A lively crowd of children excitedly surrounded Pope Francis at the Vatican.
They were accompanying “Little Amal,” the giant puppet of a young Syrian refugee girl that has been making the journey from Turkey to the UK, raising awareness about the plight of refugees around the world.
The kids are part of the “APRI” project organized by Caritas Italy for the 107th World Migrant and Refugee Day, which will be celebrated on Sept. 26.
The national initiative aims to promote the dignified integration of migrants and refugees into their new communities. APRI, which means “open” in Italian, is also an acronym for “welcome, protect, promote and integrate.” They are the four actions Pope Francis has called for to respond to migration.
The children are from different parishes and schools in Rome, which reflects the APRI initiative's goal of making local communities key players in the social inclusion process.
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