Pope Leo XIV today denounced discrimination against African descendants in Peru and recalled the great suffering of slaves during a speech at the shrine of Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo in Zaña, where he fulfilled the last commitment of the day.
© Tiziana Fabi / AFP via Getty Images
14/11/2026
by
Lusa
O Pope Leo XIV denounced today discrimination against African descendants in Peru and recalled the great suffering of slaves during a speech at the shrine of Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo, in Zaña, where he fulfilled the last commitment of the day.
The pontiff traveled from Chiclayo to Zaña to close the Jubilee year instituted on the occasion of the 300 years of the canonization of the Spanish saint Toribio de Mogrovejo, who was born in the Spanish town of Mayorga (Valladolid) in 1538 and, in 1581, arrived in Peru, where he was archbishop of Lima, and where he stood out for the defense of the indigenous peoples.
Leo XIV arrived in Zaña after celebrating Mass in Santa Cruz de Succhabamba, in the Andes, during the afternoon.
During the journey, the vehicle was accompanied by eight members of the Amazon Chiclayanas mounted on the traditional stephorses.
About 300,000 people went out to see Leo XIV pass.
The Pope recalled that “there is also the memory of generations of African men and women, away from their homes and subjected to slavery” and that “many suffered great suffering and humiliation”.
The Pope received a warm welcome on Thursday on his return to Peru, which is part of his first trip to South America, and which also included Uruguay and Argentina.
On Friday, hundreds of thousands of people filled the streets of Chiclayo to receive Leo XIV, a city where he served as a bishop for eight years and became his “adoptive house”.