Robert Francis Prevost, the first American pope, who has taken the title Leo XIV, is leading more than a billion Catholics around the world. Soon after his ascent to the papacy, he came under the scrutiny of social media users due to his conservative remarks about the LGBTQ+ community made in 2012. Amid this, a recent video of the pope allegedly ignoring a pride flag has fueled the controversy.
Acquisitions of ignoring an LGBTQ+ flag:
“Newly elected Pope Leo XIV intentionally ignored an LGBTQ rainbow flag by looking the other way when he approached it,” wrote an X user while sharing a video. Several others across X are sharing the same video.
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The video captures the moment the pope traverses the crowds. He shakes hands with some of the people standing beyond the railings. Towards the end of the video, a person appears with a flag in his hand.
Some speculated that Pope Leo XIV intentionally avoided the flag. The video sparked a fresh wave of debate among social media users about the new Catholic leader’s views.
Take a look at the video:
Internet sleuths disagree:
While most people were criticising the moment, a few claimed that the flag the man was holding was not a Pride Flag but a PACE flag. It looks similar to the Pride flag but is a peace flag.
Also Read: Laura Loomer calls Pope Leo XIV a 'woke Marxist', internet says she is ‘disrespectful’. Who is the MAGA influencer?
{{/usCountry}}While most people were criticising the moment, a few claimed that the flag the man was holding was not a Pride Flag but a PACE flag. It looks similar to the Pride flag but is a peace flag.
Also Read: Laura Loomer calls Pope Leo XIV a 'woke Marxist', internet says she is ‘disrespectful’. Who is the MAGA influencer?
{{/usCountry}}An individual wrote, “That's not a Pride flag. It's a peace flag. It says PACE.” Another added, “That's a peace flag and not pride.”
A third posted, “I'm pretty sure that flag means ‘peace’ in Italy.” A fourth remarked, “He's a great pope, but that is not an LGBT flag. The colors & white lettering are not LGBT & clearly show the Italian peace flag (Pace = Peace in Italian). This flag dates from 1961 in Italy, while the LGBT Pride flag was invented in 1978.”