When the Westsboro Baptist Church members came to the Triangle to picket the funeral of Elizabeth Edwards, I had the opportunity to speak with Shirley Phelps-Roper on the program I co-host with my husband Rick on NewsRadio680 WPTF. You can hear the Dec. 9 interview here. Quite honestly, Ms. Roper’s words were creepy, infuriating, and upsetting, but it is her right in a free society to spew such venom and convoluted logic.
Yesterday, the Supreme Court ruled, 8 to 1, that in the case of Snyder v. Phelps, Westboro’s protest actions at military funerals is protected speech. Justice Samuel Alito dissented. As hard as it is to swallow, the justices are correct. It is the price we pay for freedom — and at times the price is steep. My solution is to pray for Westboro’s members and for the people they target with their offensive words and actions. I hope you will too.
