Sophie Cruz’s brief encounter with Pope Francis during his parade in Washington this week appeared to be a spontaneous moment: An initially hesitant young child wrapping an arm around his neck as he offers a kiss and a blessing.
But for 5-year-old Sophie, the moment unfolded as perfectly as it was scripted by members of a coalition of Los Angeles-based immigration rights groups. They had been preparing for nearly a year for the young girl to deliver a message about the plight of immigrant parents living in the country illegally.
Sophie was selected for the Washington trip because she “impressed us all so much that we felt she would be our best spokesman,” said Juan Jose Gutierrez of the Full Rights for Immigrants Coalition. If she had been unsuccessful in Washington, he said, she would try again in New York and Philadelphia.
Sophie refused to the leave the pope’s side Wednesday until a bodyguard took a handwritten letter and a T-shirt. Gutierrez said Sophie crafted her own letter to the pope and wasn’t prompted what to tell reporters who caught up with her later.
“She didn’t have anyone coaching her,” Gutierrez said. “She just spoke from her heart.”
