The largest archdiocese in the country penned an editorial designed to pressure Mexico City to dissuade companies who may profit from the wall being built from being involved in the divisive project.
In their weekly online publication Desde La Fe they wrote, "Any company intending to invest in the wall of the fanatic Trump would be immoral, but above all, its shareholders and owners should be considered traitors to the homeland," according to a translation by Common Dreams.
The archdiocese also said the government had a "tepid" response to businesses considering lending help for the wall.
Ildefonso Guajardo, Mexico’s Economic Minister, said on Tuesday that it would not be in the interest of Mexican firms to have a hand with the wall, remarking Mexicans would remember "which brands are loyal to the national identity, and which are not … I think your prestige will align with your own interests in not participating in the wall."
Trump has been calling for the construction of a wall along the Mexican border since he was on the campaign trail, saying the structure would help stem the tide of undocumented immigrants entering the US, some of whom he accused of being rapists and drug dealers.
When announcing his candidacy for the White House in June 2015, Trump said, "When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best…. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people."
After facing backlash for his comments’ racial undertones, he said during a Fox News interviews a month later, "I can never apologize for the truth … I said tremendous crime is coming across (the border). Everybody knows that’s true. And it’s happening all the time. So, why, when I mention, all of a sudden I’m a racist. I’m not a racist. I don’t have a racist bone in my body."
The president has also said he will force Mexico to pay for the wall, and when the government adamantly refused, he nonchalantly added 10 feet to the wall’s height.
The archdiocese wrote, "In practice, signing up for a project that is a serious affront to dignity is shooting yourself in the foot…The wall is a monument of intimidation and silence, of xenophobic hatred." explaining that the wall’s construction validates racism and anti-immigrant sentiment.
The Catholic organization has criticized Trump before, calling him "a clown" and "ignorant" in September 2015, and said the government’s acquiescence to Trump’s pronouncements would be "unpardonable."
Construction companies like Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua and Cemex are two of a reported 26 Mexican firms that have expressed interest in helping build the wall, though Cemex is not interested in taking part in the bidding process.
