An Afro-Peruvian vision of Pope Leo XIV

On May 8th, over a hundred Roman Catholic cardinals and high-ranking Vatican officials from five of the world's continents elected Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as the new Pope Leo XIV.

- By JESÚS CHUCHO GARCIA Special to the AmNews Translated by KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO

The election of Prevost as the new Pope came as a welcome surprise to Peruvians, and particularly to the Afro-Peruvian community. Born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1955, the new Pope had spent over two decades in Peru, where he demonstrated a commitment to supporting the most disadvantaged individuals during a period of intense violence in the country. While serving as the Bishop of Chiclayo in Peru, Pope Leo was one of the first to call for former authoritarian President Alberto Fujimori to issue a formal apology to all those who had been victimized by his administration. Fujimori infamously designed an anti-poverty initiative that pressured Indigenous and Afro-Peruvians women into sterilization, threatening violence or the withdrawal of essential services for those who declined.