LYNNE WALSH previews the Bristol Radical History Conference this weekend
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Pope from the periphery
With the death of Pope Francis, the world loses not only a church leader but also a moral compass that spoke out against inequality, discrimination, war, and climate destruction, writes MARC VANDEPITTE
TRUE EMPATHY: Pope Francis poses for selfie photos with migrants at a regional migrant center in Bologna, Italy in 2017
Keir Starmer’s £120 million to Sudan cannot cover the government’s complicity in the RSF genocide or atone for the long shadow of British colonialism and imperialism, writes CLAUDIA WEBBE
Join the traditional march from Clerkenwell Green, which will bring together countless international workers’ organisations in a statement against the far right
Ecuador’s election wasn’t free — and its people will pay the price under President Noboa
Mountains of research show that hardcore material harms children, yet there are still no simple measures in place
We face austerity, privatisation, and toxic influence. But we are growing, and cannot be beaten
Trump’s economic adviser has exposed the actual strategy: forcing other countries to provide financial support for US hegemony
WHEN Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected pope in 2013, he came almost from “the ends of the Earth,” as he himself put it. That single sentence immediately set the tone: this pope would be different.
As the first Jesuit and the first Latin American to hold the seat of Peter, he chose the name Francis — referring to the saint of Assisi, known for his poverty and solidarity with the least fortunate.
And this was more than symbolic. Francis resolutely moved to the margins of society: to migrant camps, war zones, and climate summits. His decision not to live in the papal palace but in a simple room, to exchange the popemobile for a modest Ford, and to trade grandeur and glitter for simplicity was not a PR stunt. It was a principled choice. He wanted to be a pope of the poor, for the poor.
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The Indian state of Kerala and Vietnam are two poverty-stricken regions that are also particularly vulnerable to the spread of Covid-19 — yet they managed to control the epidemic in an impressive way. Why do they manage to save so many lives when the West still has thousands of new deaths every day? asks MARC VANDEPITTE
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