Louis Theroux called them the most hated family in America in his 2007 BBC documentary and that may very well be the truth. It seems that every time the Westboro Baptist Church is in the news, it’s because of something provocative or offensive they’ve said that has ticked someone off.
They’re the fringe religious group best known for picketing the funerals of dead soldiers and holding up colorful signs with statements like, “God Hates Fags” and “Thank God for Dead Soldiers.” Now, the church is in the spotlight following a short Twitter argument with J.K. Rowling, author of the popular Harry Potter book series.
Last Saturday, after the people of Ireland voted to legalize same sex marriage, Rowling responded to a fan’s tweet of a meme reading “What if Dumbledore and Gandalf were gay together” by joking that they could get married in Ireland. Several days later, one of the many Twitter accounts of Westboro Baptist Church responded to Rowling’s tweet by saying, “So @jk_rowling wants Dumbledore & Gandalf to marry in Ireland; if it happens, WBC will picket!”
Rowling responded to the church, then later sent out a tweet explaining that she doesn’t really care about Westboro Baptist Church but that she believes it is important for gay kids who are still in the closet to see hate speech being challenged.
Of course, if the fictional characters were actually able to get married, there’s no doubt that the Westboro Baptist Church would, in fact, be willing to picket it, considering the fact that they’ve picketed just about everything else. In fact, they just recently picketed the funeral of Officer Kerrie Orozco, who was shot and killed by a fugitive just one day before she was set to go on maternity leave. Westboro Baptist Church’s signs reading, “God Hates Your Tears” and “God is Your Enemy” were blocked out, however, by several locals holding up plain white sheets in protest.
