Holy See expresses concern over rise in online racism
The representative of the Holy See to the UN highlights the need to combat online racism, anti-migrant discrimination and religious intolerance.
By Joseph Tulloch
Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, the Holy See’s permanent observer to the United Nations, told the UN of the Church’s concerns about anti-migrant discrimination, religious intolerance and online racism.
He made the remarks on Thursday, November 7, during the general debate of the Third Committee of the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
Racism takes “subtle forms”
Archbishop Caccia began his speech to the United Nations General Assembly by quoting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”
While this is rightly recognized as a fundamental truth, the archbishop said, “history has shown that it is constantly questioned.”
In particular, Archbishop Caccia noted, while “overt racism is easy to identify and rightly condemned,” racial prejudice “often takes more subtle forms.”
Archbishop Caccia addresses the UN (file photo)
Anti-migrant discrimination and religious intolerance
It is in this spirit that the archbishop looked at three areas of particular concern for the Holy See.
The first, he said, is discrimination against migrants and refugees.
“Migration can create a sense of fear and anxiety,” the archbishop said, “which is often exacerbated and exploited for political purposes.”
However, he stressed, “migrants must always be considered human beings with the same intrinsic dignity as any other person.”
Second, the archbishop highlighted the problem of religious intolerance.
“Individuals and communities face restrictions and persecution for professing their faith,” Caccia emphasized, “both in the private and public spheres. Such restrictions undermine the fundamental principle of freedom of religion or belief. »
Racism online
Finally, Archbishop Caccia highlighted the concern of the Holy See regarding racism and xenophobia online.
“In the fight against this scourge,” he said, “education is of paramount importance, both as a response strategy and as a long-term preventive measure.”
The representative of the Holy See to the UN concluded his speech by emphasizing that the equal dignity of every human being “requires that we never turn a blind eye to racism or exclusion”, but rather “that we embrace” the other” with openness, recognizing the rich. gifts and singularities of each person and each people.”
