It’s been six months since the Grenfell Tower tragedy and a multi-faith memorial service took place this morning at St Paul’s Cathedral to remember and honour victims and survivors. Several senior members of the royal family were there, including Prince Charles and Camilla, Prince William, Catherine, and Prince Harry. Adele also attended alongside Carey Mulligan and Marcus Mumford. According to the Guardian, it was “probably the most diverse congregation ever seen at St Paul’s” and the mood was somber but there was also a lot of anger. This is a community that has long felt neglected and they believe it was that neglect that caused the disaster. They also believe that the neglect persists because there have been so few answers, so many people are still homeless and/or displaced. Last month I read an article at the BBC about how concerns about the safety of the building were raised well before the fire. A new article this week in The Globe & Mail describes the Grenfell situation as “symbolic a divided Britain”. Many of the residents of Grenfell are Muslim immigrants who believe that their concerns are not just secondary but irrelevant. Concerns, in this case, meant lives.
This is not the first time Adele has been involved in raising awareness for Grenfell. She volunteered in the days following the fire, and during her concert in June, shortly after the fire, here’s how she described the experience:
“One of the most intense experiences of my life. They’re not receiving the things we think they are. It’s a f-cking mess. No information is getting through, people feel helpless. No one knows what they’re doing down there, it’s chaos.”
She would understand then that her presence today, with Carey and Marcus, and also the royal family, will keep attention and media on the situation. I don’t have access to the photos of Adele and Carey and Marcus from today’s service. To see them, please click here. To learn more about the survivors and how they’ve been coping, please click here. And to learn more about how you can help, please click here and scroll down.
