Pope Leo XIV to former drug users: The Church needs you!

Under a blazing sun, the new Pope welcomed several hundred former drug users and volunteers involved in the fight against trafficking.

Leo drew loud applause when he lamented that “too often, in the name of security, war is waged against the poor, filling prisons with those who are merely the last link in a chain of death.”

For the Pontiff, cities must not be “freed of the marginalized, but of marginalization; they must not be cleared of the desperate, but of desperation.”

In a report published recently, the United Nations estimates that 316 million people worldwide used drugs in 2023 — not counting alcohol and tobacco — representing 6% of the population aged 15 to 64, compared to 5.2% in 2013. 

With 244 million users, cannabis remains the most widely used drug, followed by opiates (61 million), amphetamines (30.7 million), cocaine (25 million), and ecstasy (21 million).

The report warns that these figures are likely to rise due to the arrival of new vulnerable groups fleeing poverty, instability, and conflict. While it's difficult to estimate the income generated by the illicit drug trade, the United Nations considers it to be “hundreds of billions of dollars a year.” 

In his speech, Leo XIV described drugs as “an invisible prison.” He said he was counting on those who had escaped it to bear witness and take action:

According to the Pope, it's a matter of upholding “the infinite dignity imprinted on each person.” To this end, he assured his audience: “The Church needs you. Humanity needs you. Education and politics need you.”