On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the Pope underlines in a tweet that “manifestations of racism still come to cover us with shame”.
«Racism is a virus that mutates easily and hides and reappears over and over again. The manifestations of racism again come to shame us, showing that the supposed progress of society is neither real nor guaranteed forever.», Wrote this Sunday morning Pope Francis on the social network Twitter. With the hashtag #FightRacism, the Pope joins the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination promoted by the UN.
This day is celebrated each year on March 21, a date chosen to commemorate the “Sharpeville massacre” on March 21, 1960. That day, in South Africa, at the height of apartheid, the police opened set on fire on a group of black demonstrators, killing sixty-nine people and injuring 180. In proclaiming this International Day in 1966, with resolution 2142, the United Nations General Assembly stressed the need for greater commitment to the elimination of all forms of racial discrimination.
“Racism is a virus», Could we read yesterday in the streets of Atlanta. Hundreds of people demonstrated in this city of Georgia in the United States to say “stop hatred against AsiansAs indicated by other signs. Last Tuesday, a 21-year-old white man killed eight people including six Asian women. In a speech given in the wake of the tragedy, the US president reaffirmed his intention to fight against hatred and racism which is often hidden in plain sight and is often associated with silence. Joe Biden denounced “a poison that has haunted and afflicted our nation for a long time ”, and called on the Americans to unite against this scourge by defending “some core values and beliefs».