Great Get Together in Memory of Jo Cox

“We are far more united and have far more in common than that which divides us.”

When Jo Cox said this during her maiden speech in the House of Commons she didn’t know how iconic it would become. It was a simple statement of values, made by a woman who had spent her entire life campaigning for and living them.

Just over a year after she made that statement, Jo was murdered due to her beliefs while on her way to a constituency surgery. As a response, Jo’s family and friends came together to run the first ever Great Get Together – to celebrate her life, her values and the way she’d changed the world for the better.

The first Great Get Together was a huge success, with millions of people taking part. The thousands of Great Get Together events around the UK celebrated her #MoreInCommon message, rejected division, and showed that hate wouldn’t win.

Since 2017 the Great Get Together has taken place every year, bringing millions of people together to celebrate what we have in common. In addition to this, at the Jo Cox Foundation we continue  to make change on a range of issues that Jo cared about; building stronger communities, respectful politics and a fairer world. As part of this work, we’ve worked with Show Racism the Red Card (SRtRC) to develop the Jo Cox Memorial Award for anti-racist artwork or poems,  as part of SRtRC School Competition.

Shania was the winner of the Jo Cox memorial Award this year and was also a winner of the Years 7-9 Creative Writing Category. Here she is pictured below receiving her prizes.

This year’s Great Get Together will take place between 23-25 June, the weekend closest to Jo’s birthday. Across the country people will run hundreds of events which celebrate what we have in common and which reject division; from charity cricket games with refugees, to community cinema screenings, from a cup of tea with a neighbour to giant picnics bringing together dozens of primary schools.

Each of these events will help to bring communities  closer together, to reject racism and to embrace what we have in common. Whether you’re a school, a library, a community group or an individual we’d love for you to take part. Visit: greatgettogether.org/2023

Here at Show Racism the Red Card we pride ourselves on working with partner organisations that share our values and none better exemplify this than the Jo Cox Foundation. We encourage all of our supporters to join or organise events for this year’s Great Get Together and continue the memory of Jo and all she stood for.