NEW: Pope Leo XIV appoints the youngest bishop in the United States.
Robert Boxie III, 46, is a new auxiliary bishop of Washington.
Boxie has been outspoken against the White House’s attacks against racial diversity.
“It’s really frustrating — especially this moment that we’re living in. The attacks on ‘DEI’ — I don’t even know what that means anymore. It’s a term that’s been hijacked. It means a lot of things to a lot of different people.”
“I think at its core, it’s what America is all about. We are a diverse nation with people from all over the world. Diversity is a good thing. Diversity is of God.”
“And the fact that it’s been turned into something negative — or something that should be avoided or not talked about — just flies in the face of who we are as Americans.”
“So much of our history has been exclusive, especially when it comes to race. And it’s just un-American; it’s un-Christian; it’s anti-Catholic.”