Gospel of Hatred Upheld

The Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka Kansas pickets funerals of men & women killed in action because they believe military deaths are God's revenge.

"America is doomed for its acceptance of homosexuality," according to an undated pamphlet quoted by the Southern Poverty Law Center. "If God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for going after fornication and homosexuality then why wouldn't God destroy America for the same thing?"

The Supreme Court has ruled that the First Amendment protects their right to protest at military members' funerals without being sued for intentionally inflicting even more pain on their grieving families.

Funeral Protesters Are Protected Audio Embed: Morning Edition 3/2/11, Host: Renee Montagne with NPR's Nina Totenberg.

The Washington Post's Jonathan Capehart concludes that as hard as the message is to hear, the near unanimous ruling was correct.

The church claims only about 100 members — almost all from the family of it's pastor, a man named Fred Phelps, pictured above.

"They're college educated. They're well-spoken. A daughter argued the case herself before the United States Supreme Court," says a reporter who profiled them. "They're not what I expected."

A Peek Inside Westboro Baptist Audio Embed: All Things Considered 3/2/11, Reporter: Barbara Bradley Hagerty.

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Slain soldier's dad blasts funeral protests and court's decision.