Westboro and Hinckley. Nearly a No Show.

Since my post, dated January 30, 2008, regarding the Westboro Baptist Church and their protests, I attended the funeral of the beloved President Gordon B. Hinckley of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Upon arriving downtown Salt Lake City, by train, I expected to see numerous protesters spewing hatred across the city streets near the Conference Center where the funeral was being held. To my pleased surprise, there was merely a single protester and a single anti-protester (“peacemaker”).

Of course, the freezing weather could have played a factor. However, I'd like to think that it was the great management of the hate group by the city that broke apart their planned picketing before they arrived. There was numerous security personnel surrounding the site of the funeral, as well as those allocated directly to those protesting, keeping them a distance from the funeral site and the attendees.

In order for the single protester to be heard, he had to yell at the top of his lungs. Anticipating that his message from the WBC would resonate, all that could be heard was the yell of an angry soul, without any clear worded message attached.

This protester probably lost his voice or became too cold because, once we re-entered the city streets following the conclusion of the funeral, the protester was nowhere to be seen. Thus, the anti-protester was able to go about their daily life, having tried to do good for those who were attending the funeral and grieving.

The anti-protester was extremely quiet, holding a sign that stated that God loves everyone (or something to that extent), also holding a bundle of heart-shaped helium balloons, which enunciated their point. That lone person endorsed a sense of peace and calm. Thank you for your bravery and for standing in the cold next to the angry, yelling Westboro protestor, not knowing how many protesters you’d actually be up against.

The funeral became the honor that it was meant to be and all is well.

The Patriot Riders handled the Lauterbach funeral with gracefulness as usual. For their great site, please see this link -here-.

With the hate spewed by the Westboro Baptist Church, their mission is clear. What seems unclear is how they are able to continue spreading hate without legal intervention or prosecution according to hate crime laws.

Sources:

www.ksl.com
www.patriotguard.org
www.godhatesfags.com (Westboro Church)