Holy See expresses concern over rise in online racism

By Joseph Tulloch

Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, the Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, has told the UN of the Church’s concern over anti-migrant discrimination, religious intolerance, and online racism.

He made the remarks on Thursday, 7th November, during the General Debate of the Third Committee of the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York.

Racism takes “subtle forms”
  

Archbishop Caccia began his address to the UN General Assembly by quoting from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”

While this is correctly recognised as a fundamental truth, the Archbishop said, “history has shown that it is constantly being challenged”.

In particular, Archbishop Caccia noted, while “overt racism is easy to identify and rightly condemned”, racial prejudices often “take more subtle forms”.

Archbishop Caccia addresses the UN (File photo)

Anti-migrant discrimination and religious intolerance

With this in mind, the Archbishop turned to consider three areas of particular concern for the Holy See.

The first, he said, is discrimation against migrant and refugees.

“Migration can create a sense of fear and anxiety”, the Archbishop said, “that is often exacerbated and exploited for political ends.”

However, he stressed, “Migrants must always be seen as human beings who possess the same intrinsic dignity as any person.”

Secondly, the Archbishop emphasised the problem of religious intolerance.

“Individuals and communities face restrictions and persecution for professing their faith,” Caccia underlined, “both in the private and in the public spheres. Such restrictions undermine the fundamental principle of freedom of religion or belief.”

Online racism

Finally, Archbishop Caccia underlined the Holy See’s concern regarding racism and xenophobia online.

“In combatting this scourge,” he said, “education is of paramount importance, both as a response strategy and as a longer-term preventive measure.”

The Holy See’s UN representative brought his speech to a conclusion by highlighting that the equal dignity of every human being "demands that we never turn a blind eye to racism or exclusion", but rather "embrace the 'other' with openness, recognizing the rich gifts and uniqueness of each person and each people."