Barcelona to Erect Gay Monument

The city of Barcelona, Spain, will put up a monument to gay and transgender people who have been persecuted "throughout history," Agence France-Presse reports.

City officials issued a statement last week saying the pink triangular stone monument, which will be unveiled in February, will bear the inscription "In memory of the gays, lesbians and transsexual people who have suffered persecution and repression throughout history. Barcelona 2011."

Several sites are under consideration, including the plaza outside the Sagrada Familia basilica. Gay protesters (pictured) staged a massive demonstration there when Pope Benedict XVI consecrated the Roman Catholic basilica in November.

The pope appeared in Spain again Sunday, but via video. He conveyed his blessing at a "family values" outdoor Mass conducted in Madrid by Archbishop Antonio Rouco Varela. The service, which had the endorsement of the conservative Popular Party, outlined Catholic opposition to marriage equality and other liberal policies enacted by Spain's current government, the Associated Press reports.

Warned Rouco Varela: "Whenever the true worth of matrimony and family values is questioned, negative consequences come forward rapidly."