Pope Francis had his most direct confrontation with Mexican cartel crime Tuesday when he visited Morelia, Mexico’s unofficial capital of drug trafficking.
While visiting Morelia — located in the Michoacan state and home of dangerous cartels like Familia Michoacana — the Pope asked the youth to stay away from lives of crime working for cartels. The Pope also made strong appeals to fellow leaders in the Catholic Church of Mexico, asking them to continue their parts in fighting organized crime.
Francis specifically asked that Mexican people not give into feelings of “resignation” because of cartel crime. The Latin American pontiff made specific mentions of cartels and corruption when he asked the crowd, “What temptation can come to us from places often dominated by violence, corruption, drug trafficking, disregard for human dignity, and indifference in the face of suffering and vulnerability?” The Los Angeles Times reported.
One of Morelia’s most gruesome cartels, The Knights Templar, fell apart in 2014 with the death of its founder and leader Nazario Moreno. Its most infamous and grisly crime was when cartel members chopped off the heads of five rivals and left them on a nightclub dance floor in 2006, according to Agence France-Presse.
The Knights Templar was doomed by the organized uprising of local farmers who formed militias to defeat the cartel — something police struggled to accomplish.
Francis told the residents of the cartel-riddled land, “What temptation can come to us from places often dominated by violence, corruption, drug trafficking, disregard for human dignity, and indifference in the face of suffering and vulnerability?”
The Catholic Church has been a prime target of gangs over the past 10 years — Reuters even reported in 2014 that a local priest openly wore a bulletproof vest for protection from the cartels.
The Pope will celebrate Mass in Ciudad Juarez, a Mexican city located near the U.S. border, Wednesday — it’s expected to bring together 250,000 people from both Mexico and America.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
