GB News host Bev Turner declared "we need to do better" after a schoolgirl in Rugby was sent home from her school for wearing a Union Jack dress to their "diversity culture day".Courtney Wright, 12, was removed from Bilton School for choosing to wear a Union Jack dress and hat to celebrate Britain's history, penning a speech on the "modern and diverse" British culture.FULL STORY HERE.
00:02A 12-year-old girl was put into isolation for wearing a Union flag dress to her school's Culture Day.
00:08This is according to her dad, Stuart Field.
00:11Yeah, no such thing as British culture, apparently.
00:13So, straight-A student Courtney Wright wore the Spice Girls-esque dress.
00:17You can see it on screen there.
00:18And she wrote a piece about British history and traditions as part of the celebrations at her school on Friday.
00:24And then the teachers told her the dress was unacceptable.
00:28She was taken out of lessons and made to sit in reception until her father had to come from work and pick her up.
00:36Right.
00:37What has happened here that you can't celebrate British culture?
00:42And why does it matter?
00:44You know, let me tell you what she said.
00:46So, she had to write a little speech.
00:47And she said, I want to talk about my culture and why it's important to me.
00:51In Britain, we have lots of traditions, including drinking tea, our love for talking about the weather, and we have the royal family.
00:56We have amazing history like kings and queens, castles, and writers like Shakespeare.
01:01It's also, she said, modern, diverse, and always changing with music, fashion, and food from all around the world, blending into daily life.
01:09And let's not forget fish and chips.
01:11This is wonderful because what I don't know about you, Ben, but what I find also most remarkable is that her father was able to do this or she wanted to do this because on cultural day, I can't imagine a scenario in which I could get my children at that age to do that because they would say,
01:29it's not about us, mummy.
01:31It's not about us.
01:32It's about everybody else.
01:33So, where does that come from, that almost inherent guilt that you can't talk about your own culture?
01:38In that speech, the rest of it, she wrote, sometimes at school we only hear about other cultures, which is great because learning about different countries is interesting and important, but it can feel like being British doesn't count as a culture just because it's the majority.
01:51I think culture should be for everyone, not just for people from other countries or backgrounds.
01:56Being British is still a culture and it matters too.
01:59It's part of who I am.
02:00And this underpins so many of the important conversations that we have on this channel.
02:06It underpins everything about when we talk about free speech, what we can and can't say.
02:09It underpins when we talk about legal and also illegal migration and why it matters.
02:15Because if you believe that Britishness matters, it means that we can take a stand on watching it be gradually eroded.
02:24And I think part of it is that when we talk about Britishness, we don't really know what we mean.
02:31It is very difficult.
02:32You do descend into clichés about cricket bats on a summer day and scones and tea.
02:38We need to do better at understanding what we mean when we talk about Britishness.
02:43So, good for Courtney for going out and at least trying with her classmates to get them to think about what that might be.
02:49And also, it's ironic, isn't it?
02:51I think Britain is one of the most hospitable, welcoming, inclusive, all the cliché words, diverse countries going.
02:57We welcome everybody and anybody to this country.
03:00More than any other country, I'd argue.
03:02And yet we are constantly, especially British people and the country itself, constantly made to feel guilty for our past, colonialism, the British Empire,
03:11made to feel like we're racist or not being inclusive, when the truth of the matter is the complete opposite.
03:15It's like Britain is a sort of domestic abuse victim, just constantly being gaslit by people who have, you know,
03:22just have a disdain for our history and who we are.
03:26I never feel guilty about being British.
03:28Made to feel like it.
03:29Well, people can try and make me feel guilty.
03:33I never will.
03:33But I do struggle sometimes when we talk about migration into this country and the vast numbers that we've seen in very recent times of the massive demographic change in such a short period of time.
03:45I struggle to articulate why it matters and it matters if we think our identity matters.
03:51And we have to have more conversations like this.
03:54Driving into work this morning, I do this quite a lot.
03:58Maybe it's just I'm seeing, but I see now, I see more women, this might shock you if you don't live in London,
04:04I see more women on my journey into work wearing the hijab than not.
04:11So what I mean is I see more women just with the veil, so you can see their face.
04:15I saw more women with it than without it.
04:19Now, some would say it doesn't matter, it's only a piece of clothing.
04:22Maybe it doesn't matter, maybe it is only a piece of clothing.
04:24But it certainly isn't a British traditional piece of clothing.
04:29And are we getting to the point where we just accept that the majority of women will wear headdresses?
04:33No, I don't want that.
04:35I don't like it.
04:36I find it hard to explain it to my daughters because particularly when, obviously, with the hijab and the chador,
04:44like all of the extra veils, I have no time for that at all.
04:48Do you think we're past the point of no return, though, to trying to salvage any sense of...
04:52I mean, let's talk about London specifically, which I don't feel like is an English city anymore.
04:56I mean, white grits in London are a minority, that's a fact.
04:58Do you think that's salvageable?
05:01I think culture, the wheel turns, and daughters of will become more westernised, and that's what we do.
05:06And maybe we're just in a period of time where this feels quite profound.
05:09But I don't know.
05:09I'd love to know what you at home think.
05:11Gbnews.com for us, that's your say.
05:12Just before we move on, the one aspect of this we've not discussed is the teachers.
05:15David said on your say, those teachers should be ashamed for doing what they've done.
05:19They should be removed from teaching children as they're clearly not fit for the job.
05:21Not sure if I agree with that latter part, but definitely there is questions to be asked.
05:25Of the teaching profession, why are they so indoctrinated?
05:28Well, let's tell you.
05:28A spokesman for the Stowe Valley Trust has said,
05:30we are committed to fostering an environment where every pupil feels respected, valued and included.
05:34We have since spoken directly with the pupil and her family to listen to their concerns
05:38and reflect on how this could have been handled better.
05:40We are committed to learning from this experience and ensuring that every student feels recognised and supported
