Westboro Baptist Church Goes to Washington

As Fred Phelps and his Westboro Baptist Church prepare to stand before the Supreme Court and defend their right to free speech, Fred's estranged son, lawyer Nate Phelps, continues his fight for the other side.

Fred Phelps and his Topeka, Kan.–based Westboro Baptist Church have long provoked LGBT Americans with their outrageous protests, featuring garish signs that proclaim “God Hates Fags.” These protests were all the more enraging because they first appeared at the funerals of people who had died of AIDS complications. However, the Phelps clan remained a sideshow with little coverage from the mainstream media until they began appearing at funerals for military personnel killed in Iraq or Afghanistan with signs stating “Thank God for Dead Troops” and blaming any American tragedy on their perception that the United States condones and tolerates homosexuality.

In 2007 the family of a soldier whose funeral had been picketed by Westboro Baptist successfully sued the organization, claiming they had been emotionally traumatized by the protest, and won a judgment of nearly $11 million. Many welcomed any strike against the Phelps hatred machine, but some quietly worried about any infringement on First Amendment protections for freedom of speech — protections that LGBT people had defended at great cost. Indeed, it did not come as a great surprise when a federal appeals court struck down the fine last year, citing the First Amendment.

A few days ago the U.S. Supreme Court announced it would hear an appeal of the case. In a wildly polarized America, the Phelps clan will soon be standing before the Supreme Court presenting themselves as a band of religious freedom fighters. What is discomforting is that Westboro Baptist might actually have a case that could force liberals to grudgingly admit that free speech must remain free, regardless of how hateful it might be.