--- description: Pope Francis spoke out against President Donald Trump's zero-tolerance immigration policy, saying populism is not the solution. title: Pope Francis Just Criticized Trump's Immigration Policy Separating Migrant Children From Their Parents image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt05f9ed0266679f08/6989336acf40a82e30c4c85c/pope-francis.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Immigration](/tag/immigration/) ## Immigration Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Pope Francis Just Criticized Trump's Immigration Policy Separating Migrant Children From Their Parents  by [Jamie Ducharme](/author/jamie-ducharme/)  ## Jamie Ducharme Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Ducharme is a contributor to TIME. Jun 20, 2018 12:22 PM CUT  Pope Francis arrives for his weekly general audience, Wednesday, June 20, 2018. Pope Francis arrives for his weekly general audience, Wednesday, June 20, 2018.NurPhoto—NurPhoto via Getty Images  by [Jamie Ducharme](/author/jamie-ducharme/)  ## Jamie Ducharme Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Ducharme is a contributor to TIME. Jun 20, 2018 12:22 PM CUT Pope Francis joined U.S. Catholic bishops in speaking out against the White House’s [zero-tolerance immigration policy](http://time.com/5314997/donald-trump-immigration-policy-migrant-camp/ "undefined"), which has led to the forced separation of families attempting to illegally cross the Mexican border. “It’s not easy, but populism is not the solution,” Francis [told Reuters](https://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFKBN1JG0YG "undefined"), later adding that populists’ immigration policies were “creating psychosis.” Francis also indicated that he agreed with [statements made by members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops](http://time.com/5313052/gop-republican-children-parents-family-separations-trump-administration/ "undefined"), who called the policy “immoral” and “contrary to our Catholic values.” Bishop Joe Vásquez, chairman of the group’s Committee on Migration, also [sent letters](http://www.usccb.org/news/2018/18-102.cfm "undefined") on Monday urging U.S. representatives to create legislation that is “pro-family” and “respectful of human dignity.” In his interview with Reuters, Francis said he is “on the side of the bishops’ conference” and “respect\[s\]” its position. The pope also voiced his support for immigrants on Twitter Wednesday morning. “A person’s dignity does not depend on them being a citizen, a migrant, or a refugee. Saving the life of someone fleeing war and poverty is an act of humanity,” he wrote. > [](https://twitter.com/Pontifex/status/1009400469314138112) The pope’s comments come after Attorney General Jeff Sessions [used the Bible to defend the administration’s policy](http://time.com/5312987/jeff-sessions-separating-immigrant-families/ "undefined") last week, [citing a passage](http://time.com/5313878/jeff-sessions-left-out-the-key-part-of-the-bible-verse-he-used-to-rationalize-family-separation/ "undefined") that emphasizes the importance of following laws “because God has ordained them for the purpose of order.” The rationale drew criticism from [some members of Sessions’ own United Methodist Church](http://time.com/5316396/united-methodist-church-discipline-jeff-sessions-child-separation/ "undefined"), though it was backed by White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5316987/pope-francis-trump-immigration-policy/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5316987/pope-francis-trump-immigration-policy/"},"headline":"Pope Francis Just Criticized Trump's Immigration Policy Separating Migrant Children From Their Parents","datePublished":"2018-06-20T12:22:34.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T20:37:36.485Z","description":"'A person's dignity does not depend on them being a citizen'","url":"https://time.com/5316987/pope-francis-trump-immigration-policy/","keywords":["Immigration","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt05f9ed0266679f08/6989336acf40a82e30c4c85c/pope-francis.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jamie Ducharme","jobTitle":"Ducharme is a contributor to TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/jamie-ducharme/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt05f9ed0266679f08/6989336acf40a82e30c4c85c/pope-francis.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Pope Francis Attends His Weekly General Audience","caption":"Pope Francis Attends His Weekly General Audience","creditText":"NurPhoto—NurPhoto via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/immigration/","name":"Immigration"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5316987/pope-francis-trump-immigration-policy/","name":"Pope Francis Just Criticized Trump's Immigration Policy Separating Migrant Children From Their Parents"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Nearly 2,000 Children Have Been Separated From Their Families During Trump Border Crackdown","description":"Nearly 2,000 children were separated from their families during a six-week period in April and May, as the Trump Administration cracked down on illegal immigration with a “zero-tolerance” policy of separating families at the border","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/mdVWChjR/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2018-06-18T17:11:32.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/mdVWChjR.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5316987/pope-francis-trump-immigration-policy/","duration":"PT3M26S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5316987/pope-francis-trump-immigration-policy/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```