Story perspectives

Pope Apologizes for Church’s Slave Trade Role, Ghana Welcomes

5/27/2026

Summary

Story summary

Pope Leo XIV issued an encyclical apologizing for Catholic Church’s role in the transatlantic slave trade.
Ghana’s government welcomed the apology, saying it reinforces need for truth-telling and moral responsibility.
Ghana secured a United Nations (UN) resolution labeling the slave trade the gravest crime against humanity and will host a June reparations conference.
Human Rights Watch praised the apology but warned that reparative justice must move beyond words to actions.

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Story summary

Pope Leo XIV issued an encyclical apologizing for Catholic Church’s role in the transatlantic slave trade.
Ghana’s government welcomed the apology, saying it reinforces need for truth-telling and moral responsibility.
Ghana secured a United Nations (UN) resolution labeling the slave trade the gravest crime against humanity and will host a June reparations conference.
Human Rights Watch praised the apology but warned that reparative justice must move beyond words to actions.