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TACOMA, Wash. - A rabidly anti-gay church known for its loud protests is planning to picket Saturday's funeral for the two sons of missing mom Susan Powell, who died in a raging house fire Sunday. Margie Phelps of the Topeka, Kan.-based Westboro Baptist Church sent out a tweet saying the church will attend the boys' memorial service as a protest against the pending legalization of gay marriage in Washington state. The two boys, Charlie and Braden Powell, were killed Sunday in a gasoline-fueled house fire set by their father Josh Powell after they arrived for a supervised visit. Powell himself...

The Westboro Baptist Church, which has gained infamy for protesting at the funerals of men and women killed in combat, will have a new target on Saturday: the services for two little boys slain by their father. The church, whose "God hates fags" signs and messages have been seen across the country, intends to be at the funeral of Charlie Powell, 7, and his brother, Braden, 5. Saturday at the Life Center Church in Tacoma. The boys died Sunday after their father , Josh Powell, blew up their Pierce County home.

INDIANAPOLIS -- A controversial church and Indiana union members could find themselves sharing the same stage before the Super Bowl. The Kansas-based Westboro Baptist Church, which is known for its radical demonstrations outside soldier funerals, has announced it plans to travel to Indianapolis to picket outside the Super Bowl. Teamsters upset over the divisive right-to-work bill that passed the House on Wednesday said previously they also plan to protest outside the big game to bring national attention to their issue. The Super Bowl Host Committee has set up two so-called free speech zones at South and Illinois streets and on...

The controversial Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas is at it again. Now, the church said it will picket the funeral of the legendary Joe Pa -- longtime Penn State football coach Joe Paterno who died on Sunday morning. Joe Paterno died on Sunday. The controversial Westboro Baptist Church tweet Sunday after the news that it planned to picket Paterno's funeral. Margie Phelps, wife of Westboro Baptist Church leader Fred Phelps, sent out several tweets on Sunday after news of Paterno's death spread. The church, known for its controversial positions, suggested Paterno is going to hell. "Joe Paterno is dead....

Today I want to write about something that has bothered me for the better part of a decade. I’ve carved out no fewer than a dozen drafts of this post, all strangely unalike, all ultimately failing to accomplish the job I’ve set out to do. Truth is, I’ve been trying to write it off and on for more than a year now, and the right words have been seemingly impossible to come by. In the end, and in order to post it, I guess I had to care more about the message than I do about potential backlash. I’m not...

Members of a controversial church plan to protest today's memorial service of a 21-year-old Marine from Gastonia who was killed while serving in Afghanistan. But friends of Lance Cpl. Nicholas O'Brien say they are making plans to drown out Westboro Baptist Church's message. Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/06/20/2392145/group-to-protest-marines-memorial.html#ixzz1PonvdMN2

I just caught a story on WFAA-TV News about the Westboro loons coming to Dallas on Sunday June 5, 2011 from 6:15 PM to 7:00 PM. The site of their event is the American Airlines Center, timed to occur just prior to Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks. Their claim is: GOD HATES THE NBA! Fred Phelps and his crew go on to claim: WBC will picket the NBA game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat to warn this nation that they need to tear down their idols and worship...

Members of the controversial church that says the deaths of American soldiers are God's way of punishing the United States for tolerating gays and lesbians reportedly met some opposition Monday from a controversial group that says the white race is being "denigrated." The Knights of the Southern Cross, a Virginia group that claims to be affiliated with the Ku Klux Klan, squared off against the Westboro Baptist Church outside Arlington National Cemetery hours before a Memorial Day service attended by President Obama, CNN reported Monday. The church gained national prominence after winning a Supreme Court ruling in March that said...

In predictable, yet despicable fashion, members of Westboro Baptist Church of Kansas are spreading their hate around for recent tornado victims. Fred Phelps and company have allegedly been trolling the Facebook pages of missing tornado victims, leaving hateful and taunting comments. While most of those comments have been deleted, they have left family members and supporters shaken and angry. On Monday, when only 89 deaths had been confirmed, WBC posted a scathing and gleeful document on its website, celebrating the deaths as proof of God's anger over rampant homosexuality. The most recent flier, dated May 25, begins by thanking God...

Church members plan to protest when President Obama visits tornado victimsThe controversial Westboro Baptist Church is planning to protest President Obama's visit to Joplin, Missouri Sunday. On its website, the church writes, "Thank God for 125 dead in Joplin." Church members claim Missouri Governor Jay Nixon has attacked them by promoting laws banning them from protesting at soldiers' funerals.

The Westboro Baptist Church once again makes the headlines. This time however, the good news is that they were foiled in their attempts to disrupt another serviceman’s funeral. Mississippi gives the Westboro the kind of welcome that we would all like to give. Since we have reported on the Westboro Baptist Church a few times here, it is fitting that we update you on the latest. Last Saturday, USMC Staff Sgt. Jason Rogers was laid to rest in Brandon, Mississippi. He was killed in action in Afghanistan on April 7th. Many of the town’s residents paid homage along the route...

On Saturday USMC Staff Sgt. Jason Rogers, who was killed in action in Afghanistan April 7, was buried in Brandon, Mississippi. That, by itself, is a sadly unremarkable – though certainly noteworthy and solemn – occasion for us to mark. And in fact when Sgt. Rogers’ body returned to Brandon it was greeted by hundreds, or perhaps even thousands, of well-wishers who gathered at the roadside to honor the fallen American hero. The dashboard camera from Mississippi state trooper Elmo Townsend’s cruiser gives an indication of the scene last Thursday. What is most notable about Sgt. Rogers’ funeral in Brandon,...

Westboro Baptist Church, the controversial group that just won a free speech Supreme Court case related to picketing soldiers' funerals, says it is planning to protest at the funeral for seven Perry County children who died in a fire Tuesday night....

Fresh off their Supreme Court victory allowing them to picket funerals of military soldiers, members of the Westboro Baptist Church have announced plans to picket the funerals of seven Mennonite children killed Tuesday night when their Perry County farmhouse caught fire. The children, ages 7 months to 11 years, were killed when a fire started in the home while their mother was milking cows and their father was on his milk delivery route.Their three-year-old daughter managed to escape and alert the mother, but the fire had already overwhelmed the wooden structure, police said. The group from Topeka, Kan., said the...

Lost and saved alike can agree that if they never see Westboro's Phelps gang again, it will be too soon. The Supreme Court has found the cult's outrageous behavior to be protected by the First Amendment. Many on the right have disagreed with the decision because they rightly desire to protect the grief stricken families of fallen patriots from the evil taunts of the death loving Phelps family. If the government shuts down these jokers, who's next? The lefty media delights in describing the WBC as "Fundamentalist Christians." Nothing would please the left more than seeing the public proclamation of...

Let's start by stating the obvi ous: The Westboro Baptist Church is a hateful, odious fringe sect, less a "church" than the extended family of founder and "pastor" Fred Phelps, that has picketed nearly 600 military funerals with signs like "Thank God for dead soldiers," "Pray for more dead soldiers," and "God hates fags." The Topeka-based "independent Baptist church" is animated by extreme anti-gay, anti-Semitic and anti-Catholic views, and blames America's tolerance of homosexuality for what it sees as the country's moral downfall. In 2007, the "church" was sued by Albert Snyder -- whose son Matthew, a Marine lance corporal,...

Sarah Palin voiced disappointment with a Supreme Court decision Wednesday protecting the First Amendment rights of anti-gay protesters at military funerals. Continue Reading "Common sense & decency absent as wacko ‘church' allowed hate msgs spewed@ soldiers' funerals but we can't invoke God's name in public square," Palin tweeted . The court voted 8-1 in favor of the Westboro Baptist Church's right to protest outside the funerals - though the court recognized the right of local authorities to put restrictions on how close to a proceeding the group can protest.

A Kansas church known for its angry, anti-gay protests at funerals of U.S. troops won an appeal Wednesday at the Supreme Court in a case testing the competing constitutional rights of free speech and privacy. In an 8-1 ruling, the justices said that members of Westboro Baptist Church had a right to promote what they call a broad-based message on public matters such as wars. The father of a fallen Marine had sued the small church, saying those protests amounted to targeted harassment and an intentional infliction of emotional distress. "Speech is powerful. It can stir people to action, move...

The Left does some truly despicable things in this world, but this is a new low for Democrats. Former three-time Democrat gubernatorial candidate Fred Phelps Jr. (commonly called just “Fred Phelps”) and his Westboro Hate Group have announced plans to disrupt the funeral of 9 year-old shooting victim Christina Greene. Christina was murdered by Jared Lee Loughner yesterday in his assassination attempt on Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. The little girl was born on September 11th, 2001, so her parents have been cursed with a horrific trifecta of high profile trauma: their daughter born on the worst day in our generations’ lives,...

According to The Huffington Post Kevin Smith is going to make a movie about religious extremism that is "loosely based" on Pastor Fred Phelps of "God Hates Fags" fame. He's calling the movie "Red State." I love Kevin Smith's movies....but TIME OUT! First of all, this movie is going to FAIL, make no mistake about that. Mariah Carey's "Glitter" is going to look like "Avatar's" box office cousin compared to this movie because only a bunch of ignorant liberals who think there is a semblance of reality in it will spend two hours of their life watching it. Meanwhile,...

Two week ago, when John Heilemann wrote a cover story for New York Magazine outlining the perfect storm that could carry Sarah Palin to a Presidential election victory in 2012, I would have told you that Sarah was much more powerful as a king-maker and not a King. And then she went and bragged to Barbara Walters that she can beat Obama in 2012 this. Hah ha. Funny. In an Armageddon kind of way right? We can’t be that stupid, can we? Well… in the immortal slogan of an era long ago: yes we can! So I decided to re-read...

Though I did not agree with Ms Edwards political views, she’s still an American and deserves a respectful funeral for her family and loved ones. Just because I disagree with someone, does not make them my enemy, just my opponent in life. We will not stand by and allow these monsters to disrespect Ms Edwards life or her family. Randy’s Right, the Patriot Gaud and NC freedom and Triangle Conservatives Unite will be there in numbers with American Flags for only one purpose. To prevent Westboro Baptist Church radicals from disrupting funeral services or harassing the Edwards family. This is...

A church that pickets funerals to protest what it calls American immorality says its members will be picketing the service this Saturday for Elizabeth Edwards, who died of breast cancer on Tuesday. Based in Topeka, Kan., the Westboro Baptist Church said it would be outside the Edenton Street United Methodist Church in Raleigh, N.C., during the funeral for the former wife of one-time vice presidential candidate John Edwards. Westboro members, led by the Rev. Fred Phelps, have also picketed military funerals to make their point that U.S. deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq are punishment for Americans' immorality, including tolerance of...

Raleigh, N.C. — A Kansas church famous for its anti-homosexual protests at funerals plans to protest at the Saturday funeral of Elizabeth Edwards, the estranged wife of two-time Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards. The Westboro Baptist Church plans to protest for 45 minutes before the funeral set for 1 p.m. at Edenton Street United Methodist Church in downtown Raleigh, according to the church's website. The Westboro church website throws invective at Edwards but gives no specific reason why they chose to protest her funeral.

Ryan Newell is "Army to the bone," friends and family say of the decorated military veteran who joined the service at 17, lost both legs in an explosion in Afghanistan and now stands accused of stalking members of a controversial Topeka church.

In what has to be some of the best news of the weekend, Pastor Fred Phelps and the hate-mongering parishioners from Westboro Baptist Church were unable to protest at a fallen soldier's funeral this weekend as they had originally planned.

WESTON, MO. — People in Weston, Missouri banded together on Saturday. They wanted to protect loved ones who were saying goodbye to a fallen soldier and stood up to members of the Westboro Baptist Church who planned to protest at Sgt. First Class C.J. Sadell's funeral. Sadell died October 24 from injuries he suffered in a surprise attack in Afghanistan. On Saturday, there was quite a turnout of people who wanted to keep the protesters away from the funeral. "I'd say probably half the people in Weston are here," said Eric Moser, Marine Corp veteran. Weston has less than 2,000...

The Westboro Baptist Church… need I say more? The nation watches as the Supreme Court deliberates on the limits of free speech in America involving the right of families to bury the dead in peace versus the need of the little Kansas cult to disrupt military funerals and tell grieving families that their dearly departed are going to hell. Going to hell, mind you, because somewhere in the world, a homosexual exists. The rhyme or reason behind the actions of the Westboro sign-wavers is so contradictory to the Bible and to logic itself that their actions may never be brought...

The DC Chapter started gathering at 3:30, unloading flags, banners, signs and a sound system. We expected Westboro Baptist Church to arrive at 4:30 but they arrived at 4. We responded by setting up quicker. DC Chapter members were Lurker Bill, Cindy_True_Supporter, GunsAreOK, RongKirby, [Mrs] Trooprally and myself. We were joined by a mother and her two kids who were walking by, 5 other patriots who heard about our rally, 3 Marine wives from Quantico, a guy in a wheel chair, and 6 Vietnam Vets on their Harleys. They did not claim to be part of Rolling Thunder or Patriot...

Today the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in Snyder v. Phelps, a case about the nature and scope of basic rights -- those of free speech vs. those of privacy. But this case is fundamentally about wrongs and the law's imperfect ability to redress them. The facts of the case are well known. Matthew Snyder, a Marine lance corporal from Westminster, Md., was killed in the line of duty in Iraq in 2006. The Rev. Fred Phelps and members of his Kansas-based Westboro Baptist Church traveled more than 1,000 miles to Maryland to picket his funeral and draw attention...

One thing Al Snyder wants to make clear: His boy fought and died for freedom in Iraq, but not for the right of some "wackos" to spew hate at soldiers' funerals under the protection of the Constitution. "It's an insult to myself, my family and the veterans to say this is what our military men and women died for," Snyder says, barely concealing his anger. Yet more than four years after the death of his only son, Matthew, Snyder is in the middle of a Supreme Court case that raises almost precisely that issue. The court is set to decide...

Westboro Church has Arlington Cemetery in their sites on Tuesday, October 5,2010, 4:30 - 5:30PM. The DC Chapter is working on a permit to show our support for our fallen heroes and to counter the one-branch family tree called Phelps. We will be getting our permit from 3:30 - 6:30PM. In the past Phelps has permitted right outside Metro's Blue Line entrance. Until further notice that is where we will be. We will be keeping an eye on Westboro's schedule since they do change their schedule. Best way to get to Arlington Cemetery is to take the Metro blue line...

President Barack Obama didn't weigh in like he did when a pastor in Florida threatened to burn the Quran. And Defense Secretary Robert Gates didn't make a personal phone call urging the same minister to call it off. The burning of a Quran and an American flag Saturday by members of Westboro Baptist Church drew little visible interest. Instead of the hoards of media representatives that descended on Florida, only a handful of area reporters turned out at noon for Westboro's burning. "I'm glad it didn't get a lot of publicity and it didn't draw a lot of people to...

Westboro Baptist Church, the small Topeka, Kan., church that pickets funerals of American soldiers to spread its message that God is punishing the country for being tolerant of homosexuals, has vowed to hold a Quran burning if Gainesville's Dove World Outreach Center calls its off. "WBC burned the Koran once – and if you sissy brats of Doomed america bully Terry Jones and the Dove World Outreach Center until they change their plans to burn that blasphemous tripe called the Koran, then WBC will burn it (again), to clearly show you some things," the church announced in a news release...

http://www.comicsalliance.com/2010/07/22/super-heroes-vs-the-westboro-baptist-church/ They've faced down humans time and time again, but Fred Phelps and his minions from the Westboro Baptist Church were not ready for the cosplay action that awaited them today at Comic-Con. After all, who can win against a counter protest that includes robots, magical anime girls, Trekkies, Jedi and...kittens? Unbeknownst to the dastardly fanatics of the Westboro Baptist Church, the good folks of San Diego's Comic-Con were prepared for their arrival with their own special brand of superhuman counter protesting chanting "WHAT DO WE WANT" "GAY SEX" "WHEN DO WE WANT IT" "NOW!" while brandishing ironic (and some...

Members of Kansas-based Westboro Baptist Church reportedly will be in Johnson City on Monday to picket near the memorial service for Airman Benjamin D. White, an Erwin resident who died last week in Afghanistan. "Military funerals have become pagan orgies of idolatrous blasphemy where they pray to the dunghill gods of Sodom and play taps to a fallen fool," states a Westboro flier forwarded to media outlets by the Unicoi County Sheriff's Office. The flier goes on to say that the "message will be preached in respectful, lawful proximity" to White's memorial service at Grace Fellowship Church on South Greenwood...

Editor's note: To accurately portray the subject of this article and his critics, offensive language is quoted. (CNN) -- He is the leader of "America's most hated family," a gaunt, craggy-faced preacher who displays "God Hates Fags" signs at the funerals of American troops, gay men and AIDS victims. For at least 12 years, the Rev. Fred Phelps has led his Topeka, Kansas, church on a cross-country crusade against gays and lesbians. That crusade ignited a legal battle that has reached the U.S. Supreme Court. But there is another Phelps that few know. He was a "brilliant" civil rights attorney...

Nadia Valentine spent her 15th birthday Sunday at the intersection of S.W. 12th and Gage waving American flags in protest of Pastor Fred Phelps Sr.'s Westboro Baptist Church. Valentine, of LaSalle, Ill., was part of a group of Illinois residents organized by veteran Jerry Bacidore who came to Topeka on Sunday to attend a noon service at Westboro Baptist Church. "It's always been a matter of what is right and wrong," the teen said. "It is important to do something you believe in. I think it's definitely the best birthday ever." Laura Cordell, of Peoria, Ill., said the group notified...

TOPEKA - The estranged son of a controversial Kansas pastor encouraged people to feel sympathy for members of his father's church, "at least for the young children stuck in that situation." Nate Phelps, 51, spoke in Topeka over the weekend, marking his first trip in 20 years to the city where his father, Fred Phelps, runs Westboro Baptist Church. He alleged that he endured fear, intimidation and abuse before leaving the family and church on his 18th birthday. He said that while society is quick to take steps to protect children, it seems "curiously blind" when religious beliefs jeopardize a...

Your recent editorial “Funeral protests cause disdain” addresses the vexing First Amendment issue in the lawsuit against the “Christian” church that picketed the funeral of Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, who was killed in action in Iraq in 2006: Should “hate speech” be constitutionally protected … or punished? Albert Snyder was awarded damages against Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka after its members waved inflammatory signs at his son’s funeral saying “God Hates Fags” and “Thank God for Dead Soldiers” (God’s “payback” to America for tolerating homosexuality, claims the church), but the 4th Court of Appeals reversed the verdict, ruling that the...

One of the most controversial families in the country is heading south to protest "rebellious brats," a Jewish publication and an indie rock festival. Enlarge photo Dylan Slagle, AP In this March 10, 2006, file photo, Westboro Baptist church member Gabriel Phelps-Roper, 10, and his sister Grace Phelps-Roper, 13, both of Topeka, Kan., protest at the funeral of Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew A. Snyder in Westminster, Md. .Topeka's Westboro Baptist Church, whose membership consists mostly of family members of its pastor, Fred Phelps, has planned nine protests around the metro Atlanta area on May 5-6. The small Kansas group, known...

In an astonishing display of common sense the Klu Klux Klan has releasd a statement repudiating the activities of the Westboro Baptist Church, denying any connection or sympathy with the hate group. The Westboro Baptist Church, notorious for the phrase "God hates fags", is best known for its protest activities, which include picketing funerals of fallen soldiers. The church runs numerous Web sites such as GodHatesFags.com, GodHatesAmerica.com and others expressing condemnation of homosexuality. The group bases its work around the belief expressed by its best known slogan and the address of its primary Web site, God Hates Fags, asserting that...

Tommy Hinds and Steven Allen Adams, through the magic of video, chronicle the protest of the Westboro Baptist Church at the West Virginia Capitol Complex in Charleston, WV, as well as the flash mob counter-protest. Apparently God doesn't hate rain. Westboro in WV video

GOD HATES JUDGES by Ann Coulter April 7, 2010 In an opinion that may have been written by Heidi Montag, a federal court of appeals recently threw out a jury verdict in favor of a father, Albert Snyder, who had sued protesters at his son Matthew's funeral for intentional infliction of emotional distress. Solely because Matthew was a Marine, a Kansas-based cult, consisting mostly of members of a single family, traveled to Maryland in order to stand outside Matthew's funeral with placards saying things like, "God Loves Dead Soldiers," "God Hates You," "You're Going to Hell," "Semper Fi Fags," "Thank...

When members of the Westboro Baptist Church arrive next Saturday in Wheeling to relay their message of hate at four local Catholic institutions, local clergy and parishioners will do what they always do - pray for them. Prayer, not retaliation, is the message from officials at the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston to the parishioners and leaders at St. Michael Parish, St. Alphonsus Parish, the Cathedral of St. Joseph and Wheeling Jesuit University. All three churches and the university are on the list of places where the Westboro protesters are expected to picket next Saturday. All four locations regularly offer...

Next fall, the U. S. Supreme Court will hear the case of Snyder vs. Phelps, in which it's possible the speech-related practices of an obnoxious group will be curbed -- but at the price of some new First Amendment fetters. Members of the Westboro Baptist Church picketed the March 10, 2006, funeral of Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, a U.S. Marine who was killed a week earlier in Iraq. They displayed placards reading, "God hates you," "Thank God for Dead Soldiers" and "Semper Fi Fags." The deceased soldier's father, Albert Snyder, sued the church and its founder, the Rev. Fred Phelps,...

Just when you think you've seen the most vile, disgusting levels of human behavior, you come across something that makes you fear for the survival of the human race. It's not that I wasn't aware of the vicious demonstrations held by the Westboro Baptist Church; I wrote about their malevolence in 1998 when they picketed the funeral of Mathew Shepard, a young man who had been brutally murdered by a couple of Neanderthals in Wyoming. Shepard was pistol-whipped, tortured, tied to a fence, and left to die. This happened not because he had committed a crime or hurt anyone, but...

Washington – A father of a Marine killed in Iraq says he won't pay the legal fees of a protest group who picketed at his son's funeral in 2006 – at least not until he hears from the US Supreme Court on the matter. Albert Snyder, whose son, Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, was killed in Iraq, learned Friday that a federal appeals court is requiring him to pay more than $16,000 in legal fees to the Westboro Baptist Church, a Christian fundamentalist group that demonstrates during military funerals to gain attention for its antigovernment, antihomosexual message. The group rallied at...

Lawyers for the father of a Marine who died in Iraq and whose funeral was picketed by anti-gay protesters say a court has ordered him to pay the protesters' appeal costs.