‘Thanked him for his courage’: Chicago mayor hails Pope Leo as powerful ally

Brandon Johnson, the Chicago mayor, cast Pope Leo XIV as a powerful global ally on social justice, migration and reparations after meeting the Chicago-born pontiff at the Vatican, saying their shared roots and priorities could help amplify efforts to protect vulnerable communities. “We are incredibly elated and proud of him,” Johnson told the Associated Press in an interview on Friday, a day after the meeting with the American pope in a private audience. The mayor said it was comforting to know that someone who comes from the city of Chicago “can speak to justice” and defend “the most vulnerable among us”. Johnson, a first-term progressive Democrat leading the third-largest US city, traveled to Rome with a delegation of about 50 local officials. He is a leading critic of Donald Trump and has applauded the pope for pushing back against the war in Iran and the US president’s immigration policies . According to Johnson, the first thing Pope Leo asked him was: “How’s Chicago?” “I was able to say that Chicago is strong and that we are transforming … He gave, I think, a great sort of pastoral nod, a pleasure to hear the incredible progress that … we’ve made,” the mayor said in a press conference. …