On the sixth day of his week-long trip to Spain, Pope Leo XIV traveled to Spain’s Canary Islands on Thursday, using the high-profile visit to deliver a searing rebuke of global indifference toward migrants risking their lives along one of the world’s deadliest irregular migration routes to Europe.
Standing at the Arguineguin port on Gran Canaria, a site that has become synonymous with the regional migration crisis, the pontiff carried out a solemn ritual: throwing a floral wreath into the Atlantic Ocean to honor the thousands of people who have perished attempting to reach the archipelago from northern Africa. Following the tribute, he met with recent arrivals and the aid workers who support them, before blessing a handcrafted cross carved from timber salvaged from broken migrant boats that washed up on the islands’ shores.
During a public ceremony, Pope Leo called out the systemic failures that fuel ongoing loss of life along the route. “Even today, monsters lurk in these seas: mafias that profit from despair, traffickers that enslave women and children, and those whose indifference allows the poor to be swallowed up by exploitation or forgetfulness,” he told the assembled crowd.
Data from the International Organization for Migration underscores the scale of the crisis: nearly 1,200 people died or disappeared while crossing from Africa to the Canary Islands in 2023 alone, cementing the route’s status as one of the deadliest migration corridors on the planet. Pope Leo pushed back against the hardline policy shift that has swept much of Europe in recent years, driven by rising far-right political pressure. “Europe cannot claim to uphold human dignity while growing accustomed to the Mediterranean and the Atlantic becoming unmarked graves,” he added. He also called on origin and transit nations, where migrants flee persistent poverty and armed conflict only to fall prey to smuggling networks, to confront the crisis and reexamine their collective conscience.
Attendees at the ceremony heard the harrowing testimony of a Nigerian woman who survived trafficking during her journey to Spain, who chose not to appear in person for security reasons. She shared the impossible choice that millions of migrants face: “I had to choose: live in suffering, or cross and risk it all. Die trying, or stay and not have anything.” After being forced into prostitution in Spain, she had her newborn child taken from her. Responding to her story, Pope Leo affirmed his commitment to honoring the humanity of all migrants, saying “I bow before the dignity of every migrant. You are not just numbers or files. You are people who have left behind families and homes. You have dreams that no one has the right to despise.”
The Canary Islands have borne the brunt of rising irregular migration across the Atlantic in recent years. In 2024, more than 46,000 people arrived on the islands – a new annual record – most crammed into overcrowded, unseaworthy small vessels. Arrival numbers have fallen in the months following that record surge. The pontiff’s trip fulfills a long-planned goal of his predecessor, Pope Francis, who passed away one year ago before he could make the journey to the islands.
Pope Leo’s outspoken advocacy for migrant rights has already drawn political pushback: it has sparked public criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump, who has implemented sweeping new restrictions on irregular migration since returning to the White House last year.
For migrant communities and advocates on the ground, the visit carries profound meaning at what many describe as a critical juncture for the crisis. Mohamed Amjahdi, a 37-year-old member of the Spanish Islamic Commission who arrived in the Canary Islands from Morocco on a migrant boat when he was 17, spoke to AFP about the visit’s significance. “We really value this visit. It’s very important for us at such a critical moment,” he said. “We also appreciate the Catholic Church and the vital work it does for migrants. When it comes to helping migrants, there’s no distinction. It doesn’t matter whether you’re Christian or not, whether you’re white or black — everyone receives the same support.”
Arguineguin port gained infamy as the “dock of shame” after more than 3,000 migrants were forced to sleep in the open or under flimsy makeshift shelters during a massive arrival surge in 2020. For Thursday’s ceremony, local organizers installed a large new banner renaming the site the “dock of hope.”
The visit comes as the Spanish government of Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has broken with the broader European hardline trend, moving forward with a plan to regularize the status of around 500,000 undocumented migrants currently living in the country. Earlier in the trip, during an address to Spain’s parliament on Monday, Pope Leo outlined his policy vision for migration, calling for the creation of “safe and legal pathways” for migration and urging governments to extend “a respectful welcome and real opportunities for integration” to new arrivals.
Thursday marks the penultimate day of Pope Leo’s week-long trip to Spain, which has already included stops in Madrid and Barcelona. The visit is set to conclude on Friday on the island of Tenerife, where the pontiff will tour another migrant support center.