I am British!

I am British

I am British. I am part of that mongrel nation whose DNA is built from Angle, Saxon, Viking, Norman, Moor, Celt, Roman, Asian. African and so many more. We are full of hybrid vigour.

I have to laugh when I hear of animosity towards the French and Germans when so much of us is French and German.

I am proud to be British when I look at the way this country has fought to gain freedom and equality, a political system that is just, social fairness, freedom from slavery, class, race and gender. We have been a beacon for the world. Our freedoms from religion, tyranny and exploitation by the aristocracy have been well fought for with blood and dissent.

I am not so proud of our involvement in racism, slavery, invasion and exploitation.

We British have many social traits that have persisted – apart from dissent (and we’re good at that) we have humour, resolve, bravery, bloody-mindedness, stoicism and a sense of fairness.

I believe that there are abiding British values. These are not the ones the Tories were founded on – of God, King and Country. Less that 25% subscribe to Christianity these days. The adoption of a Middle Eastern religion was hardly the epitome of Britishness. We were much more intrinsically inspired by the Green Man and the ‘old’ religion Christianity displaced. That was more entrenched in our forests, green lands and nature. As for our monarchy with its German origins, well they were ever the robber barons who took the land by force and subjugated the ordinary people, confiscating their lands and ruling by might. The benign majesty and pageantry belies the huge wealth and estates and how they were acquired. And as for Patriotism – ‘The last resort of scoundrels’ – well all I can say is that it is time we began to become more mature and think globally. The days of nations should be put in the past. We are one people, one species, one planet. There are bigger and better things than countries.

So these are the values I hold dear and feel are the basis of my Britishness:

• Secularism – We fought through the enlightenment to separate the claustrophobic grip of religion from the throat of power. It had throttled the life out of the world for centuries. Theocracies, with their inward, backward thinking suffocate innovation, progress and freedom of thought. Religion, and I would fight for the right for anyone to believe in whatever superstitious nonsense they like (with the proviso that they do not indoctrinate children or enforce their nonsense on others), should be a personal belief arrived at by adults in a free country and never imposed. There is no place for it in government, schools or public life. I think that religious schools, Madrassas, Sunday Schools, burqas and having bishops in the House of Lords are anathemas to all we stand for. Religion should always be divorced from the seat of power.
• Tolerance – We are a multicultural country and respect all cultures. Colour, creed, religion and costume are all accepted. Debate, disagreement and dissent are all part of our culture. It makes us vital.
• Fairness and Justice – There is almost an innate sense of fairness and justice. We champion the underdog, turn on the bully, and give support to the needy. We set up a justice system where supposedly all are equal under the law whether aristocrat or tramp.
• Democracy – We stand for equality. All are equal under the law, all can vote and elect our government. This is an ideal. In practice the wealthy buy their votes, they buy the media that guides public opinion, but none the less the principle persists. There is no misogyny, elitism or racism in our system.
• Welcoming – through time we have welcomed people in, become a haven for the persecuted and provided homes. The Huguenots, Jews, French, Cypriots, Poles, Ugandans, Kurds, Pakistanis, Jamaicans, Turks, Chinese, and refugees from all over the world have sought refuge and been welcomed.
• English – Our language is English. It is part of our cultural identity. It is a rich and diverse language incorporating all the multitude of cultures that make up our rich history. There are many words, all with different nuance, that derive from the cultures we contain. Our words are German, French, Danish, Indian, Inuit, African, Chinese and Native American. We latch on to words, phrases and expressions and adopt them. We do not even recognise their foreignness. It is what makes the language so expressive.

None of our systems or institutions are perfect. Our values change over time. Christianity, for instance, is no longer considered a British value.

What worries British people about immigration is when large numbers of people come into the country and do not integrate, do not accept our values and do not speak our language.

We have no wish to have our culture usurped. We are suspicious of burqas, mosques, temples, synagogues and people who wish to impose other cultures on us. They are alien to our culture. We feel that if they wish to live in a theocracy then they should live in one of their choice – not try to set it up here.

I wish to live in a multicultural Britain with respect for other cultures, celebration of other cultures, but where British values pervade everything that happens within our country.