On the day of the 250th anniversary of the United States, Pope Leo XIV chose to visit Lampedusa, the island that has become a symbol of the migrant emergency in Italy and across Europe. The last time a pope visited Lampedusa was in 2013, when Pope Francis chose the island for his first apostolic journey, signalling from the very start of his pontificate his commitment to the migrant cause.
Immediately after landing, the pope headed to the Cemetery of the Nameless in Cala Pisana to pay tribute and pray at the graves of migrants who died at sea. The graves are marked with crosses made from the wood of boats that sank off the island’s coast.
