The Westboro Baptist Church is one of the most controversial organizations in America. Its inflammatory rhetoric against homosexuals, along with its protests of military funerals, has made it very unpopular with the majority of Americans.
As its protests have continued to court controversy through the years, there was frequent debate over whether or not it should be allowed to preach its beliefs in the manner it does.
That debate reached a boiling point three years ago, when Albert Snyder, the father of a deceased veteran whose funeral was protested by the group, decided to file a lawsuit against it. Snyder argued that the protests constituted invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and civil conspiracy.
The case reached the Supreme Court, and earlier this week, the court ruled 8-1 in favor of Westboro. The Court ruled that barring it from protesting funerals would be an egregious limitation of free speech, and therefore is unconstitutional.
The Spectrum agrees with the Court's decision. While we acknowledge that this is a difficult issue, and we condemn the hateful rhetoric the church preaches, the simple fact is, free speech is free speech.
A person, or group, in this country has the right to state his opinions no matter how unpopular they may be. If the Supreme Court were to restrict what the WBC could say, that would cite a precedent in which it could make similar restrictions against any other group. It would be a very slippery slope.
Many have argued that Westboro's manner of protesting should be restricted because it incites violence against homosexuals.
This is where the situation gets rather difficult. While the Church does preach intolerance of homosexuality, its protests do not necessarily encourage others to take violent action against gays.
Rather, it simply states that it believes homosexuality is immoral and that God will punish those who practice it. Admittedly, the Church does it in a fashion that is highly inflammatory and offends others. Still, at no point does it encourage others to commit hate crimes.
Additionally, the Church does not make a great effort to recruit members to its cause. While many religious institutions claim to offer salvation to anyone who joins, Westboro essentially believes that everyone else is doomed, and it's too late to join its side. Essentially, they laugh at those who disagree with them.
This is important to point out because it makes a lot of difference in the case at hand. If the Church was saying, "God hates homosexuals, and therefore you should punch one," that would be speech worth restricting. Simply stating their interpretation of the Bible, however, does not qualify.
The Spectrum understands why the Supreme Court's decision will frustrate many. The Westboro Baptist Church says many ugly things that we find unfathomable. Still, this is America, and in America, you have the right to say and believe what you want, no matter how hateful or moronic it is.
