In response to the article headlined, "Pope convenes cardinals to fight 'leprosy of papacy'" (Oct. 2), I take offense. I have some very close friends who spent their late teens and early 20s at the Gillis W. Long Hansen's Disease (Leprosy) Center in Carville, La. I like to think of it, as well as the many similar treatment facilities worldwide, as holy ground for all who were forced to give up their lives because of the ignorance of the public concerning Hansen's Disease.
The statement made by Pope Francis shows that the stigma still exists.
Anne Knott, Dundalk