Pope Francis spoke out against the rising tide of populism Tuesday, comparing populists to Adolf Hitler and suggesting that it caused the Second World War.
“It is important for young people to know how populism is born,” the pope said at a book launch in Rome. “I think of Hitler in the last century, who had promised development for Germany. They should know how populisms begin: by sowing hate. You can’t live sowing hate.”
Increased efforts are needed to teach the young about the history of the First and Second World Wars “so they do not fall into the same error and so they know how populism spreads,” said the pontiff.