Doorstep clapping is back – but does the country actually want it?

If you were already feeling like you've started 2021 with a bad case of groundhog day (lockdowns, school closures, Gavin Williamson upsetting people), then it seems we have official confirmation. Clap For Our Carers is making a comeback.

Sort of, anyway.

The first Clap For Our Carers took place on March 26, 2020, organised by 36-year-old yoga instructor and Streatham resident Annemarie Plas, who took inspiration from a similar movement in the Netherlands. At 8pm every Thursday, for ten weeks, people across the country took to their streets to hit palms and pots as a way of thanking the NHS and key workers.

Eventually – inevitably – collective fatigue set in, and on May 28, Plas announced she would be clapping for the last time, saying it had “had its moment”.

But now, its moment has returned. Today, Plas has announced that she will once again lead a mass clapping movement – this time not Clap For Our Carers, but Clap For Our Heroes. A subtle, but possibly important, rebrand.

If Twitter is a useful barometer, then the reaction is... not entirely warm. At the time of writing (and these things do change) searching the hashtag ‘#clapforheroes’ throws up a few supportive comments, and a small avalanche of negative responses. Many call it an empty gesture; others pine for a re-rebranding (‘Boo for Boris’ is a popular suggestion).

As with so many issues over the last year, we are again a country divided…

Key worker: ‘Trust me, we don’t want claps’

Many key workers appear to be against the Clap For Our Heroes initiative. The Twitter user above, a nurse for the NHS, encapsulate a common message: that clapping does not actually benefit critical workers. As another nurse wrote: ‘In my capacity as a nurse, I will say this with love, please don't clap for us. Instead put pressure on your MPs to ensure we have adequate PPE, are vaccinated in a timely manner and have safe staffing levels. #clapforheroes’

What signifies a ‘hero’?

One user, who is an NHS worker, expressed his discomfort at the clapping – claiming ‘we’re simply professionals doing a vital job’. It begs the question: who decides what makes a hero in our current climate? Clapping for carers felt targeted; clapping for heroes seems subjective. 

'It’s all for social media'

A number of Twitter and Facebook users alike argued that the clap is all rather performative – and rooted in a desire for social media ‘likes’. Some especially pointed at the hypocrisy of those who, in the last lockdown, would clap on their doorsteps every Thursday would then break the rules or not socially distance during the week.

And finally...  The enthusiastic participant

They do exist! OK, this response was broadly in the minority, but there are some happy clappers who have reacted with positivity to the news. During these testing times, they might argue, what harm can there be in taking a few minutes out of your day to come together as a community?

Right?