My friend Grace and I were talking yesterday and we were discussing this news article about the Westboro Baptist Church and the fact that the supreme court had ruled that they were within their rights to viciously picket funerals of military officers. The argument is that because of our freedom of speech they are allowed to attend funerals and hold signs that state such things as "God hates the U.S.A./Thank God for 9/11" and "Thank God for Dead Soldiers." The church's strategy is to stage protests at high visibility funerals, drawing media attention and gaining a platform for their views. The family of slain Marine Matthew Snyder sued church members for intentionally inflicting emotional distress after they picketed at his funeral. As appalling as most Americans would find these protests, the Supreme Court in an 8-1 decision found that the picketers could not be successfully sued because the protests were protected by the First Amendment. This information is found in the article which I have provided a link for, http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_exclusive/20110302/pl_yblog_exclusive/courts-ruling-in-funeral-protest-case-restates-first-amendment-principles
Here are the key factors in the courts decision in the Westboro case.
1-The protests were on public property and concerned public issues: The church members stood on public land a thousand feet from the church where the funeral was held. As hateful as the signs were, they addressed such topics as homosexuality in society, military policy and alleged misconduct by the Catholic Church. All of those subjects are matters for public debate.
2-The protest was peaceful: While government can't punish free speech, it does have the power to limit disruptive actions. The picketers never stepped on the church property or engaged in violence. Instead, they sang hymns and read from the Bible.
3-The protesters followed the rules: Governments cannot limit what we say, but they can control where we say it. Regulations can be put in place to control the "time, place and manner" of protests as long as all points of view are treated equally. This gives states the right to say how closely protesters can come to a military funeral, and a majority of states have passed legislation to do just that. In this case, the picketers notified authorities in advance and followed all police instructions.
My Thoughts~~~~
1. Yes they were on public property but I fail to see how any of their issues are relevant to any funeral, even if it is a military funeral, or the funeral of a homosexual that has been bashed, funerals are not public venues and to violate another person in such a manner is definitely not a christian value nor do I believe it was intended by our forefathers to be interpreted in such a fashion. Considering that we came to America in search of relief from oppression you would think god fearing Christians would have the simple decency to respect another human being.
2. About as peaceful as it could be I suppose but how peaceful are those signs, I mean really??
3. The question here is Why are there rules? It just shouldn't be permitted, yes rally and picket your jobs, the government, or whatever your little "christian" hearts desire but a funeral, Really?! We pride ourselves on being the most advanced species on Earth but sometimes I wonder about that what with the atrocities that we visit upon each other. I grew up in a christian home, attended 18 years of Sunday's, Wednesday's, and days in between. and not once did I hear that god or Jesus told us as Christian's that it was our place to judge anybody. Actually if memory serves me correctly i believe that we are told NOT to judge others but to lead by example.
My question to Westboro Baptist Church is, What kind of examples are you setting??
and Is this what Jesus would do?.
