Pope Francis: Opponents of Mass Migration Sow ‘Violence, Racial Discrimination and Xenophobia’

In his new message for the World Day of Peace, Pope Francis has denounced those who question the wisdom of mass migration, accusing them of demagoguery and promoting xenophobia.

Those who decry “the risks posed to national security or the high cost of welcoming new arrivals,” are guilty of “demeaning the human dignity due to all as sons and daughters of God,” Francis said in the New Year’s message.

To resort to such “rhetoric,” the Pope continued, people “are sowing violence, racial discrimination and xenophobia, which are matters of great concern for all those concerned for the safety of every human being.”

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“In a spirit of compassion, let us embrace all those fleeing from war and hunger, or forced by discrimination, persecution, poverty and environmental degradation to leave their homelands,” he said.

The Pope also outlined his theory regarding the causes of the mass migration that is affecting Europe and other parts of the world.

People migrate principally because they desire a better life, and often in an effort “to leave behind the ‘hopelessness’ of an unpromising future,” the Pope said. There has also been “a tragic rise in the number of migrants seeking to flee from the growing poverty caused by environmental degradation,” he added.

The Pope also gingerly addressed the thorny topic of illegal immigration, suggesting it was out of the ordinary and motivated by extreme circumstances.

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The Pope did not say how he thought nations should deal with illegal immigrants, but he did suggest that mass migration itself may be a net benefit for nations.

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On a practical level, the Pope urged the United Nations “to draft and approve two Global Compacts” during the course of 2018, “one for safe, orderly and regular migration and the other for refugees.”

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