Westboro Baptists Plan To Assault More Grieving Families Today
CHICAGO (AFP) - Armed with signs shouting “thank God for dead soldiers,” a radical anti-gay US church plans to resume its controversial funeral protests Friday despite being ordered to pay 11 million dollars to the family of a fallen soldier offended by their hateful songs and slogans.
Kansas-based Westboro Baptist Church hailed Wednesday’s jury verdict as yet another opportunity to spread its message that God is punishing the United States for its tolerance of homosexuality.
“We will continue to warn you of your impending doom as long as our God gives us breath,” church leaders said in a press release lined with biblical references and pictures of the signs its members flaunt at funerals.
“Not only did you fail to stop our preaching, but our message has gone to the entire world.”
The fringe group of fire and brimstone Baptists from Topeka, Kansas has been courting controversy for more than 17 years.
The church first gained national notoriety when they picketed the funeral of Matthew Shepard, a Wyoming student who was murdered in 1998 for being gay.
They have since picketed the funerals of Frank Sinatra and Bill Clinton’s mother, celebrated the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, as an act of God’s wrath, and have even targeted Santa Claus and the Ku Klux Klan.
Funded in part by lawsuits against those who try to block the protests and violate a constitutional right to free speech, the church members travel the country on a near-daily basis and have held an estimated 30,000 pickets.
Their funeral protests are laced with anti-gay slurs.
At one protest attended by AFP five women sang and danced as they held up signs saying “God hates fags,” “fag vets” and “America is doomed.” The group also has a wide repertoire of songs like “This Land is Fag Land” and “God Hates America.”
The group’s presence at the funerals of dozens of soldiers across the country has sparked a grassroots movement of bikers determined to drown out the jeers and taunts.
While Westboro’s congregation remains stable at around 70 to 100 people — many of whom are the extended family of founder Fred Phelps — the ranks of the Patriot Guard Riders has swelled to more than 117,000 in the past two years.
If the Westboro protestors show up as planned at the funerals of Sergeant Scott Turner in Norton, Kansas and Staff Sergeant Larry Rougle in West Jordan, Utah on Friday, their signs will be masked by an honor guard of flag-waving bikers.
But the father of a soldier awarded 10.9 million dollars on Wednesday after his son Matthew’s funeral was picketed last year hopes the verdict he has won will block the protest completely.
“I basically want to shut them down,” said Albert Snyder. “I don’t expect to collect 10 million dollars, but I do intend to collect everything they have.”
Westboro insists it will win the case on appeal, but Snyder’s lawyer said they have a good chance of proving that the constitutional right to free speech has limits.
“The reality is that the First Amendment has survived 200 years without anyone protesting funerals, and I think it’s safe to say that if this group is shut down and cannot protest funerals, the First Amendment will survive another 200 years,” said Sean Summers, Snyder’s attorney.
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“the First Amendment will survive another 200 years,”. Got that right, we’ll be here long after they’re gone.
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:28 amThis is the kind of shit you have when peoples family tree has no branches.
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:35 amHey suicide bombers knock yourself out with this fucked up bunch! That way we can get read of the both of you dumb-asses!
Fire and brimstone preachers? LOL. No they’re not. These people are delluded. Just as delluded as David Koresh and Jim Jones were delluded. They should be locked up and thrown underneath the jail until they repent of their evil.
If we can’t do that…then sue them until they have nothing left but their big mouths. That is until people finally get fed up with them and start breaking their teeth.
Failing that, since these people posses no common sense, honor, or respect for grieving families, legistlate them out of existence, by prohibiting anyone from causing a disturbance of a funeral.
Last resort: Line ‘em up in front of a firing squad.
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:40 amIf anything could unite liberals and conservatives in this country it would be the cause overwhelm fred phelps and company at every funeral they plan to attend. I also suggest that someone from soldiers family confront this bastard in the face.
November 2nd, 2007 at 3:00 amGod these people can get me angry like few others
I wish they would stop. I hope they go to hell, and find them to be saddams girlfriends. 
November 2nd, 2007 at 3:18 amnice rage Mindy
The Patriot Riders do a great service for our country and I thank you for it.
ya know, some folks just need killin
November 2nd, 2007 at 4:44 amYou know, we all have righteous rage and indignation against those folks, and share many of the same feelings. As their leaders said in a press release, “We will continue to warn you of your impending doom as long as our God gives us breath”
Well their God is that of sueing others to live, like the typical liberal hypocrits, and I get the feeling that ther may be an unfortunate act of violence against them in the future. Sort of like a reap what you sew reaction… don’t know how those heretical bastards will ike the picket sign suppositories
November 2nd, 2007 at 5:05 amThanks steve-glad you noticed
November 2nd, 2007 at 5:26 amThe Kansas readers of PatDollard.com should pay a visit to the Westboro “Homophobic/Haters” Baptist church’s website (http://www.godhatesfags.com/main/index.html), view their upcoming picket schedule to get a glimpse of the lunacy that this so called church spews and then show up at their planned protest to assist the Patriot riders in smashing these little turds into the pavement. I may just take a little road trip myself to one of their protest to participate. These hatemongers are truly fucked up!!!!!
November 2nd, 2007 at 5:44 amI would like to see them do a protest in the Castro or Folsom district in San Francisco. They’d never leave the city alive. Their cowards, if they really wanted homosexuals to repent they would go witness to those people where they live. Not deliberately try to anger people who aren’t even gay.
November 2nd, 2007 at 6:25 amPerfect place for an IED
November 2nd, 2007 at 6:28 amSeeing the little kids holding those signs just pisses me off. Why hasnt someone lost it yet and pounded one of these sickos into the ground? (the adults i mean). I know if it was at a funeral of one of my loved ones i would do it in a heartbeat, right in front of everyone. I would get out of the car and let the whole motorcade see me kick their ass until the cops pulled me off
November 2nd, 2007 at 6:33 amTEXAS Larry is right, find where you can confront them. They did not fair well outside Gate 4 at Fort Campbell last year I hear. sheehan was confronted here in Charlotte last year and ran away whining, these pyschos will do the same.
Better choose a side, the time is past for sitting back passivley hoping for the best to turn out.
November 2nd, 2007 at 6:52 amTHESE are the people that need to be rounded up. Make them break rocks for 5 years.
November 2nd, 2007 at 7:02 amI think I might go to west jordan today and piss off those stupid baptists.
November 2nd, 2007 at 7:29 amSo these people think that the homosexual acceptance in our society today is why our solders are being killed in the War on Terror?? WOW we must of really had a homosexual problem in America during W.W.II.
November 2nd, 2007 at 7:50 amPoor dumb bastards. They prove that just because someone is a lawyer they can also be dumb as retard. hope they rot in hell an soon. by the way the leader is a closeted gay.
November 2nd, 2007 at 9:05 amDan, Steve in NC, Texas Larry, Professor Bill, and MINDY
covered it all for me! 
Rarely do I like to use the term but these folks from this so called “Westboro Church” are a true waste of skin.
“While Westboro’s congregation remains stable at around 70 to 100 people — many of whom are the extended family of founder Fred Phelps — the ranks of the Patriot Guard Riders has swelled to more than 117,000 in the past two years.”
The Patriot Guard Riders are awesome. Between their efforts and others who are as sickened by these loons from Westboro as we all are their voices will not be heard anywhere near our grieving military families in the near future.
November 2nd, 2007 at 9:31 amI’m pretty sure someone with a mask could be quick enough to knock these fucks out without getting caught.
Perhaps bear mace or even a painball assault.
If I saw them at my family members funeral, I’m with Kurt. They would all be bloody fuckin messes twiching on the ground. Except the kids I guess, mabey a good bitch slap for them.
November 2nd, 2007 at 10:50 amI’m happy the bikers are showing up to “contain” them. It’s terrible when you can’t even bury your family member in peace. They defile everything they touch. Also, the funeral directors should deal with this by erecting a large temporary canvas fence in front of where the “protesters” will be. And aren’t the protesters subject to arrest for unlawful assembly and protesting without a permit?
November 2nd, 2007 at 11:10 amI’m with Kurt….if these guys showed up at a funeral for someone I knew, I wouldn’t care if I got in trouble or not -some people just deserve a good ass kicking.
Might get in trouble with the law but you’d be a hero to the average citizen - hell they’d probably have a hard time finding a jury to find you guilty.
November 2nd, 2007 at 11:51 am“…stupid baptists.”
slassbag, I go to a Baptist Church here in Ohio and these Westboro “Baptists” are freaks and do not represent any other fundamental independent baptist churches. Please, I hope you don’t confuse any other church with these awful people. These people are essentially a family cult of hate and need to actually read their bibles instead of hitting people with them.
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:21 pmHey y’all here’s the website for these dumbfucks
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:24 pmwww.godhatesamerica.com - let ‘em have it!
DOUBLE-TAP EVERY DAMN ONE OF ‘EM….. FUCK ‘EM
November 2nd, 2007 at 4:10 pmReason numero uno to remove all law exemptions (taxes, conspiracy charges) for churches.
If you can’t play nice with the toys, they get taken away.
November 7th, 2007 at 4:02 pm