Some people are born in the UK, live their whole life as a UK citizen, and are buried in the UK as well. However, not everyone has such a simple case of their national identity and citizenship.
This is naturally most obvious with immigrants, as those who have moved to the UK can sometimes have a less straightforward relationship with their national identity. On the one hand, feeling like you have a national connection to two different countries can be an empowering thing!
However, equally, it can be easy to get into a feeling of belonging to neither place. This can often depend on how long you have been in a place, perhaps even across generations.
The Windrush generation is one of the most commonly explored examples of this, on both sides of the discussion. With Windrush Day 2024 fast approaching, there is never a better time to reflect on national identity and the sense of belonging that we all deserve.
What Is Windrush Day?
Windrush day is the day that marks and celebrates the contributions of the various migrant groups that entered the British economy immediately following the Second World War. It more specifically celebrates the Afro-Caribbeans who first arrived on the HMT Empire Windrush, after which the day is named.
As the nation was still in shock and recovering from the Second World War, these migrants from Britain’s allies came at a crucial time to help rebuild the Nation. These immigrants arrived on the 22nd of June 1948, with over 1,000 on the Empire Windrush alone.
They were recruited by the British government to work jobs in both the industrial and service sectors, in all fields from steel production to working in the newly formed National Health Service.
However, these immigrants were not met with the appreciation and respect they deserved when they first arrived, especially given the difficulty of leaving life and coming to a new country associated with immigration. In fact, they faced extreme intolerance from huge swathes of the white population.
This was of course in spite of the government encouraging the immigrants to come to the country, the existing population still treated them very poorly based only on the colour of their skin and the fact they came from somewhere else.
Why is Windrush Day celebrated in Britain?
In spite of this, the Windrush generation as it would become known played a hugely important role in getting the UK economy back on its feet. This is also why such importance is placed on celebrating the day! However, how can we celebrate Windrush Day on either side?
While for the immigrants and their families, their arrival was the start of much hardship in tandem with the opportunities it presented, for the rest of the population Windrush Day is nothing to be proud of, after all.
However, there is still some significance in celebrating Windrush Day.
For instance, Windrush Day 2023 marked the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the Empire Windrush to the UK, which was important as it was a significant milestone since the families became a proper part of the UK national identity.
Indeed, after 75 years, it’s likely that the descendants of the majority of the Windrush generations feel more strongly that they are UK citizens than loyal to the countries their families travelled from on the Empire Windrush!
This is, of course, entirely true and valid. Nationality and national identity is an entirely personal thing, unlike anything purely genetic. The families from the Windrush generation have as much reason and right to identify themselves as British as anyone else living in the country if not even more so thanks to their contributions to the nation’s economy in its time of need.
Although, this crucially isn’t an all-encompassing blanket statement. Not everyone is going to look upon this in the same way, and it’s entirely possible a descendant of the Windrush generation may still feel a stronger loyalty to the countries their families emigrated from.
Ultimately, this is something that only an individual themselves will be able to decide, and the question of what one feels comprises their national identity is too personal to be able to make sweeping statements on.
Why Was Windrush Day created?
In simple terms, Windrush Day was created as a way to celebrate both the contributions of the post-war immigrants to the UK economy, as well as the hardships they faced in doing so.
It is a symbolic day that can encompass many ideas of immigrants being denied the national identity they deserve by existing residents, ideas which still ring true to this day.
While we would all like to think that the UK has become a much more accepting place to immigrants who want to join our great country, sadly this often ends up being the case much less frequently than we think.
In fact, the UK generally has a very poor record when it comes to their treatment of immigrants, something which on Windrush day it is worth reflecting on and considering.
How is Windrush Day celebrated?
This is because, beyond just the first ship that sailed from the Caribbean, many other immigrants came both from the area and elsewhere in Britain’s colonies over the period between 1948 and 1971, which is said to be the Windrush generation.
During this time, Britain offered citizenship to all of those coming to the country from her colonies, which thus meant that the entire Windrush generation were British citizens as soon as they stepped onto English soil.
As a result, a huge number of people from many walks of life in the modern day have a connection to celebrating Windrush Day. Most often, celebrating Windrush Day is about feeling a connection to history, family, and nation.
This can be in a wide number of different ways, and different communities will host different events to help bring communities together in this. For instance, it isn’t uncommon for art galleries and museums to put on specific exhibitions to celebrate the day. Schools often have days dedicated to teaching about the Windrush generation and their legacy.
However, Windrush Day is a much more community-centric day of celebration. It is for individuals and their families and friends to be able to celebrate both their heritage and their national identity at the same time, whatever those may take.
Windrush Day isn’t a bank holiday, although over the years it has certainly grown in popularity.
When is Windrush Day celebrated?
Windrush day falls on the 22nd of June every year, meaning Windrush day 2023 and Windrush day 2024 will both fall on the same date.
Windrush Day 2024 is the 76th anniversary of the arrival of the Empire Windrush, with Windrush Day 2023 marking the 75th anniversary by extension.
Windrush Day has turned into more and more of a joyful but equally introspective celebration in recent years. This is in equal parts from the time since the first arrival of the Empire Windrush meaning there is more to look back on and celebrate in the time since, but also because of more modern events.
As Britain continues to face a challenging climate in terms of migrants, especially with regard to the poor treatment of those who come to our country, Windrush Day serves as a reminder that Britain has always been more than just those who have lived here for millennia.
Why is Windrush Day important in 2024?
This reminds us of the crux of why Windrush Day is important, and worth celebrating. It allows us all an opportunity to reflect on how we treat others, especially those whom we might not at first instinctively think of as our fellow countrymen.
With the rise of identity politics and nationalism creeping back into the United Kingdom, this is more important than ever before.
Everyone should be taking some time to consider how they are treating others, and especially how they are acting towards those who may not have such a strong and unshakeable sense of belonging to the place they live.
Much of national identity, modern affairs, and cultural sense of belonging are informed by history, and as such history remains one of the most relevant subjects one can learn, even outside of school.
To this end, if you are curious about history, or even just want some help with your history as a school subject, you may wish to consider private tutoring. Tutoring allows you to target your history learning to specific areas that interest you.
Whether that is post-war Britain, The British colonies and the empire, or even specific places in history like the Caribbean, having an expert able to teach you about history can make your learning much more fun!
And with many tutors right here on Superprof, you can find one who shares your passions and interests. With many tutors offering their first lesson for free as well, there’s never been an easier way to take a deeper dive into whatever corner of history you are most curious about!
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