Archbishop Oscar Romero of San Salvador was assassinated in the 1980s because he spoke out and worked against social injustice and gross rights violations suffered by the Latin American people.
In 2010, the UN declared March 24, the day of Romero’s death as “International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims” to honor his sacrifice.
Today, Pope Francis will canonize Romero for his martyrdom that should be revered and emulated by faithful all over the world.
Amid these dark times of Duterte-instigated killings, impunity, erosion of rule of law, attacks against the Church and persecution of critics, let us all summon our inner “Romeros” to stand up for our common dignity and faith.