Final Part: British War Veterans for Your Attention

IDENTITY SERIES - FINAL PART

Introduction

We all need role models we can look up to. Alan Turing, Captain Sir Tom Moore, Vera Brittain and Eric Lomax are all key historical figures who have impacted on British society. Turing, Brittain and Lomax have all had their stories lead successful films, while Captain Sir Tom Moore, recently deceased, will most likely have one to cover his life in the future. While anyone can take away valuable lessons from their stirring and inspiring tales, one problem remains. For British citizens descending from other countries in the commonwealth, people who look like them are absent or given less prominence from public awareness. There’s a possibility that there are just too numerous names to squeeze into a curriculum, which explains why learning about them is optional. Or, perhaps the mindset for a separation of colonial subjects from British ones in public awareness reflects an unspoken belief: they were from other countries (albeit within the Empire) and their countries of origin should be the ones to teach their history. Noor Inayat Khan, Ulric Cross, Lilian Bader, Bal Bahadur and Walter Tull could inspire current British citizens - from the same background and beyond. 

Confronting Our Colonial Past

When we think of postcolonialism, we instantly picture a subject that belongs to further education and mostly addressed through literature. But postcolonialism applies to our everyday experience. Attitudes towards People of Colour in the UK can reflect thinking from the past, especially when it comes to recognising the efforts of People of Colour in the world wars and beyond. While the current British Armed Forces works to ensure it’s inclusive of any citizen, as a society we still fail to recognise those scattered across the empire who fought under one flag. An archived version of a page called WW2 People’s War on the BBC’s website shows that attempts have been made to encourage teachers and parents to cover Black and Asian additions in the war effort. However, in this report from 2013, under the section ‘Challenges for Britain, Europe and the Wider World 1901 to the Present Day’, Black and Asian contributions are treated as optional. If individuals are interested in delving further, they have to select modules at university. Of course, anyone can pay a trip to a library or bookshop for an educational book on these subjects. However, it helps to have a course syllabus guiding the exploration. This still doesn’t address these heroes being sidelined from broad public awareness. Perhaps the nature of colonialism is why the heroes aren’t featured in British education; to feature them would mean opening up the problematic nature of empire.     

Recognising “Other” Contributions and Its Impact on Our Self-Worth

Even in a multicultural society, we underestimate the importance of representation within the education system and the arts. We live in a modern era as British citizens, not imperial subjects, but we still need to know about notable members of our communities. How can we use their stories of bravery and resourcefulness to forge our own paths? History is richer when a variety of stories are explored. For the homogenous-minded, representation is an afterthought because people who look like them are already taught, studied and revered. Therefore, the idea of representation is viewed as a nuisance and People of Colour are disregarded as complaining about nothing. If people who are “different” don’t have a voice in the arts and education, they are likely to feel disenfranchised and disillusioned. They go through life feeling unheard and unvalued. It's often taken for granted how much we need inspirational figures to guide us through our own lives and shape our identities.

Conclusion

Documenting the achievements and contributions of Khan, Cross, Bader, Bahadur and Tull is important so their sacrifices weren’t in vain. It’s also important to remember them in relation to our ideas of self, since they pose the question: are we valued members of society? If not, they prompt us to ask ourselves what we can do about it. How can we make ourselves heard and more visible in society? By raising awareness about heroes who look like us, we’re opening everyone’s eyes to preserving the correct history and ensuring all historical actors get acknowledged. In doing so, we draw closer to achieving true equality.

Commentary by Dee Sohi

Twitter handle @RebelRani1

Dee’s on The Dots