Pope Francis met with members of the Union of Italian Catholic Legal Professionals at the Vatican.
The group is in Rome for a conference on providing legal protection for the most vulnerable members of society.
-'I cannot properly express in words the feeling of profound devotion which enlivens the many here today, who have the chance to cross the threshold of the apostles to reiterate their fidelity and affection for the successor of Peter.'
The Pope thanked them for their work in defending the rights of those forgotten by society, and expressed his disappointment in today's culture which does recognize the dignity of all people.
POPE FRANCIS
'The rights of workers, migrants, the sick, unborn children, the dying and the poorest are increasingly neglected or denied in this wasteful culture. Those who do not have the capacity to spend and consume seem to be worth nothing.'
Pope Francis went on specifically addressed the situation of farm workers who are denied legal rights.
POPE FRANCIS
'We are seeing it now: how many laborers are, excuse my language, “used” to pick fruits and vegetables, and then paid miserably and thrown out, without any form of social protection.'
More than 450,000 migrants work in Italy's agricultural sector. They are often exploited due to their ambiguous legal status, and recent reports have shown that the pandemic has made the situation even worse.
JM
