The Westboro Baptist Church (led by Fred Phelps) is a splinter group from the Baptist Church, often considered to be a 'hate group'which has protested the Jewish community, homosexuality and US soldiers. Followers interpret the Bible in a very literal sense, the church considers membership in most religious groups, such as the Roman Catholic Church or Islam, as akin to devil worship, and states these other churches to be "Satanic frauds preaching Arminian lies." All non-Christian entities, non-Protestant Christian churches, and all Protestant Christian churches that do not strongly condemn homosexuality are said to be sending their members to Hell.
They’ve gained a notorious reputation thanks to their protests at funerals, including those of soldiers who died while fighting in Iraq and the funeral of a man who was beaten to death because he was gay.
They also attempted to picket at the funeral of nine-year-old Christina Green, who died during the 2011 Tucson shooting when US Representative Gabrielle Giffords was attacked. As a result, the state of Arizona introduced an emergency bill to ban protests within 300 feet of a funeral.
Westboro first gained national notoriety in the late 90's at the funeral of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student who died after two men lured him from a bar, beat him and tied him to a fence outside in October 1998. Phelps' followers showed up with signs that read "God hates fags" and said Shepard was in hell. The actions of the church have been condemned and counter protested against by many. The church has also been featured on many 'freak show' type television shows, including a series by BBC's Louis Theroux and on an episode of Michael Moores 'The Awful truth' where Moore confronts the church in a humorous/ironic manner-
The church has been involved in countless lawsuits, I have picked the group (despite them being a small church of less than 100) because I feel that the ability for this group to exist on the grounds of constitutional rights (free speech, the separation of church and state) is definitively American. Despite laws being put in place to stop them protesting at funerals directly outside, due to their first amendment rights they can often protest as little as 30 yards away, and have won law suits in favour of their rights: On September 24, 2009, a federal appeals court ruled in favor of Westboro Baptist Church and reversed the lower court's award. It found their picket near the funeral is protected speech because it involves "matters of public concern, including the issues of homosexuals in the military, the sex-abuse scandal within the Catholic Church, and the political and moral conduct of the United States and its citizens", and did not violate the privacy of the service member's family.On March 30, 2010, the appeals court ordered Albert Snyder to pay the church's court costs of over $16,000, a move that Snyder's attorney's referred to as "adding insult to injury".
Westboro Baptist Church vs Free Speech
Groups of this kind of extremism are not found outside of the United States. So called hate groups, religious extremist groups and cults are all a part of American culture, because their laws protect the free speech and rights of all Americans.It is ironic that the law protects these people on the grounds of first right amendments and 'equal' free speech rights for all when they teach a message of inequality and hatred. The group brings up issues of free speech vs privacy, and issues of the separation of church and state.
For more info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro_Baptist_Church
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