VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis has written a letter which pays homage to over 100 street newspapers around the world that give work and income to more than 20,500 homeless people, and expressed his solidarity during a time when they have not been able to sell because of the pandemic, reports a Holy Sea press statement. Francis pointed to Scarp de ’tenis in Italy, a Caritas project that gives more than 130 people an income and access to citizenship rights.

  The most fragile groups of people include the homeless as they do not have the means to self-isolate or social-distance, “so I want to express my closeness to journalists, volunteers, people who live thanks to these projects and who in these times are working through many innovative ideas,” said Francis.

  Although the pandemic has made the job of a journalist harder, Francis went on to say that,  “looking at the poorest can help all of us become aware of what is really happening to us and of our true condition.”

  “I want to say hello to the world of street newspapers and especially their vendors who are mostly homeless, seriously marginalized, unemployed people: thousands of people all over the world live and have a job thanks to the sale of these extraordinary newspapers,” stated the pontiff. 

  “To all of you my message of encouragement and fraternal friendship. Thanks for the work you do, for the information you give and for the stories of hope you tell.”

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