Pope Francis, on Tuesday called for national reconciliation over the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer and the violence which broke out subsequently.
Recall that following the killing of George Floyd, an unarmed 46-year-old African American by police officer in Minneapolis, there has been serious unrest and tension in most states in the United States of America.
Some Americans have been protesting for days, the injustice and police brutality towards people of color.
Reacting, the Pope during his Mass on Tuesday, said that while racism is intolerable, the street violence that has broken out is self-destructive and self-defeating.
Describing Floyd’s death as “tragic, Francis said he was praying for all who died as a result of the “sin of racism.
“My friends, we cannot tolerate or turn a blind eye to racism and exclusion in any form and yet claim to defend the sacredness of every human life.
“At the same time, we have to recognize that the violence of recent nights is self-destructive and self-defeating. Nothing is gained by violence and so much is lost,” Reuters quoted him as saying.
Meanwhile, Democratic presidential aspirant Joe Biden on Tuesday lambasted President Donald Trump for walking to a church near the White House as protesters were dispersed with teargas, flash grenades and rubber bullets by security agents.
Biden advised Trump to open the bible and see where Christians are admonished to love one another.