Gaga Calls for Equality at EuroPride

Lady Gaga called for equality for same-sex couples around the world during a speech Saturday at EuroPride in Rome.

Agence France-Presse reports that Gaga addressed a crowd estimated at one million in the ancient Circus Maximus. She called for listeners to be "revolutionaries of love."

"The US pop diva criticised governments in Eastern Europe and the Middle East for condemning young people to a life of isolation and discrimination and told the EuroPride rally: 'We're all from the same DNA. We were just born this way,'" she said.

She continued, "I stand here as a woman of the world and I ask governments, with you, worldwide to facilitate our dream of equality," before performing two songs.

Organizers in Rome, who hosted the rotating EuroPride this year, wanted to send a message to the Vatican and to the government of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. While members of the administration including Berlusconi have made antigay remarks, the Vatican lobbies to prevent LGBT rights legislation. Italy has no protections against homophobic violence and offers no kind of same-sex relationship recognition, reports AFP.

While small protests were held against the rally in Rome, fiercer opposition greeted Pride events in Poland and Croatia. Homophobic taunts were shouted at marchers in Warsaw, while several injuries were reported in the Croatian town of Split, which held its first Pride event.

To see photos from the event, click through the pages.