Pope Francis supports George Floyd protests, blasts COVID skeptics in new book

Pope Francis is taking on some of the biggest issues of 2020 such as racial injustice while slamming coronavirus skeptics and the people who spread their conspiracy theories in a new book.

In “Let Us Dream,” which the Pontifex wrote during the Vatican’s own lockdown, Francis also criticizes conservative Catholics who support certain populist politicians who are reminiscent of certain problematic European leaders from the 1930s, but does so without naming specific names.

“Today, listening to some of the populist leaders we now have, I am reminded of the 1930s, when some democracies collapsed into dictatorships seemingly overnight,” Francis writes in the book. “We see it happening again now in rallies where populist leaders excite and harangue crowds, channeling their resentments and hatreds against imagined enemies to distract from the real problems.”

Christians who support these leaders “vote for populists to protect their religious identity, unconcerned that fear and hatred of the other cannot be reconciled with the Gospel,” according to Francis.

Pope Francis (Luca Zennaro/)

Turning to the pandemic, Francis lays some of the blame for misinformation and anti-restriction rhetoric on Christians and and conservative media who are hyper-selective about what is considered outrageous.

“You’ll never find such people protesting the death of George Floyd, or joining a demonstration because there are shantytowns where children lack water or education,” he writes. “They turned into a cultural battle what was in truth an effort to ensure the protection of life.”

“There are politicians who peddle these narratives for their own gain,” he writes, once again not naming specific politicians or organizations. “But they could not succeed without some media creating and spreading them.”

Pope Francis continued his support for racial justice by meeting Monday with several NBA players and well as members of their union leadership.

The 150-page book, which will be released in the U.S. next Monday, was written with Francis’ English-language biographer Austen Ivereigh in the hopes that more American readers will receive the book’s message.

The book’s thesis outlines “Francis’ vision of a more economically and environmentally just post-coronavirus world where the poor, the elderly and weak aren’t left on the margins and the wealthy aren’t consumed only with profits,” according to the Associated Press. The pandemic, Pope Francis believes, “offers an unprecedented opportunity to imagine and plan for a more socially just world,” which can be brought about with universal basic income, opening our nations to migrants and guaranteeing his three Ls: land, lodging and labor.

“We need to set goals for our business sector that — without denying its importance — look beyond shareholder value to other kinds of values that save us all: community, nature and meaningful work,” he writes.

With News Wire Services