Five from Westboro Baptist face hundreds of foes in Louisville

Five protestors from the controversial Westboro Baptist Church, which is based in Topeka Kansas, and is known for picketing soldiers’ funerals across the nation saying their deaths are God’s punishment for America’s tolerance of homosexuality, faced an estimated 400 counter protesters in front of St. Lawrence Catholic Church in southwest Louisville on Sunday.

Jonathan Phelps, an attorney for the church, and an organizer of Sunday’s picketing, held half a dozen signs in his hands. And he frequently alternated the signs he waved to the crowd, which faced him from across the driveway to the St. Lawrence parking lot.

The messages included “God Hates the Pope” and “The Jews Killed Jesus.” Referring to the U.S. Supreme Court decision Wednesday that upheld Westboro’s right to protest using “hurtful speech” at military funerals, Phelps said: “Jesus Christ has put a megaphone to our lips called the Supreme Court case.”

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But it wasn’t so easy this time, as facing Phelps and his handful of followers were hundreds of men and women many carrying signs aimed at Westboro’s methods. Among them were signs reading – “God is love” and “Westboro go home.”

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Tim Druck a navy veteran, with the counter protesters in front of St. Lawrence, said he helped organize Sunday’s demonstration against Westboro with messages to friends on Facebook. He wanted to show support for our troops. He was also pleased, that so many turned out in counter protest against Westboro Baptist Church. And there were also members from Westboro protesting at churches in Owensboro on Sunday, including at the church where a young man committed suicide after posting a Facebook note describing the trauma of being sexually abused. Phelps said they chose to protest at St. Lawrence because it was on the way to the Louisville airport as they left Kentucky.

The church claims that God hates gay people and anyone who tolerates them, it often protests at churches regardless of their doctrine on that or other subjects. The group also said to the Courier Journal in faxes earlier in the week, that it would target two Catholic and two Protestant churches, claiming “God hates Catholics” and “God hates lying false prophets” and using slurs against gay people, the pope and others.

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Several young members of the Louisville crowd opposing Westboro said they had been discussing the church’s methods in the context of the First Amendment protection of freedom of speech in government and political science classes in colleges and high schools. Many thought it immoral to protest at the funerals of soldiers.

Phelps said Westboro’s picketing is based on the church’s reading of the gospels and the Bible, with particular concern about what the church sees as the government’s protection of abortion and homosexuals. Westboro’s frequent demonstrations at Catholic churches are based on its belief that the Catholic Church is protecting homosexuality because of the revelations of a number of priests abusing boys.

The Westboro picketers even included 13 year old Rachel Hockenbarger, who stood alongside her mother and Phelps. The girl stated she enjoyed doing this. What are they teaching these young kids today, hate and disrespect?

Her mother, also named Rachel Hockenbarger, stood nearby, facing the crowd that was chanting “U.S.A!, U.S.A!,” at times, with perhaps a half-dozen men mounted on motorcycles in support of the counter protesters roaring up and down the street beside them. Asked why she brought her daughter to such demonstrations, Hockenbarger said, “she’s getting a very good education.”

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Louisville Metro Police Sgt. Steve Bailey said 10 officers were at St. Lawrence on Sunday afternoon to maintain the peace. The demonstrators stayed apart, Bailey said, and there were no problems and no arrests.