{"id":2932,"date":"2015-09-21T08:00:05","date_gmt":"2015-09-21T12:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thediplomaticenvoy.com\/?p=2932"},"modified":"2015-10-19T11:48:21","modified_gmt":"2015-10-19T15:48:21","slug":"pope-francis-the-mediator-of-the-americas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.edu\/thediplomaticenvoy\/2015\/09\/21\/pope-francis-the-mediator-of-the-americas\/","title":{"rendered":"Pope Francis: Mediator of the Americas"},"content":{"rendered":"

By\u00a0Kiersten Meyers<\/a>
\nStaff Writer<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

As the United States prepares for the six-day Papal visit to New York, Washington, and Philadelphia, security for the Pope has become a rising priority. Chairman of the House Committee on\u00a0Homeland Security Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), told the\u00a0Washington Post<\/a>, \u201cThe Pope is a very\u00a0passionate man,\u201d adding that\u00a0some of the Pope’s methods\u00a0make him difficult to protect.<\/p>\n

As McCaul puts it, \u201cHe likes to get out with the people.\u201d This poses a major security problem as open areas makes him an easy target for threats. This includes not only the open-air arenas that he prefers to speak in, but also the open-roofed Papal vehicles that he uses as transportation, as opposed to the traditional bulletproof, enclosed vehicles that became popular after the assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II. McCaul has gone on record saying that one plot against\u00a0the Pope has been \u201cdisrupted,\u201d and that the Department of\u00a0Homeland Security\u00a0is on high alert for other\u00a0threats.<\/p>\n

As Pope Francis returns to the Americas, more than just his security is in\u00a0question. The visit brings up the Vatican\u2019s involvement in the resumption of U.S.-Cuba relations,\u00a0and in Venezuela\u2019s human rights violations.<\/p>\n

NPR<\/a>\u00a0says the process in opening Cuba\u2019s borders began when Pope John Paul II visited Cuba for the first time in history. At the start of his visit, he stood with Fidel Castro, saying, \u201cMay Cuba, with all its magnificent possibilities, open itself to the world, and may the world open itself to Cuba.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seventeen years have passed since that initial visit and little progress has been seen. However, with the help of Pope Francis as an intermediary for negotiations between the Obama administration and the Cuban government, the world saw the two countries pick up\u00a0relations again. According to the New York Times,<\/em> many Cubans\u00a0believe that the ten-day visit split between Cuba and the U.S.\u00a0will strengthen the new relations between both countries. Though Pope Francis may not express these feelings in public, many long-time observers of the Pope feel the same as the Cuban people.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, the Pope’s\u00a0silence on human rights violations in Venezuela has been\u00a0the topic of much discussion. An\u00a0article from the Economist<\/a>\u00a0<\/i>criticizes the\u00a0Vatican for its lack of action or response\u00a0regarding\u00a0the imprisonment of Leopoldo L\u00f3pez, an opposition leader to the authoritarian government. Mr. Lopez is a Catholic, and Venezuela is a predominantly Catholic country.<\/p>\n

The New York Times\u00a0reports\u00a0that the imprisonment of Mr. L\u00f3pez is a show of desperation from the Venezuelan government. After repeated acts of human rights violations, President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro called off a meeting with Pope Francis to avoid confrontation over the issue. With relations reopened between Cuba and the United States due in part to the Vatican\u2019s involvement, many hope that any renunciation\u00a0of the Venezuelan government’s actions\u00a0will lead to an end to the human rights violations and Mr. L\u00f3pez\u2019s release.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As the United States prepares for the six-day Papal visit to New York, Washington, and Philadelphia, security for the Pope has become a rising priority. Chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), told the Washington Post, \u201cThe Pope is a very passionate man,\u201d adding that some of the Pope’s methods make him difficult to protect.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3079,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[382,384],"tags":[464,477,485,504,514],"class_list":["post-2932","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-international-news","category-americas","tag-cuba","tag-venezuela","tag-vatican","tag-pope-francis","tag-united-states"],"yoast_head":"\nPope Francis: Mediator of the Americas - The Diplomatic Envoy<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.shu.edu\/thediplomaticenvoy\/2015\/09\/21\/pope-francis-the-mediator-of-the-americas\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Pope Francis: Mediator of the Americas - The Diplomatic Envoy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As the United States prepares for the six-day Papal visit to New York, Washington, and Philadelphia, security for the Pope has become a rising priority. 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