate all the conscientious objectors, who were brave enough to say "no". Sadly, most who remember, are trying to remember something, they didn't know in the first place, One love, bro
Very good. If everyone was a conscientious objector there would be no wars.
I wear a red poppy i was brought up to remember our people our allies and our enemies who died in war.
Likewise, I see it as a mark of respect for our fallen. I can't help thinking Benjamin is being somewhat provocative in encouraging people to change to white. I feel as though this man is duplicitous. A secret anti-white reactionary.
That's a great quote Benjamin, my favourite too. It's from Buddhist Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh if anyone didn't know.
Your words are so captivating & breathtaking it makes so much sense ❤️
Peace brother! Rest in Peace. Seems like the only time we get peace. Rest in power as well! Ase-oo
Amazing......i have never heard such poetry and common sense.....i will certainly wear mine with pride in the future......
Truth, simple, direct, full of humanity & the warmth of one love! RIP Benjamin Zephaniah, here are a few more peace quotes to add to BZ’s “until the power of love is stronger than the love of power, the world will not know peace!” (widely accredited to Jimi Hendrix), “teach peace” (urban graffiti; anon), “ I am already against the next war!” (Anon) & “all we are saying is give peace a chance!” (Yoko Ono & John Lennon). Peace will not be “out there” until it is within each of us! Namaste. Thanks for all the good stuff Ben, you are already sorely missed. ❤ PS if you can add to these quotes or know more accurate refs for the above please feel free to update. Thnx.
Your voice reached poland in 1986 so refreshing still love you restless soul in peace
Rest in peace. Thank you Benjamin ❤
Rest in peace Benjamin
Perfect message this is why i say man you gone Nowhere your Present remain right here Rest up Brother
"War is another form of insanity..." Demand ☮️
What a. wonderful man - such common sense - such humanity - superb intelligence.
Goodness me, the red poppy remembers the fallen whoever wherever they may be. The colour of blood. Its symbolism for me is just as you describe the white poppy to be. Your voice is true and heartfelt and I respect you for that. The road to peace can only be achieved through love . I wonder if the members of Hamas want peace, or just love hate. RIP dear fellow, may your voice be heard.
RIP❤
A good Soul
Did he ever apologise to the people he robbed and burgled?
He burgled my heart, made it good
RIP Mr Zephaniah, RIP…🙏🏻❤💛💚
Thank you. Beautiful message. And I would add, that if we wanted to prevent future wars, we have to act to prevent more escalating climate crisis. Rising temperatures reduce inhabitable space which will lead to more climate wars. The current one in Ukraine needs to be understood within the context of climate instability. We will have more and more war and conflict if the climate disaster is left to unfold as it currently is.
Whilst I agree, I'll still wear my red poppy with pride. We must never forget.
No we shouldn't forget, but its only British people that wear red poppies, Irish don't, I would wear a white poppy 100% but I won't wear red. I'm not embarrassing myself!
@@Chelleby21 It's sad, the red poppy has been hijacked by the far right in Britain. It was supposed to stand for all the things Benjamin spoke of in this video. No longer, sadly.
@@Fordnan ....It only gets hijacked if you stop wearing it. As for the red poppy only representing British people perhaps Chelleby21 needs to brush up on the history of wearing the red poppy. It actually started in France and was started by Anna Guérin and if you watch the laying of the wreaths at the cenotaph in London you'll see wreaths are laid by all nations.
@@rael1999 No, the poppy had been co-opted by the far right long before I stopped wearing it.
@@Fordnan .....What you talking about the majority of people who wear the red poppy wear it for the right reasons. Stop acting as spokesperson for the far right by claiming they've adopted as their own.
He has a good point,many civilians died too and why are only the military remembered?
On the British legion website it said the red poppies represent military and civilian’s from all faiths and backgrounds from the UK and Commonwealth.
The word Peace is an abstract word, because it's not a doing word/verb. By that I mean you don't say 'I peace'. What we need to do is do the things we do on a continual basis consciously with peace. The more people who actively, mindfully focus on doing things with peace will spread pace the whole world over.
Here's something - When you go for a siesta or when you sleep at night say "I'm going to rest in peace". This term shouldn't be reserved for those who are dead. When you wake up you will be rested and peaceful. So go to it and Rest In Peace. 🥰🕊🕉
You're a wonderful man. Seen you on question time etc. I still wear my red one. My grandad got killed in the war so never met him obviously. Also the money goes towards helping veterans. How about both!
Lots of people do wear both and make wreaths with both. Perhaps the Royals on parade will one day as well. It sends a different message than just the red one.🤝
Unfortunately most if the money collected today goes to soldiers who served not in any past world war but in current wars waged on defenceless innocent people in Middle East by US and some European countries - others by selling the arms - big business now of course. ! Wear a white one or none at all.
Absolutely! Unfortunately, war is a money making machine... world peace may take a while! Personal peace I work on every day 🙏 x.
I couldn't agree more. There are so many of innocent victims of war - civilians (look at Gaza right now!), animals and even conscripted soldiers who probably never voted for the Government which is choosing to make war. If Our Leaders had to don armour and fight each other, I think they would manage to find a way to avoid the conflict. I wear my white poppy, too. ❤
Innocent victims of war?. I recall 6m dead Jews?. Short memory or am I being misled?
I wear my white poppy with pride!
Agreed
Omg I love you and your mind set, please where can I find a white poppy 🙏 Blessings xxx
The remembrance poppies will forever be red.
I remember 💋
Its great to preach peace benjamin, but what hapoens when tyrants take over. Utopia is a fantasy. Rip
My great grandfather from Brazil helped Italy in WW2 as a soldier, RIP🙏🏼
Fascist
@@roody59 I wasn't alive back then💀
Thanks for saying something we really need to hear right now 🤍
The red poppy is to honour the dead of war. He didn’t understand Britain.
No, I think he did, hence why he never accepted an MBE. This british empire has been responsible for genocide and millions of deaths worldwide. Any British people who still cling to that as something that's good, or worth saving/remembering, well there's no place in a decent society for those people.
Where can I get my white puppy?
Pet shop!
@@gsg9205 lol
I wear my white poppy with pride 👍
Me too!
Curious if he applied the same logic to the BLM movement.
Best get me one of those then
I agree but I wear a red poppy but not only in remembrance of one country but all countries and animals, all who can feel... If I find a white poppy I may wear it together with my red one.
Unfortunately the red poppy only commemorates British forces. There’s nothing wrong with wearing it of course but by definition only the white poppy commemorates all forces.
@@liam77877 not sure if I agree that the red poppy is only for British forces. Apart from the Americans adopting it, the origin was the red poppies of Flanders flourishing despite all the other extreme destruction of war. I understand that as universal remembrance not restricted to one nationality as such even if countries also have their remembrance traditions nationally but that does not need to be interpreted as excluding remembrance of other nations.
@@philipdejock9732 By definition though the Red Poppy only commemorates British soldiers. I know it's an extreme analogy but it's the only one I can think of; if you wore a swastika you would be seen as a nazi, while some may say to them the swastika represents a Hindu symbol, at the end of the day you will be seen as a nazi no matter your personal intentions. That's why people wear a white poppy because by official definition it is a symbol of remembering all those who died. It's why so many Irish, Kenyans, Indians etc wear the white poppy - as they can remember all victims of war without having to commemorate just British soldiers who did horrific things in their country.
@@liam77877 Without repeating what I have already said, the Royal British Legion says that it is a very personal choice whether to wear a poppy, which in my understanding means that it is not merely restricted to those who died on one side of the war. Your comparison of the swastika does not in my opinion compare very well with the poppy but would be more related to communist symbols of totalitarian oppression that some people still seemed to cherish for purportedly ideological purposes... I do not think that the poppy celebrates those in power but those who lost their lives in unfortunate wars.
You say the only one YOU can think of. Don't mean to be petty or pedantic but we are talking about more than one of us thinks as you doubtless also meant...
It almost seems that some people wish to deliberately belittle the poppy rather than broaden it. I believe in a more constructive, inclusive, and less divisive society than maybe some of the critics of the poppy think. It is good to question things but one should not "throw away the baby with the bathwater".
@@philipdejock9732 You make a good point to be fair. Just to be clear, I have nothing wrong with people wearing the poppy. I just can't bring myself to commemorate soldiers who put my relatives through hell for no other reason than that they were born in the wrong place. It just doesn't sit well with me. But I understand your points.
Rip
😻🙏💮
♡
All I see is Jeremiah
I'll remember the day I spent with Benji in Sarajevo for ever and ever ❤
Benjamin for prime minister please
This comment didn't age well....
@@Talos2kX Indeed. Rest in peace Ben
I’ve seen people come back from worse
But the proper red poppy IS inclusive of everyone; who's saying it's not? Is he saying that certain ethnicities derserve special treatment in remembering war dead?
To wear unofficial poppies in these breakaway colours is defeating the object of having a single poppy for all and only creates division.
Where on earth did he say that?!?
What's with the hand signs though 🤔 very suspicious considering his stance against the elites why would he do this
R.I.P LEGEND
Not suspicious in the slightest.
Maybe he was positioning his hands a certain way because it's what people tend to do when they're professional at public speaking, which isn't just about speaking but also body language.
Also, Benjamin was really into meditation, Tai Chi, Yoga, Kung Fu... so he would've known about mudras, maybe that's what he was doing (something empowering that a lot of people won't learn about due to fear if they associate hand signs with the elite, but the elite didn't create mudras & they haven't become something evil just because the elite might use some of them or similar looking gestures).
I wasn't aware the Red Poopy came with so many restrictions, I can assure everyone, when I wear a Red Poppy, it doesn't simply restrict my thoughts, or thanks to those born in Britain, or the Commonwealth.
Neither does it restrict my thoughts to a select few, it in equal measure applies to those that served in WW1 and those that have served or suffered ever since, regardless of race or colour.
It's also a sign of support to those that served, suffered and survived war, again with zero restriction on race, colour, like the Ghurkhas I worked with in Kabul, or the Corporal from Bequia I worked with in Camp Bastion
Sadly that's not the meaning of the red poppy as given by the organisation which makes and sells them. It does indeed come with many restrictions on its meaning.
@@ColinBennun No it doesn't, don't like it don't wear any red, white or any other colour.
Take it up with the RBL, not me. Their website is pretty clear about it.
@@ColinBennun From their website:-
We unite across faiths, cultures and backgrounds to remember the service and sacrifice of the Armed Forces community from Britain and the Commonwealth. From veterans of the Falklands War and WW2 to those who continue to play a vital role in service to Britain today, we are commemorating military and civilian service through a variety of anniversaries and events in 2022.
I don't understand how anyone can find an issue or have a problem with any of the above, if you feel a red poppy glorifies war that's your opinion, wearing a white poppy achieves nothing, other than highlighting the virtue signalling of the wearer.
@@DavArc626 Then research what the appropriate symbol, or specific terms of remembrance they use, it certainly won't be a white poppy
Absolutely appalling
I always wear a white, a red and a purple poppy every year, to commemorate the animals, service personnel and civilians killed in war. I certainly did not need to be lectured about it. It is my choice yo wear them but if others choose not to, that is also their choice.
RIP BOO FKING HOO
Thanks but no thanks, sunshine!
Can’t see it catching on!
Live in Britain but don't be British.......or sensitive to them......
Free Palestine
I find him so boring and dull.
👎