Los Angeles

Archbishop of Los Angeles to Lead Mass in Support of Immigrants

The Los Angeles area is now estimated to host about 100 children separated from migrant parents at the southern border in recent weeks.

What to Know

  • The mass will take place at 3:30 p.m. at the Cathedral of Our Lady Queen Of The Angels in Los Angeles.
  • The Los Angeles area is now estimated to host about 100 children separated from migrant parents at the southern border in recent weeks.
  • Thousands are expected to attend.

The Archbishop of Los Angeles will lead a special "Mass in Recognition of All Immigrants" at the Los Angeles cathedral Sunday, as nearly 100 separated migrant kids were estimated to be in the Southland.

The special 3:30 p.m. Mass will coincide with the end of an annual procession of immigrants. It began in Lake Forest on Friday.

Auxiliary Bishop David O'Connell, from the San Gabriel Pastoral Region, planned to join the pilgrims at Dolores Mission Parish, on Gless Street in Boyle Heights, for final leg of the 60-mile walking pilgrimage. The procession will cross several freeway and arrive at the original L.A. parish chruch, La Placita, before ending the pilgrimage at the nearby Cathedral of Our Lady Queen Of The Angels.

The late afternoon Mass was expected by a church spokesperson to attract thousands of people. It will include representatives from parishes throughout Southern California, "including the pilgrims and people impacted by the broken immigration system, as well as refugees and expatriates from different nationalities."

The Los Angeles area is now estimated to host about 100 children separated from migrant parents at the southern border in recent weeks under President Donald Trump's "zero tolerance" policy, local immigrant rights organizations said this weekend.

Immigrant advocates have said Trump's hard-line policy, which separated about 2,300 children from their parents, has taken a heavy toll on Los Angeles, home to a vast Central American population.

Before Sunday's Mass, local immigrants will share testimonies, including one boy from El Salvador, who made it across the border and was reunited with his mother in Los Angeles. It took him three attempts to seek asylum before he made it into the U.S.

UCLA graduate and DACA recipient Paulina Ruiz will share her account working on her Master's degree while her fate in the U.S. remains unclear, the Archdiocese said in a statement.

And in an indication of how important this is to the church, the Archdiocese said the relics of Saints Junipero Serra, Frances Xavier Cabrini and Toribio Romo will be on display during the Mass. "These saints are of great significance to the Catholic immigrant community in the U.S., from its founding to present day," the church announced in a statement.

Copyright CNS - City News Service
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