Some El Pasoans disagree with pope’s message on immigration

Pope Francis will deliver a message on immigration when he comes to the border next week.

But not everyone agrees with his views on the topic.

ABC-7 spoke with an El Pasoan who isn’t happy about the pope’s pro-immigrant message.

“I happen to be Mexican-American, but I’m still an American,” said East El Pasoan Juan Aguirre, who knows plenty of El Pasoans don’t share his views on immigration. “People should follow the rules and if they want to come to this country, and they want to become americans, i’m all for them, but there is already a set way of doing this.”

Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump said this week: “I think that the pope is a very political person. I think that he doesn’t understand the problems our country has. I don’t think he understands the danger of the open border that we have with Mexico.”

“The pope has spoken on a lot of things, a lot of political issues he doesn’t necessarily have to get involved with,” Aguirre said. “But I haven’t heard him say anything about fixing the church.”

Aguirre indicated his parents and grandparents were immigrants from Mexico, who came into the country legally.

“The people that come over they are abusing our system,” Aguirre said. “This is what it comes down to. They are abusing the system.”

ABC-7 asked Aguirre what he thought of Pope Francis’ VIP’s, a group of 500 immigrants, some of them undocumented, who will gather on the U.S. side of the border to receive a blessing.

“Anytime you have person that is not here legally, it irks me,” Aguirre said. “It bothers me and makes me angry.”

The pope has addressed immigration several times, recently telling congress that lawmakers should be led by the “Golden Rule” when it comes to immigration policy and “respond in a way which is always humane, just, and fraternal.”