COVENTRY’S Muslim Hikers have partnered with the Jo Cox Foundation to organise a ‘great walk together’ on Saturday, June 25, to celebrate Refugee Week.
They have worked alongside Positive Youth Foundation and Coventry City Council to organise the event which will allow the local community to reflect on the journeys that refugees face.
More than 75 people are due to attend with many former refugees taking part.
The walk will start at the Coventry Muslim Resource Centre and will end at the Canal Basin, with refreshments available afterwards.
The annual Refugee Week celebrations aim to bring together communities and help people to learn about why people are displaced and the challenges they face trying to seek safety.
Coventry City Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing and Communities, Coun David Welsh, said: “Refugee Week is a fantastic opportunity to highlight the plight of those forcibly displaced from their homes, and celebrate their incredible contributions not just to Coventry but to the UK.
“We’ve been privileged not only to support new arrivals as they rebuild their lives in Coventry, but we’ve been first-hand witnesses to their incredible and selfless contributions to the city and its residents.”
Former Batley and Spen MP Jo Cox was an advocate for refugees before her tragic death six years ago, and she inspired the start of the ‘Great Get Together’ events, which bring together communities and help to tackle loneliness on the weekend closest to her birthday.
Muslim Hikers founder and director, Haroon Mota said: “Our aim with this Great Get Together, and with our regular hikes, is to show to the world that there is strength in numbers, and no matter where you’re from or what you’ve been through, there will always be those in the community that will support you.
“To see the community come together to celebrate the contributions of refugees, make new friendships and open up that dialogue about the plight of refugees and why they’re forced to leave their homes is incredibly heart-warming and powerful.”
