Pope Francis res-ponds to an open letter from Italian writer Maurizio Maggiani, and urges all authors to ensure their books are not printed using exploitative or slave labour. “I was struck by your words,” wrote the Pope. “Yours is no idle question, because what is at stake is hu-man dignity, a dignity which is today too often and easily trampled upon through ‘slave labour’ and the silent complicity of many people.” However, the pen—or the computer keyboard—offers us another possibility: that of reporting and writing uncomfortable things that can shake us out of indifference, to stimulate consciences.”

Pope Francis
responds to an open letter from Italian writer Maurizio Maggiani,
August 12, 2021