The current Pontiff, who recently made his first official visit to Mexico, is recognized as “the Pope of the poor”, of changing times, of Christian social thinking. Without question, during his visit to Mexico not only was he a charismatic figure, but he was also a protagonist for the denouncement of human rights abuses. In fact, the Pope coined the term “Mexicanization”, to refer to the social decay marked by drug trafficking, corruption, insecurity and violence in the extreme.
Mexico has come into the spotlight over the last several years for the victimization of Mexican and Central American trans-migrants, and for the thousands of cases of death and disappearances in a country overrun by criminal organizations. According to Ansa Latina, the violent spiral of drug trafficking gangs, along with the support of the Armed Forces, has led to more than 100,000 deaths, 27,000 disappearances and some 250,000 internally displaced.
Leaders welcomed the Pope’s visit solely as a ceremony of spectacle, not to listen what he had to say.But the meeting between the Pope and Mexican political leaders did not go smoothly, due to his marked interest for the defense of human rights and social Catholicism. Pope Francis underscored his concern about the impact that neoliberalism has had on problems of migration, poverty, materialistic culture, social exclusion and environmental deterioration. But religious interventions in Mexican politics are regulated by a rigid constitution, which has put the brakes on any direct action taken by the Catholic Church in public life. In other words, leaders welcomed the Pope’s visit solely as a ceremony of spectacle, not to listen what he had to say.
