Westoboro Baptist Church? to picket NIU funerals?

[dreamer]

I never heard of this church. I do not understand. I sure do not wanna get to this funeral and have there be violence etc? ACK!

My newspaper has a small article in todays paper that this church plans to picket the victims "hypocriticial funerals & memorials and vigils" Accoding to my paper, this churches website also has a poster on it "Thank God for the SHooter at Northern Illinois Univ. God sent the SHooter"
A tech staff member at NIU is getting people to call in to the church, to jam their phone lines and ask members at the chuch why they plan to picket the events? And someone else, it seems, is asking people to come form a human shield at the funerals, memorials and vigils?

I read tis article in Sunday Northwest Herald, first sction, page 11. I cannot access the website, but the website is at www.northwestherald.com
The article was written by Ketul Patel.
an alternate web address is nwherald.com

 

[tiredmommy]

Dreamer- That's just sickening. Here's the link:

http://www.nwherald.com/articles/2008/02/17/niu_shootings/doc47b7de6a64829840799789.txt

 

[dreamer]

I spelled it wrong- Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka Kansas. Sorry.

Classes resume at NIU Feb 25. (according to newspaper)

 

[dreamer]

Thank you for doing the link.

And yes, I agree with you. I sure do not understand. :-(
I understand this church - whoever they are- must want to scare people, and I am afraid they did scare me..I am now not sure I am going, after all. Very sad.

 

[tiredmommy]

You can read up on the group in Wikipedia. FWIW, groups like this rely on intimidation. They are bullies. Don't let them push you around, Dreamer.

 

[Sara PA]

Westboro Baptist Church isn't really a church. It's pretty much just one family led by the father, Fred Phelps, who is about as full of hate as one person can be. If they weren't so hateful, they'd be funny.

They picket the funerals of military personnel who have been killed in Iraq. Their rational is so convoluted that it's difficult to understand, let alone explain, but it has to do with Phelp's severe homophobia. After Westboro jerks picketed a Marine's funeral, his father sued them and won $11 million. Link

 

[Big Bad Kitty]

That makes me SO sick to my stomach.

I'm having a hard time wrapping my brain around the fact that this is a human being.

 

[dreamer]

Now that you explained, yes, I did hear of them, vaguely. I was in Marine Corps League Aux and me and husband would go do color guard etc at KIA services.....I think there was rumbling about this group- they did not show up at any of the services we did go to, at least not while I was there...but one day we had 2 services the same day, and half our group went to one, the other half of us went to another...and I think maybe this weird hate group DID show up at the service I did NOT go to. Altho, being in the midst of Marines, I paid it no nevermind, and I did not have all my kids with me, and we did not personally KNOW the deceased.

I know I shouldn't let them intimidate me, BUT.....it would be me, my kids my little brother, my nephew....and my brother and nephew DO know the deceased and I am afraid that with the grief being so strong, and it already being so high emotion, if there is some bizarre nasty confrontation, it would cause further trauma to mourners.....and I just cannot be the one to put my kids, my much younger baby brother or my nephew into such a situation. The grief and shock are bad enough, protestors and possible who knows what? Nope, not good. I am a chicken, a mouse, non confrontational, and a wimp. A scaredy cat. Buffy has a hard enough time going out of the house, I try to only take her places where I have a pretty good surety things will not turn nasty. Grief is one thing, hate is altogether a different story. I think we will simply stick to PCs classmates service close to him, and leave it at that. AT least my brother and my nephew have each other. and their friends. That does help them. At least they will not be going totally alone.

 

[witzend]

Their point is that God sent the shooter because America embraces the Gay Agenda and God hates gay people the most of all sinners. OK, if anyone has a copy of the "Gay Agenda" could you please fax it to me? They regularly picket the funerals of GI's killed in combat (which is God's retribution for embracing the Gay Agenda), and picketed Heath Ledger's funeral because he portrayed a gay man in a movie.

Losers. I could say a lot more, but at the least I'd get blown off the board for a while, and at the worst some pencil pusher might think I was making a threat.

 

[witzend]

Their rational is so convoluted that it's difficult to understand, let alone explain, but it has to do with Phelps severe homophobia.

You know what they say about people who are overly boisterous about their homophobia...

 

[Hound dog]

Dreamer

If it were me, I'd go. (but then I'm weird that way)

This sort of home grown terrorism infuriates me. It's not fair to the kids and the families and friends of the victims. You won't be the only one scared away. And that's exactly what they want.

Gay Agenda my foot. All this group wants is attention. Period. And to bully people. Makes me sick.

Hugs

 

[hearts and roses]

I guess I missed something - the shooter wasn't gay....ummmm, why does this group feel the need to choose this particular shooting? And are they Baptists? I guess I am naive or missing something, but I just don't get this.

Hate begets hate - isn't something like that in the bible?

dreamer, I feel so bad that you have this other thing to contend with. I'm sure since everyone knows those jerks will be present, there will also be a police presence as well to keep the mourners safe from harrassment and/or violence. If your heart is telling you to attend, and you can, then go.

 

[BusynMember]

I remember them for picketing the funeral of a gay young man who was killed in Wyoming. I forgot why they showed up--maybe to say he deserved to die. I have a vague memory that they are actually a White Supremist Group, but don't quote me on that.

I'd be afraid of them too. They are nuts. But I would hold my head up and walk right past them. If they walk on private property, I'd call the cops.

 

[Lothlorien]

I hope the victims' family are provided with police protection and the picketers are moved a fair distance from the events. I wouldn't think they(picketers) would get too many supporters. I say let them go ahead and do it, provided they are far removed from the area. Although it's wrong, it makes them look ridiculous and hopefully, with all the attention they are getting, something will be done to stop them from doing this nonsense. Personally, I think picketing a funeral should be against the law. It's bad enough that the families are grieving their loved ones, but to thow salt in such a raw wound is just disgusting!

Hopefully, this will bring so much attention to this that lawmakers will do something about it.

 

[Sue C]

I looked them up on the internet. They are not a Baptist church. The real "Baptist Church" does not recognize them as a church. They are a hate group. And it is awful what they do. It saddens me that they would picket these funerals.

sue

 

[Star*]

I called a friend at the local office of the Rainbow coalition - he said "We're going to send them a card and let them know we will pray for them."

 

[tammyjh]

They were also going to picket the funerals of the Amish school girls but reconsidered when a radio talk show host gave them an hour of air time. They just want to spread their hate and make news

 

[SaraT]

If I recall right, this same group tried to picket at a Military funeral, and were pushed back by a group of military retirees who are now bikers. I believe the picture that went with the article had a ring of bikes and bikers around the funeral to prevent that sick group from disturbing the funeral.

Those kind of people that twist the Bible for their own agendas are sick and sad. Is there a group in your area of BIG men that can keep these idiots out? A ring of police? Something?

I am sorry for all you and your family are going through, but don't let this group keep you away.

 

[witzend]

I guess I missed something - the shooter wasn't gay....ummmm, why does this group feel the need to choose this particular shooting?

Their theory is that every bad thing that happens in the US (9/11, Katrina, mass murders, anything that gets enough press, IYKWIM) is God's retribution for the government being tolerant of the ever elusive "Gay Agenda".

Seems like they have an agenda to me.

Haters.

 

[dreamer]

well, in any event.......
Buffy does not handle crowds very well. She is quite skittish. Grief is one emotion, but hate is yet another, and that would prolly throw her back quite a bit.....
Young son is not fond of police. A freinds dad in police uniform grabbed him and shook him just about a year ago, and for now he is still skittish around police in uniform. I do not think I need to put him around a sitution where police presence might be heavy, and possibly being physically, no matter the reason. Son is already trying to cope with the mall shooting and we will be going there in 2 weeks.....and I AM takinghim to that mall------
My youngest bro, who would be the biggest reason we were gonna go to this service----he does not say one way or another but scuttlebutt he is gay. His orientation means not one whit to me.....BUT becuz we had been estarnged for so long before our mom died, I do not know how HE might react in this mess, either. And my nephew is a hothead.
ANd I had been torn becuz the 2 services todaay (unrelated to each other) were already complicated and confuseing to make it to both....
but gosh who needs t go to TWO funerals in one day for persons under 20 years old? Thats a LOT of very high emotion.
Now, I have msotly kept the TV off and also kinda not left our newspaper around, and have been advocating the kids to let their cell phones rest.....and today I find out the shooters girlfriend is from here. I guess at the moment "I" am overloaded.and I am not ready to know if the shooters girlfriend is a friend or aqcuaintance of my kids. :-(
Seems like this area where I live has suddenyl and intensely required several intense home conversations of magnitudes I sure have not been ready for. Too much too close togehter. Mall shootings at the mall we go to, Missing wives of police husbands, Univ shootings, creepy hate groups.....s-e-x-ual orientation.....
our nurseing home here has been in our news, 1 I worked in several years for possible "mercy killings" and "cops gone wild" has been in forefront in a big way here, as well......
Sure, I talk to my kids a LOT already----but talking about these things and haveing them all happening right here with people we know persoanlly day to day- it is too much, too fast....
and anyway, my kids have been to far too many funerals especially for their own peers already in their short lives........I think this one, this time, we will just skip.
I do not want to further jeopardize their already tenuous frames of minds.

Then just to add to it? My son heard one of the victims sufered an eye iinjury, and now he is wondering if he will see her at HIS eye surgeons...(plus he wondered if the eye doctor would remember this time that he did not lose HIS eye to fireworks or guns)

THis all may be "the real world" and I have NEVER been one to shelter my kids from anything......but, for once.....I guess I am. Cuz it is just REALLY intense here right now......just SO much, so many many incidents etc. I just at the moment cannot even fathom how to add in a hate group, too. Yeesh, our dinner conversations the last couple months have been hard enough.