Since the end of the First World War, Remembrance Day has been an occasion to commemorate the members of the Armed Forces who lost their lives. Initially, it was those who died in World War I who were remembered, but now Remembrance Day encompasses World War II and subsequent conflicts. When we wear a poppy, it is principally these people we remember, and their families and colleagues we support.

It is important that we remind ourselves of what those people died fighting against … and for. As it did in the 1930s, the UK far-right is again seeking to appropriate the symbols of patriotism. We should not allow them to do that. We should remember why those soldiers died. World War II was a struggle against fascism; and it was also a struggle for a better world.

The struggle against fascism

At the outset, the forces opposing the fascists appeared destined to lose. Churchill’s famous We Shall Never Surrender speech envisaged (but did not predict) Britain being conquered, and a government in exile continuing the fight from North America:

“We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this Island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God’s good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the old.”

But, of course, Britain held off Hitler’s forces, and after six years of desperate conflict, fascism was defeated, and democracy prevailed.

The struggle for a better world

In the middle of World War II, in 1942, the National Government of Great Britain commissioned Sir William Beveridge to produce a report on the reconstruction of Britain after the war ended. His report aimed to create a better, fairer, more prosperous society, and to reward the nation for its shared sacrifices during the war.

Specifically, Beveridge aimed to free Britain from what he called Five Giants: Want [poverty], Disease, Ignorance, Squalor and Idleness [unemployment]. The report was published in November 1942 and was hugely popular with the public.

After the war, the report was implemented – leading to the creation of the welfare state and the birth of the NHS – and a new social contract was established. The post-war period saw, in many countries, an economic miracle – in the US and the UK, we called it the Golden Age of Capitalism – in which not only did the economy thrive, but the typical member of the population fared far better than ever before. Or, unfortunately, since.

Today’s struggle

Today, although there are again conventional wars which threaten democracy – eg in Ukraine – the biggest threat to global democracy comes from the battle of ideas.

In 2024, European democracy seemed to be clinging on: in France, the newly formed Nouveau Front Populaire narrowly held off the far-right Rassemblement National; and in the UK, the Labour Party managed to defeat the increasingly far-right Conservative and Reform parties.

But in the US, Trump was re-elected, and we can see the reality of what a far-right government means in practice. As well as dismantling democracy, Trump is cutting provision of food to the poorest families and reducing their access to healthcare. The same thing could happen here.

Politicians in the UK who openly supported a Trump victory include: Liz Truss, Boris Johnson, Kemi Badenoch, Robert Jenrick, Suella Braverman, Jacob Rees-Mogg and, of course, Nigel Farage.

The threat to democracy and our post-war social contract has not been greater in most of our lifetimes.

Conclusion

So when we celebrate the lives of those who sacrificed them in WWI and WWII, we should remember what they fought for and determine not to lose that fight ourselves. In WWII, in particular, the odds seemed hopeless, and many were more pessimistic than Churchill; but it turned out that refusing to surrender was the right strategy. And the world benefited hugely from that dogged determination.

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