7th May 2007, Daughters of
Charity and members of the Vincentian Family
joined the Archbishop
of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor,
at a concelebrated
Mass in support of migrants workers at Westminster
Cathedral with
the leaders of two other nearby Catholic dioceses, Archbishop
Kevin McDonald of Southwark and Bishop Tom McMahon of Brentwood.
The
cathedral was packedto capacity.
After Mass the congregation joined other faith groups, trade unions
and
immigrants on a walk from Westminster Cathedral to
Trafalgar Square
o take part in a rally in support of the
'Strangers into Citizens' campaign
which is calling for a pathway to
legal rights for undocumented migrants
who have been in the country
for more than four years and are here
building up the fabric of British society.
Estimates vary widely as to how many illegal immigrants are living
in the
The
Government says there are up to 570,000, while pressure group
Migration
Watch puts the figure at up to 870,000. Rally organisers
say they support the
right to restrict immigration but contend there
are more than 300,000 people
already in the
are
being exploited by employers who pay them poverty wages,
undercutting
British workers and depriving the country of millions
of pounds of tax revenue.
Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor told the media he was in "no way" intending
to encourage future illegal immigration, but he said many illegal
immigrants had already been in the
of 'shadow land'. "That's not right
and it's not fair. Our government and governments all over the
world must treat migrant workers with justice and with dignity."
For more photos visit
photo
gallery
For further details visit
www.strangersintocitizens.org.uk
