U.S. bishops have made a strong statement about the deportation and detention of migrants. A reporter asked Leo, “What do you think of it? And they’ve kind of said that you’ve got their back—are you behind that?”
“Well, I’ve already made some statements about that.
I really appreciate what the bishops have said. I think it’s a very important statement,” the pope said. “I would especially invite all Catholics, but people of good will, to listen carefully to what they said.”
“I think we have to find ways to treat people with kindness and respect, treating them with the dignity they deserve,” he continued. “
If people are in the United States illegally, there are ways to handle that. There are courts. There’s a system of justice. I think there are a lot of problems in the system. No one has said the United States should have open borders. I think every country has the right to decide who, when, and how people come in.”
“But when people are living good lives and many of them for ten, fifteen, or twenty years, to treat them in a way that’s extremely disrespectful, at the very least, and there has been some violence unfortunately,” he went on. “
I think the bishops have been very clear in what they said. I would just ask all people in the United States to listen to them.”
Pope Leo has always called for the humane treatment of migrants in America and has urged his bishops to speak up for certain communities.
Recently, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops released a “special message” criticizing the White House’s “vilification” of migrants.
“In one part of the message, they wrote that they are disturbed when they see among our people a climate of fear and anxiety around questions of profiling and immigration enforcement,” the bishops said.
The message went viral, in part because it was the first time since 2013 that the group issued a single-issue statement at one of their meetings. Clearly, this has become a top priority for the church—and Pope Leo isn’t backing down.
And of course, he’s absolutely right.
There’s no reason, except for cruel racism, to take someone out of their community where they’ve been living peacefully for years, as contributing and upstanding members of society. Trump promised he was going after criminals, but instead he’s gone after innocent people again and again. Real Christians can’t stay quiet in the face of such injustice.
About the Author
