Rome, Italy
AP
Pope Francis is honoring civil rights leader Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, on the commemoration of his birthday, saying his message of equality through peaceful means remains more timely than ever.
Francis sent a message of prayer Monday to King’s daughter, Rev Bernice King, with whom the pontiff met in 2018. He called for unity, not division, and extinguishing hatred and “not holding onto it”.
In this 12th March, 2018 file photo, youngest child of civil rights leaders Martin Luther King, Jr, Bernice King is welcomed by Pope Francis on the occasion of their private audience at the Vatican. Francis sent a message of prayer this Monday to King’s daughter, Rev Bernice King, with whom the pontiff met in 2018. He called for unity, not division and extinguishing hatred and “not holding onto it.” PICTURE: L’Osservatore Romano/Pool Photo via AP.
“In today’s world, which increasingly faces the challenges of social injustice, division and conflict that hinder the realization of the common good, Dr King’s dream of harmony and equality for all people, attained through nonviolent and peaceful means, remains ever timely,” Francis wrote.
The Vatican has long spoken out about racial injustice, and popes dating to Paul VI have voiced support for King’s message of nonviolent protest and the civil rights movement. History’s first pope from the global south is no different.
Francis quoted King at length during his historic speech to the US Congress in 2015, and spoke out last year in the aftermath of the protests spurred by the police killing of a Black man, George Floyd.
