(The Hill) — Pope Francis criticized President Donald Trump’s mass deportation plans in a letter urging compassion and the preservation of dignity for migrants in the U.S.
The Pope, in his letter, recognized “the right of a nation to defend itself and keep communities safe from those who have committed violent or serious crimes while in the country or prior to arrival,” but attacked the approach the Trump administration has taken.
“That said, the act of deporting people who in many cases have left their own land for reasons of extreme poverty, insecurity, exploitation, persecution or serious deterioration of the environment, damages the dignity of many men and women, and of entire families, and places them in a state of particular vulnerability and defenselessness,” the Pope wrote Tuesday.
The Trump administration has prioritized mass deportations, a long-standing promise from the campaign trail.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said last week that more than 8,000 people had been arrested in immigration enforcement actions since Trump took office on Jan. 20, The Associated Press reported. Some migrants have been deported, while others are being held in federal prisons or at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba.
The Pope, in the letter, wrote that laws are meant to preserve “the dignified treatment that all people deserve, especially the poorest and most marginalized,” and said “the true common good” protects the most vulnerable people in society.
“This does not impede the development of a policy that regulates orderly and legal migration,” the Pope continued. “However, this development cannot come about through the privilege of some and the sacrifice of others.”
“What is built on the basis of force, and not on the truth about the equal dignity of every human being, begins badly and will end badly,” he added.
Border czar Tom Homan, who oversees the mass deportation program, shot back at the Pope’s criticism Tuesday morning.
“I’ve got harsh words for the Pope. Pope ought to fix the Catholic Church. I’m saying this as a lifelong Catholic. I was baptized Catholic. My first communion as a Catholic, confirmation as a Catholic,” Homan said. “He ought to fix the Catholic Church and concentrate on his work and leave border enforcement to us.”
