Chicago Mayor Sees Pope Leo XIV as Key Ally on Social Justice, Migration After Vatican Meeting
Johnson said the pope’s apology for the church’s role in slavery reinforces Chicago’s push for reparations and migrant protections.
- Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson met with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican on Thursday, seeking alignment on social justice, migration, and reparations for Black Americans.
- Johnson traveled to Rome with a delegation of 50 local officials, citing their shared Chicago roots as a foundation for amplifying efforts to protect vulnerable communities.
- The pontiff's apology for the Catholic Church's role in slavery reinforced the mayor's push for reparations; "For his courage and his strength and particularly his moral stance," Johnson said.
- Pope Leo asked about conditions following U.S. immigration crackdowns, prompting Johnson to outline Chicago's rapid-response efforts and noting the pontiff was aware of the "mass effort to deport immigrants."
- During the visit, Johnson presented the pope with a key to the city and invited him to celebrate Mass in Grant Park, positioning Chicago's agenda within a broader international human rights movement.
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Johnson Talks Reparations with Pope
(Vatican City, Rome) — Just days after a violent, chaotic weekend in Chicago, progressive Mayor Brandon Johnson is overseas in Rome meeting with Pope Leo XIV. Johnson said the two discussed President Donald J. Trump’s immigration crackdown, reparations, and “the harm slavery caused across the globe”—including in Chicago. The mayor also invited the pontiff to celebrate Mass in the city next year. The president has repeatedly targeted both men in …
Associated Press News
Chicago mayor sees Pope Leo XIV as key ally on social justice, migration after Vatican meeting
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has cast Pope Leo XIV as a global ally on social justice, migration and reparations after meeting the Chicago-born pontiff at the Vatican.
Mayor Johnson will enlist Pope Leo’s support in fight for reparations – Chicago Sun-Times
"[This] encounter that I’m going to have with the highest-profile religious leader on the planet is also moving our agenda forward,” Johnson said. “That conversation is not separate and apart from the work that’s happening in Springfield or City Council or anywhere else.”
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson presented Pope Leo XIV as a powerful global ally in social justice, migration and reparations after meeting in the Vatican with the Chicago-born pontiff, stating that his shared roots and priorities could help amplify efforts to protect vulnerable communities.
Ahead of meeting Pope Leo, Johnson speaks of ‘evolving’ spirituality and ‘constantly growing in my faith’
About a week before her death on June 9, 1995, while she was getting dressed for a church service, Pastor Wilma Jean Johnson stopped her son Brandon, the sixth of her 10 children, as he was about to leave the family home. She had something he needed to know. Pastor Johnson’s health had been in decline for some time as she battled congestive heart failure and related complications. Perhaps she knew her time was short. Or maybe it was a mother’s i…
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