Outrage at Funeral Protests Pushes Lawmakers to Act
 

I really wish these people would get deported but for now a law will do.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/17/us...dde&ei=5087%0A

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/...st.xlarge1.jpg
NASHVILLE, April 11 — As dozens of mourners streamed solemnly into church to bury Cpl. David A. Bass, a fresh-faced 20-year-old marine who was killed in Iraq on April 2, a small clutch of protesters stood across the street on Tuesday, celebrating his violent death.

"Thank God for Dead Soldiers," read one of their placards. "Thank God for I.E.D.'s," read another, a reference to the bombs used to kill service members in the war. To drive home their point — that God is killing soldiers to punish America for condoning homosexuality — members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., a tiny fundamentalist splinter group, kicked around an American flag and shouted, if someone approached, that the dead soldiers were rotting in hell.

Since last summer, a Westboro contingent, numbering 6 to 20 people, has been showing up at the funerals of soldiers with their telltale placards, chants and tattered American flags. The protests, viewed by many as cruel and unpatriotic, have set off a wave of grass-roots outrage and a flurry of laws seeking to restrict demonstrations at funerals and burials.

"Repugnant, outrageous, despicable, do not adequately describe what I feel they do to these families," said Representative Steve Buyer, an Indiana Republican who is a co-sponsor of a Congressional bill to regulate demonstrations at federal cemeteries. "They have a right to freedom of speech. But someone also has a right to bury a loved one in peace."

In the past few months, nine states, including Oklahoma, Wisconsin and Indiana, have approved laws that restrict demonstrations at a funeral or burial. In addition, 23 state legislatures are getting ready to vote on similar bills, and Congress, which has received thousands of e-mail messages on the issue, expects to take up legislation in May dealing with demonstrations at federal cemeteries.

The Westboro Baptist Church, led by the Rev. Fred Phelps, is not affiliated with the mainstream Baptist church. It first gained publicity when it picketed the funeral of Matthew Shepard, a gay man who was beaten to death in 1998 in Wyoming.

Over the past decade, the church, which consists almost entirely of 75 of Mr. Phelps's relatives, made its name by demonstrating outside businesses, disaster zones and the funerals of gay people. Late last year, though, it changed tactics and members began showing up at the funerals of troops killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups, has put it on its watch list.

-Rudey
--A church of your family members...sounds like a big winner.

These people are disgusting and a disgrace. A funeral is a private family/friends event to grieve the loss of a loved one and is no place for politicizing views and demonstration.

This is disgusting.

Re: Outrage at Funeral Protests Pushes Lawmakers to Act
 

I think God's "Smite" button is a little bit more accurate then that. If God wanted to punish homosexuals, he would punish homosexuals ala Sodom & Gomorrah, not soldiers in Iraq. DA!;) :p

They used to come to Oklahoma. Recently, we passed a law forbidding protesters from being anywhere near in-progress funerals.

It's quite disturbing as well. :(

I believe there's a similar law in the Colorado Legislature because these people (?) showed up at a funeral here, too.

They protested my church a couple of years ago when it started performing same-sex marriages. They left by the time the service was over because they weren't getting much attention.

These people disgust me.

Sorry to say Fred Phelps and His whole group is from Kansas!:mad:

He is a Moroinic IDOIOT!

I dont think though that is more Laws that need to be enacted for this crap.

We are getting to damn many anti laws for everything!:mad:

Well, maybe I want to go out and sneeze in My Yrd, oops a law against it!! Get It?

Cut out More Legal Rights of Citizens and then what!

"I will be a Wolverine in the long run!":cool:

I'm suprised these people are still walking around with all of their teeth intact.

Yeah, its obvious they didn't protest near where a lot of people from said area have been killed.

They can protest a funernal in Richmond for soldiers if they want. They'll get their signs stolen/broke before the proccesion even starts.

Wow. I agree that people have a right to protest, but telling someone that the person who died is already in hell is just plain wrong.

We have a lot of crazy people.

they recently protested outside of a memorial service for the 101st airborne division at ft. campbell in clarksville - it was just heartbreaking that they could do this to a group that has lost so many...


unfortunately the desire to hurt them is exactly how they stay in business. they basically say all of these horrible things and then wait for somebody to spit on them or take a swing. once that happens, they sue the individual and the city for failure to provide appropriate protection during a legal protest for which they had the appropriate petition.

it is a no-win situation when they come to town - all you can really do right now is try to ignore them...

- marissa

Wow, just went on their website (www.godhatesfags.com), they call their protests "Love Crusades".

And my family wonders why I'm so cynical with religion....you can spin the bible any which way you want it to mean whatever stupid agenda you have.....

Pat Robertson quote of the week:

"If these medical professionals seem to think that their scientific research finds that homosexuality isn't a choice needs to take a look at what the scripture says..."

I TRY to be a good christian, but this type of stuff (rebuking tested research) makes me realize how many people have rejected the word because of idiots like Phelps and Robertson.

And the people said: Amen!