Pope Concludes Mexico Trip with Visit to Ciudad Juarez on Mexico-US Border Nicole Winfield and Christopher Sherman - The Associated Press
go to original February 17, 2016

Raw: Pope Wraps Mexico Trip with Visit to Prison (Associated Press)

Pope Francis wrapped up his trip to Mexico on Wednesday with a politically charged visit to the U.S. border for a huge open-air Mass as he focused on problems of violence, exploitation and migration, a hot issue for the U.S. presidential campaign.

He also visited a major prison - just days after a riot in another lockup killed 49 inmates - and he urged decent treatment for workers in a city famed for low-wage assembly jobs.

The altar for Wednesday's Mass is snug against the U.S.-Mexico border, with just a highway between its edge and the Rio Grande.

Clearly visible is the skyline of El Paso, Texas, where at least 30,000 people were expected at the Sun Bowl for a simulcast of the ceremony.

Francis was expected to stop at the border fence and give a blessing in honor of migrants on the other side, as well as those who died trying to get there.

Migration is a theme close to the pontiff's heart. He has demanded that countries welcome those fleeing poverty and oppression and denounced what he calls the "globalization of indifference" toward migrants.

That message hasn't gone down well with some in the U.S. at a time when border apprehensions of families and unaccompanied minors rose significantly in the last three months of 2015.

Read the rest at ValleyCentral.com

Related: Pope Slams Humanitarian Migrant Crisis at US Border Town (FT.com)

Related: Pope Francis Finds Himself in US Immigration Debate After Mexico Visit (The Guardian)

Related: Pope Problems: Francis' Plane Lasered; Loses Cool Amid Crowd in Mexico (UPI)

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