Westboro Baptist Church to Picket CT Victims' Funerals

On December 14th, the second worst school massacre in the history of the United States unfolded in a sleepy town in Connecticut. Twenty children and six teachers and administrators died. And less than twenty-four hours after this horrific event, members of the Westboro Baptist Church – located in Topeka, Kansas – announced that they will picket the funerals of the children.

The Westboro Baptist Church, led by Fred Phelps, is infamous for picketing the funerals of deceased servicemen and women who died in combat. In 2005, Phelps said that, “Our attitude toward what's happening with the war is the Lord is punishing this evil nation for abandoning all moral imperatives that are worth a dime.” The United States Supreme Court found in an 8-1 ruling that the church does maintain their right to picket as it is protected under the First Amendment. However many towns and cities where funerals are held have issued ordinances requiring a minimum distance the church members must stand from the graveyard, and more.

On December 15th, less than twenty-four hours after the massacre of over two dozen innocent children and teachers, Shirley Phelps-Roper – spokeswoman for the Westboro Baptist Church and daughter of Fred Phelps – posted on her Twitter account that, “Westboro will picket Sandy Hook Elementary School to sing praise to God for the glory of his work in executing his judgment.”

I am a proponent of free speech. I believe strongly in the Constitution, and the rights that are endowed to us as American citizens by it. But this crosses the line. While the Supreme Court has defended them, and by law they can and will continue to spread their vitriol and hatred, this must stop. As conscious American citizens, how can we allow a group to so desecrate one of the most precious traditions in history: burying our dead.

This is not the time to fret about the Constitution. Every American should look into their hearts and see that these people, these fanatics and zealots, are a danger to society. That by picketing the funerals of six-year-old children, saying that God has executed his judgment on them for the sins of America, not only are they crazy, but they are simply crossing the line. Our country may be divided on many things. The upcoming Fiscal Cliff, the state of the economy, Middle Eastern diplomacy, Gay rights, these are all important topics, most of which we as Democrats and Republicans fight over. But tonight we should all be human beings. We should look at the vitriol of the Westboro Baptist Church, and as human beings we should collectively feel sick to our stomachs.

I don’t have a solution. I know nothing can be done. But tonight let’s remember the twenty-seven victims of a massacre that will go down in infamy. Let’s keep them in our thoughts and prayers. And let’s let the Westboro Baptist Church know that we will not stand for this treatment.