The singers who were expelled from the Sagrada Familia during the mass officiated by the Pope have sent a letter this Monday to the basilica, the Archdiocese of Barcelona, the Generalitat de Catalunya, and the Spanish Government Delegation. In the letter, over 200 individuals are demanding explanations, calling for a formal apology to those affected, and requesting the identification of the organizational and operational leaders responsible for the decision. They also ask for accountability if it is concluded that the action was inappropriate.
In the letter, the singers state that they participated in the celebration with a "spirit of service, institutional respect, and enthusiasm" to be part of an exceptional event. They consider it "especially painful" that a collective measure was adopted that "indiscriminately affected hundreds of singers" for actions attributed to "a small number of individuals." They describe the response as "disproportionate and lacking the necessary consideration for the affected individuals."
Therefore, the singers request clarification on which body or authority made the decision to expel them from the Sagrada Familia and based on what criteria. The letter also seeks information regarding the protocols and proportionality of the measures taken.
More than 500 singers who were part of the choirs participating in the Pope's mass were expelled from the premises just before the blessing of the Tower of Jesus. The security team detected that the singers had Catalan flags (estelades) printed inside their sheet music and intended to sing Els segadors (the Catalan anthem) at the end of the event, a piece not included in the official program. Consequently, the police removed them from the basilica, and they did not participate in the final spectacle.
