Posted on 06/09/2017 2:09:35 AM PDT by markomalley
A church notorious for protesting at military service members’ funerals has announced that it plans to picket Eglin Air Force Base and several local churches next week.
According to its website, Westboro Baptist Church, which is headquartered in Topeka, Kansas, will picket outside Eglin from 6 to 6:30 p.m. June 17. The protest is part of the church’s “God Hates Your Idols” tour.
The church, which was founded in 1955, preaches that the deaths of service members are the direct result of God’s retribution for what it calls “America’s wickedness.” The church is particularly opposed to homosexuality and believes God punishes the United States through tragic events. It first gained national attention after members protested and disrupted funerals for service members killed during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In July 2011, the group threatened to protest at the funeral of a Niceville family that was killed when their private plane crashed on the way to Destin. Hundreds of local counter-protesters showed up at what was then Niceville Methodist Church (now known as Crosspoint United Methodist) to shield the family from the Westboro Church members.
As frequently happens, the church members did not show up. If they do decide to arrive next week, however, local law enforcement agencies are prepared for any contingency.
“The locations they’ve outlined for protests are all in city jurisdictions, primarily Niceville,” Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Michele Nicholson said. “But we are aware of the information that is being circulated and are ready to assist in any situation if our resources are required or requested.”
this “church” is freaks of the highest order.
This area is strongly conservative. The kook church will be wasting their money.
A (D) affiliated organization...
Eglin is huge. 6,800 acres. Trained there once. These clowns will be lost at the base.
Have they EVER protested at an actual, you know, Gay Pride event?
I don’t think they have.
They mostly protest funerals, high school graduations and sporting events.
Then they file lawsuits against municipalities that they claim don’t “protect their rights”.
They get a lot of attention for a small group of people, mostly related, and with an unusually high number of lawyers in the “church members “.
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