'We must change the immigration narrative' - Canterbury Cathedral marks Refugee Week'
The Cathedral is displaying the names of every single person who has died in Calais or while crossing the channel
A Canterbury Cathedral reverend has told us they're determined to change the 'narrative' around immigration.
This week, in the cathedral's crypt, there is a display of the names of every single person who has died in Calais or while crossing the channel.
Starting in 1999, when records began, and finishing in 2025, there are nearly 500 wooden plaques with some of the names withheld to respect their families.
The oldest person is 42-years-old, while the youngest person was alive for just 3 days.
Reverend Dr Emma Pennington, canon missioner at the cathedral said: "It's heart-breaking, there's just a name and a date, that's it but there was a life there which is now gone.
"All that potential, all the hopes they must have had in making the treacherous journey from their homelands where they were facing oppression, violence, torture and all the other things we wouldn't even think about."
"And so when I see some of the headlines, I think, the English people aren't like that. They're kind, they're good, they have generous hearts and these people seriously need us."
It comes as Canterbury Cathedral marks Refugee Week. A discussion panel will be held today to discuss asylum seekers crossing the English Channel and global migration, including government policy.
The cathedral will also held an evening of food and music on Monday to celebrate multi-culturalism.
The events have been organised with the Social Justice Network, a group in the Canterbury diocese working with refugees and asylum seekers.
Reverend Professor Jonathan Arnold, executive director of the Social Justice Network, said: "These people are more than just a statistic. Each one of them was a human life, with dignity and purpose and they were just searching for safety."