J. Pharoah Doss: Westboro picketers, vigil for Gaza, and a license to kill

Pro-Palestinian protesters.& Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe via Getty Images/The Conversation During the aughts, the Westboro Baptist Church gained national attention for picketing funeral services for American soldiers killed in Iraq. Westboro picketers carried signs reading “Thank God for Dead Soldiers” and “God Hates Fags.” At first glance, the message on the second sign appears out of place, yet it is precisely what motivated these extremists. As the country became more accepting of same-sex marriage, Westboro Baptist Church members warned that God’s wrath would rain on America for its moral decadence. They preached that natural disasters and military casualties were God’s punishment for America accepting homosexuality. The father of a US Marine killed in Iraq filed a lawsuit against Westboro Baptist Church for picketing his son’s funeral. The father hoped that fighting the lawsuit would cause Westboro Baptist Church to go bankrupt, leaving them unable to travel and protest military funerals. However, the US Supreme Court voted 8-1 in favor of the Westboro Baptist Church. The majority ruling, written by Chief Justice John Roberts, stated: “What Westboro said, in the whole context of how and where it chose to say it, is entitled to special protection under the First Amendment, and...