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Westboro Baptist Church came to Skokie in September 2010 to protest on the Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah. Now, the group says they will protest outside of Sandy Hook Elementary, claiming, "God Sent the Shooter."
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In September of 2010, Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) came to Skokie so they could protest outside the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center on Rosh Hashanah.
WBC members, known for demonstrating at military funerals and burning American flags, made their rounds in Skokie, Evanston and the Israeli Consulate in September 2010. Their message that day: "Obey God or Destruction."
Fast forward to today, and the WBC is once again trying to practice their 1st Amendment rights.
A day after Friday's shooting in Newtown, CT, where police said 20-year-old Adam Lanza killed his mother and then 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary, Westboro Baptist member Shirley Phelps-Roper posted a message on Twitter that the group would "sing praise to God for the glory of his work in executing his judgment."
Fellow member Margie Phelps, according to Examiner.com, tweeted "Westboro 'God hates Fags' Baptist Church is planning to pciket at Sandy Hook, to praise 'God's judgment.'”
Westboro Baptist Church is a Kansas-based organization that has gained national attention through its pickets at U.S. soldiers' funerals, by assailing homosexuality and even calling Barack Obama "the anti-Christ." Previous messages by Phelps-Roper have come prior to protests by the group. However, the group has threatened to protest at other high-profile incidents in the nation, but then failed to show up.
In apparent retribution for the protest threat, the hackers group Anonymous posted information — names, addresses, telephone numbers — of Westboro members online.
CNET reports that the posting of the data is part of a campaign dubbed #OPWestBoro to counter the efforts of Westboro Baptist Church members. Westboro also released a video called "God Sent the Shooter," saying it is a "message for Connecticut."
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Read more: See our previous coverage on Westboro Baptist Church
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Pete
12:44 pm on Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Well if this country is gona start seeking out mentally disturbed people , this would be the group to start with....
SuburbanMary
11:28 pm on Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Obviously enough people across America see Margie Phelps and her demented fellow WBC members as hate-mongers: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/legally-recognize-westboro-baptist-church-hate-group/DYf3pH2d. Hiding behind the First Amendment is despicable when spewing so much hatred; they should be drummed out of every town they protest in.