Social media floods with Chicago memes, USA jokes after election of Pope Leo XIV
The appointment of Pope Leo XIV on Thursday, May 8, marks the first American-born pontiff in papal history − and Americans sure aren't shy about celebrating.
While U.S. Catholics expressed shock, awe and gratitude, social media users, in typical internet fashion, could not wait to start cracking jokes.
Pope Leo XIV, known as Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost outside of his papal position, is a 69-year-old Chicago native, something Midwesterners were quick to point out. While he has spent the better portion of his clerical life in Peru, eventually earning dual citizenship, Chicagoans are not letting the world forget that his roots can be traced back to the Windy City.
Posts and memes to that effect exploded across social media soon after Pope Leo XIV was named and appeared before those gathering outside the Vatican for his first address. Amid his calls for peace among all the people of the world, social media users across X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and other platforms reacted with some good-natured quips.