Exhausted and blistered, she rejoiced upon arriving in Silver Spring, Maryland, the last overnight stop in a 100-mile journey to arrive in the nation’s capital at the same time as Pope Francis.
Advertisement
Francis, who has called for compassion toward immigrants worldwide, kissed the little girl on the cheek after one security guard accepted her gifts and another lifted her up for the face-to-face with the Holy Father. Sophia Cruz waited along the parade route on Constitution Avenue for hours along with thousands of others.
Sophie got beyond a barricade and approached the popemobile, carrying the T-shirt that read in Spanish: “Pope: rescue DAPA, so the legalization would be your blessing”. The pint-size girl stepped into the roadway where she was met by towering figures of the U.S. Secret Service. There are few expectations that the pope will lobby for specific policies or change staunch anti-immigration views, but activists say the pope’s message of acceptance of immigrants could help more-moderate policymakers renew a push for comprehensive reform legislation. She added her heart was sad because of the hate and discrimination toward immigrants in this country. I live in Los Angeles, California in the heart of agriculture. “And I would like to ask you to speak with the President and the Congress in legalizing my parents because every day I am scared they will take them away from me”, Cruz told CBS News. Torres, executive director of Casa de Maryland, an advocacy group for low-income immigrant communities, is part of a large contingent of activists who are pouring their hopes into the pope’s visit to kick off a kinder, gentler conversation about immigration reform in the United States. They know how to work in the fields, growing oranges, watermelons, onions and many vegetables.
They are heartened by how the pope has asked Catholics and world leaders to recognize the common humanity and dignity of migrants in the United States and overseas . I have faith that soon the pain will go away and peace will come.
Advertisement
Sophie was with a group from La Senora Reina church in Los Angeles.
