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| Pope Francis in Washington DC - live coverage | Pope Francis in Washington DC - live coverage |
| (34 minutes later) | |
| 12.48pm BST12:48 | |
| Security for the pope’s visit is “unprecedented,” CNN is reporting. As dawn broke, journalists and others who have been cleared to be in the White House for the meeting were queuing at several security checkpoints to get in. | |
| Past one checkpoint. About to go through security at the White House. #PopeInDC pic.twitter.com/u50Pfr0csN | |
| #PopeInDC Media waiting to get through the 2nd check point entry to the White House grounds. http://t.co/zwv6nMPGoA pic.twitter.com/ebRng4QAlZ | |
| We're in! The @WhiteHouse lawn is where #PopeFrancis will be giving his first speech today. #PopeInDC #PopeinUS pic.twitter.com/64VnsGQFae | |
| 12.34pm BST12:34 | |
| One topic that might be controversial today is the canonisation of 18th century Franciscan missionary Junípero Serra, whom the pontiff is due to make a saint during this trip. | |
| Native American groups in California have been protesting his elevation to sainthood, saying that instead of being honored, Serra should be condemned for the brutal treatment of the Native American population that took place under his leadership. | |
| Tens of thousands of Native Americans across Alta California, as the region was then known, were absorbed into Catholic missions – places said by one particularly rapturous myth-maker in the 19th century to be filled with “song, laughter, good food, beautiful languor, and mystical adoration of the Christ”, writes Andrew Gumbel. | |
| What this rosy-eyed view omits is that these natives were brutalized – beaten, pressed into forced labour and infected with diseases to which they had no resistance – and the attempt to integrate them into the empire was a miserable failure. | |
| “Indians brought into the missions were not allowed to leave, and if they tried they were shackled and severely beaten,” writes Gumbel. | |
| They were used as forced labour to build out the Mission’s farming projects. They were fed atrociously, separated from close family members and packed into tight living quarters that often became miasmas of disease and death. | |
| When the Native Americans rebelled, which they did on at least two occasions, their rebellions were put down in brutal fashion. | |
| When Native American women were caught trying to abort babies conceived through rape, the mission fathers had them beaten for days on end, clamped them in irons, had their heads shaved and forced them to stand at the church altar every Sunday carrying a painted wooden child in their arms. | |
| Native Americans in California have protested against the move in the run-up to Pope Francis’s visit. But it is not yet known whether the pope will address the controversy on this trip. | |
| Gumbel continues: | |
| The Vatican would like to believe that Serra and the missionaries were somehow separate from the Spanish colonial enterprise, and that the army’s abuses should not in any way be laid at Serra’s door. Pope Francis said in May that Serra was one of a generation of missionaries ‘who … defended the indigenous peoples against abuses by the colonisers.’ | |
| Most historians, however, dismiss that interpretation as fanciful. | |
| You can read all about the controversy here. | |
| Updated at 12.40pm BST | |
| 12.18pm BST12:18 | |
| Meanwhile, at the White House, the secret service have begun screening and checking the journalists and dignitaries who are lucky enough to have clearance for Pope Francis’ visit. | |
| First secret service checks as we get ready to go to The White House with #PopeFrancis #PopeinUS pic.twitter.com/ZAIWnS7AQ3 | |
| Among them is Dan Roberts, the Guardian’s DC bureau chief, who will be contributing to our coverage today. His twitter is here. | |
| 12.15pm BST12:15 | 12.15pm BST12:15 |
| It is just before 7:15 and the sun is just rising in Washington, DC. It’s set to be a beautiful day - high of 77 degrees farenheit; bright, clear and sunny. | It is just before 7:15 and the sun is just rising in Washington, DC. It’s set to be a beautiful day - high of 77 degrees farenheit; bright, clear and sunny. |
| Sun rises on #PopeInDC parade route. T-minus 4 hours till the Pope rolls! #DC pic.twitter.com/pKnWjPUE36 | Sun rises on #PopeInDC parade route. T-minus 4 hours till the Pope rolls! #DC pic.twitter.com/pKnWjPUE36 |
| 12.00pm BST12:00 | 12.00pm BST12:00 |
| Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of day two of Pope Francis’ visit to the United States of America. | Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of day two of Pope Francis’ visit to the United States of America. |
| Yesterday the pontiff left Cuba for Andrews Joint Air Base in Maryland, where he was met by Barack Obama, vice-president Joe Biden, and their families, and an adulatory crowd. | Yesterday the pontiff left Cuba for Andrews Joint Air Base in Maryland, where he was met by Barack Obama, vice-president Joe Biden, and their families, and an adulatory crowd. |
| Pope Francis arrival and departure from Joint Base Andrews pic.twitter.com/2ZAjdOhaIJ | Pope Francis arrival and departure from Joint Base Andrews pic.twitter.com/2ZAjdOhaIJ |
| Today the pontiff is scheduled meet again with Obama at the White House before a procession along National Mall to St. Matthew’s Cathedral, where he will lead midday prayers. | Today the pontiff is scheduled meet again with Obama at the White House before a procession along National Mall to St. Matthew’s Cathedral, where he will lead midday prayers. |
| Stay with us for live updates on what is set to be a very exciting day. | Stay with us for live updates on what is set to be a very exciting day. |
| Here’s today’s full schedule: | Here’s today’s full schedule: |
| 9.15am ET (1.15pm GMT): A welcome ceremony and meeting with Barack Obama takes place at the White House on the South Lawn. | 9.15am ET (1.15pm GMT): A welcome ceremony and meeting with Barack Obama takes place at the White House on the South Lawn. |
| 11am ET (3.15pm GMT): The pope drives between the Ellipse and a portion of the National Mall in the Popemobile. The parade is open to the public and no tickets are required but those attending have to pass through security. Security gates open at 4am and stay open until 10am. | 11am ET (3.15pm GMT): The pope drives between the Ellipse and a portion of the National Mall in the Popemobile. The parade is open to the public and no tickets are required but those attending have to pass through security. Security gates open at 4am and stay open until 10am. |
| 11.30am ET (4.30pm GMT): Pope Francis leads a prayer at St Matthew’s Cathedral with US bishops. | 11.30am ET (4.30pm GMT): Pope Francis leads a prayer at St Matthew’s Cathedral with US bishops. |
| 4.15pm ET (9.15pm GMT): The pontiff holds mass in Spanish at Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception to canonize Junípero Serra as the first Hispanic saint. | 4.15pm ET (9.15pm GMT): The pontiff holds mass in Spanish at Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception to canonize Junípero Serra as the first Hispanic saint. |
| You can read his full schedule for the week here. | You can read his full schedule for the week here. |
| Updated at 12.06pm BST | Updated at 12.06pm BST |