On the final day of a week-long trip to Spain centered on irregular immigration, Pope Leo XIV addressed migrants gathered at a reception center on Tenerife, declaring that 'all of us are migrants.' The Canary Islands, situated in the Atlantic Ocean, have emerged as a primary entry point for tens of thousands of individuals undertaking the perilous journey to Europe in pursuit of improved opportunities. The leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics used this visit to advocate for enhanced support for migrants and stronger measures against human traffickers, as immigration continues to stir political discourse across the continent.
Message at Las Raices Reception Center
Speaking to a crowd of migrants at Las Raices, a former military barracks repurposed as a reception center that was once criticized for severe overcrowding, the pope remarked: 'In a sense, all of us are migrants, for we are all pilgrims on our way to our heavenly homeland.' He added, 'Let us help make this journey more humane for everyone by contributing in whatever way we can.' Later on Friday, June 12, the pope is scheduled to lead an open-air mass at the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, which is expected to draw tens of thousands of worshippers.
Earlier Stops in Spain
Earlier in the week, Leo visited Madrid and Barcelona before arriving on Thursday in Gran Canaria, another island in the archipelago. There, he condemned 'indifference' toward migrants and placed a wreath on the sea at the port of Arguineguin to honor the thousands who have perished trying to reach the Canaries. 'Human dignity has no passport,' he declared at the dockside, moments before blessing a faded blue cross crafted from wood taken from a migrant boat. 'Monsters lurk in these seas… traffickers who enslave women and children, and those whose indifference allows the poor to be swallowed up by exploitation or forgetfulness,' he said.
Deadly Migration Route
According to the International Organization for Migration, nearly 1,200 people died or disappeared last year while making the journey from Africa to the Canary Islands, making it one of the deadliest migration routes in the world. The pope stated that Europe, where many governments have tightened border policies under pressure from far-right parties, 'cannot claim to uphold human dignity while growing accustomed to the Mediterranean and the Atlantic becoming unmarked graves.' He added that the tragedy must 'appeal to the conscience' of the countries migrants are fleeing, as well as the nations they pass through, where poverty, conflict, and trafficking gangs often trap vulnerable people.
Reaction from Migrants
'We really value this visit. It's very important for us at such a critical moment,' Mohamed Amjahdi, who arrived on the islands from Morocco as a 17-year-old on a boat, told AFP in Arguineguin. The pope will fly back to Rome from Tenerife and is expected to speak with reporters on the plane. On July 4, he is scheduled to visit Lampedusa, the Italian island that has also become a major landing point for migrants, making the issue a defining focus of his papacy.
