Congressman Chuck Fleischmann released the following statement on the Pope’s address to Congress.
“Today was truly a historic moment. It was an honor to be on the House floor during the first time a pope has ever addressed a joint session of Congress. Pope Francis has a tremendous message of peace, family and the sanctity of life. I most appreciated his closing words ‘God bless America’.”
Senator Lamar Alexander said, "Pope Francis lives his life in a way that provides an extraordinary example of serving others.
It has been an honor to help host his visit and to hear him.”
Senator Bob Corker said, “It was an honor to welcome His Holiness Pope Francis to our nation’s capital today and hear his historic address to Congress. His address was one of hope and unity, and I was particularly pleased to hear his message about the fight to eliminate modern slavery. As Pope Francis conveyed, ending modern slavery will not come easy. It will require cooperation from people of all faiths, backgrounds, and nationality. But together, we can end it. I remain committed to efforts to fighting slavery and human trafficking, which is a heartbreaking reality for the more than 27 million people enslaved today in more than 167 countries, including our own.”
During his address to Congress, Pope Francis said, “In this land, the various religious denominations have greatly contributed to building and strengthening society. It is important that today, as in the past, the voice of faith continue to be heard, for it is a voice of fraternity and love, which tries to bring out the best in each person and in each society. Such cooperation is a powerful resource in the battle to eliminate new global forms of slavery, born of grave injustices which can be overcome only through new policies and new forms of social consensus.”
Senator Corker said on Feb. 26, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee unanimously passed The End Modern Slavery Initiative Act of 2015, which will charter a 501(c)(3) non-profit grant-making foundation based in Washington, D.C.
“The End Modern Slavery Initiative Foundation” will fund programs outside the United States that:
· Contribute to the freeing and sustainable recovery of victims of modern slavery, prevent individuals from being enslaved, and enforce laws to punish individual and corporate perpetrators of modern slavery;
· Set out clear, defined goals and outcomes that can be empirically measured; and
· Achieve a measurable 50 percent reduction of modern slavery in targeted populations.
In addition, a number of advocacy groups and faith-based institutions have issued support for the effort including, the Alliance to End Slavery & Trafficking (ATEST), International Justice Mission (IJM), United Way Worldwide, Freedom House, Rotary International, the End It Movement, and Circle of Friends, Inc., among others, Senator Corker said.