Ben Alltimes
Happy St. David’s Day! I am not a Welshman and I am not one of those English people who desperately dig around in their family tree trying to find at least one Welsh ancestor so that they can wear a leek and get emotional when they hear a male-voice choir. I am unequivocally English, and although I understand the desires of the Welsh to celebrate their national day, it saddens me to see the apathy in my own country when it comes to national identity and our national day.
I read today that David Cameron (sporting a little daffodil on his lapel) hosted a party at number 10 to celebrate St. David’s Day, a party which was attended by many Welsh celebrities and politicians. Cameron was in top form as the British PM, doing his very best to assure the Welsh of their utter brilliance and their essential role in the UK. He congratulated the Welsh rugby team on beating England last weekend. He even bowed down to ‘Gavin and Stacey’ actress Joanna Page and begged for another series of the popular sitcom. The Welsh flag was hoisted in place of the Union Flag over the PM’s gaff to celebrate the day.
Cameron was being careful to maintain that most delicate balance that is so characteristic of unionist politicians venturing beyond the safe confines of England on diplomatic forays. He fawns over those countries and makes a big show of celebrating their cultures and ‘contributions’ in the hope that their people will rest assured that remaining in the UK really is in their favour. He promotes their unique national identities whilst providing gentle reminders that being part of the Union will be quite beneficial to their wider interests. He hopes that by bowing the knee to Welsh patriotism and sentiment he will avoid Welsh resentment and quell any real desire for Welsh separatism.
Cameron and the Brit elite’s attitude towards England and the English could hardly be more different. When they can be bothered to acknowledge the existence of our country at all, it is very rarely in a celebratory or positive sense. The British run England solely for the benefit of the Union, and that means stifling English nationalism. They can’t be so naive not to know that English resentment and national feeling is gaining momentum, yet they maintain a conspiracy that all three establishment parties will avoid the ‘English question’ as much as possible and fob off anybody who dares to object with platitudes about the vast (yet strangely spurious) benefits of the Union for all its members. There are a few exceptions and a few good men and women in Westminster who stand up for England, yet they are sadly few and far between.
The British elite incessantly encourage and promote a version of British patriotism and national identity in England, because they hope that this will weaken English national identity and prevent the English demanding their rights as a nation. Their strategy in Wales and Scotland is completely different; Give them plenty of freedom and privileges, allow them to rejoice in their distinct identities, but hope that at the end of the day enough of them will be happy with the status quo to decide to maintain it. A forced ‘Britishness’ in the Celtic lands would only fuel separatist and nationalist sentiment and they know it. Cameron talks to the English like naughty children who need to be kept in their place. Contrast this with his recent visit to Scotland when he showed a masterful display of flattery and sweet-talking, practically begging the Scots not to leave the sacrosanct, ‘successful’ Union.
I wonder what Mr Cameron has planned for St. George’s Day this year? Will he be hosting a party for English movers and shakers at Downing Street? Will he be welcoming leaders of the English community to congratulate them on their country’s massive contributions to the world? He won’t, because there are no officially recognised English leaders or English community. There is no English nation. We are merely the inhabitants of a collection of regions in the eyes of the British elite, people who happen to live in the southern part of Britain.
The few English nationalists and patriots who speak up are viewed as a bunch of dissidents, cranks, bigots and traitors who are not worthy of serious attention. One of the Welsh MPs was spouting off this morning saying that the Labour Party in England should rediscover its own English identity and reclaim the English flag from ‘xenophobes.’ Pardon me, but most people I know who fly the English flag are patriotic, not xenophobic. They are people who are willing to stick their head above the parapet and speak the truth rather than going along with the flow for the sake of a quiet and comfortable life. If loving England means exposing her enemies and their Anglophobe agendas for what they are, that does not mean that we are bigoted or blinkered. Nobody loves a dissident who speaks against injustice, but the day will come when he will be vindicated and praised by the nation that once loathed him.
If there was a celebration for St. George’s Day at number 10, you can be sure that it would be ‘inclusive’ with African dancing and Indian cuisine (to “celebrate the multicultural nature of England today.”) Funny, I didn’t see many ethnic minorities at the St. David’s Day bash, though perhaps they were there somewhere. Only the English it seems are not allowed an exclusive, distinctive cultural identity. The Welsh, the Scots and the Irish are treated as minorities in England are, with no compulsion to be ‘inclusive’ of anything that doesn’t originate from their unique cultural sphere.
It’s also curious that the British elite pay lip service to civic English identity, where everyone in England is seen as English regardless of background or culture. Many ‘Welsh’ people actually have actually lived most of their adult lives in England and yet still cling proudly to their Welsh identity. This shows the solid, unmovable nature of national feeling. If I moved to Wales I would not be regarded by the natives as truly Welsh, and if a Welshman moved to England he wouldn’t instantly start thinking of himself as English. A good example of this is Welsh Secretary Cheryl Gillan who was born in Cardiff, but who moved with her family to England at the age of 11 and who represents an English constituency, though she still regards herself as a patriotic Welsh woman. Can you imagine a patriotic English person representing a Welsh constituency in parliament? It wouldn’t happen.
Meanwhile today, all over Wales children will be dressing in their national costumes and singing their national anthem. Numerous parades and celebrations will be held all over that small, proud country, led by politicians and celebrities. It was reported today that over 90% of people in Cardiff feel patriotic for Wales. It was also reported that one in five people in London believe they have Welsh ancestry. No doubt some of them will also be celebrating today, quite unaware of what it means to be proud to English but rather hoping that they can buy into that officially sanctioned and politically-correct national pride that is permissible for the Welsh, the Scots and anyone (it seems) but the pesky, racist English.
Photo credit: Ian’s Shutter Habit on Flickr
