You will still find individuals left in these United States willing to resist bigotry and ignorance, reports CNN. People in Tucson, Ariz., where Jared Loughner gunned down a wave of innocents in a Safeway, is going to do something unique in their efforts to shield mourners from the hate speech of Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church. Mourners could be guarded by angels’ wings. No matter how large of a personal loan the Westboro Baptist Church takes out, they won't be able to buy their way to the funeral.
Tucson is planning ‘angel action’ against hate
"Angel action" is the action that Tucson is taking against the Westboro Baptist Church that is going to picket all the Jared Loughner victims' funerals. CNN spoke with Christine Gilmer who said the city is a "caring, living, peaceful community" which makes sense. A Colorado resident Romaine Patterson came up with the idea of angel action. This was after a protest that the Westboro Baptist Church did at the funeral in 1999 of a gay man that was beaten to death in Wyoming named Matthew Shepherd.
What angel action is
Mourners will be physically shielded from Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church's hate messages by volunteers that have 8 by 10 foot angel wings. CNN spoke with the Gilmer who is in charge of the angel action who said that there is "a peaceful haven" that those with love in their hearts can experience.
Support for angel action shown
There is a ton of support for the Tucson angel action. Many political representatives are showing this support. Support on Facebook for pages such as "Build Angel Wings for the Westboro Funeral Counter-Protest and Meeting" and "Show Support for the Families of the Tucson Shooting Victims" have gotten a ton of fans involved. Material and money has been donated for wings as well. According to Gilmer, all funds donated will help pay for the funeral services of the Tucson shooting victims.
No counter protest to come
Chelsea Cohen, a 20-year-old senior at Tucson’s University of Arizona who started the "Show Support" Facebook page, told CNN that the activities of the support groups are not specifically intended to be a counter-protest. The point isn't to get attention as the Westboro Baptist Church is trying to do. Also, they want the funeral to be peaceful. Interrupting would just make it worse.
”We wanted it to show support for the families and to show that Tucson is there with love and support,” Cohen explained.
Articles cited
CNN
edition.cnn.com/2011/US/01/11/arizona.funeral.westboro/?hpt=C2
Drop the politics and think of the children, Westboro
youtube.com/watch?v=vzCedbzyOls
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