APSU Students Hold Peaceful Demonstration Against Westboro Baptist Church

by Luis A. Morán Morales

On the cold evening of Wednesday, February 3, 2010, students and faculty of Austin Peay State University (APSU) lined up on in front of the campus, located in Clarksville, TN, to hold a demonstration against Westboro Baptist Church (WBC), the fanatical hate group known for its "God hates fags" and "Thank God for IEDs" campaigns. Local residents and students from other universities also joined-some driving from as far as Nashville (about an hour south of Clarksville). There was no official count, but I estimate that over 200 people participated.

WBC members chose APSU in order to protest LGBT rights activist Judy Shepard, who was the guest speaker at the annual Unity Celebration Dinner on campus. Judy Shepard's son, Matthew Shepard, was brutally murdered in 1998 for being gay. Judy Shepard and her husband, Dennis Shepard, co-founded the Matthew Shepard Foundation to honor their son's memory with education and advocacy efforts to raise awareness of hate crimes and other forms of discrimination.

Those of us who attended her presentation can attest that if you didn't cry hearing the story of her son and her journey after his death, you at least got a knot in your throat-it was that intense.

Social networking beyond FarmVille updates

I didn't know WBC was coming to campus until Joshua Lindsay, an openly gay agnostic student, invited me to the "Picket Party!" via Facebook. Inspired by similar demonstrations, Lindsay decided to organize a picket to counter WBC's propaganda with satire.

Most of the organizing happened via Facebook and e-mail in a little over 24 hours. I helped coordinate between Students for Secular Humanism, the Gay-Straight Alliance, and Joshua Lindsay.

The demonstration wasn't a homogeneous affair-it was more an assembly of individuals with various reasons for disliking WBC and for showing solidarity with Judy Shepard. The demonstrators ranged from Christians holding "My God doesn't hate" signs (Yahweh, an anti-damnation progressive?), to uncompromising anti-theists like myself. There was even a very cool middle schooler with a "Dave Mustaine for pope" sign.

When only mockery will do

The purpose of the demonstration was to mock WBC's homophobia, so Lindsay suggested silly signs like "Boycott the iPad!", "Ignore Me", and "Silly Hats Only."

Not to be outdone in iconoclasm, my signs read "Lucifer for Secretary of Education" and "Your imaginary friend sucks!" Ironically, Lindsay's first rule for the event was "Nothing distasteful or vulgar." However, the only thing more obscene than WBC's homophobic vitriol is the fact that WBC members often bring their children to demonstrations and make them display "God hates fags" signs.

On the bright side, the unusual combination of civics lesson and South Park style satire was invigorating. Everyone seemed to be having a blast, and WBC members didn't even show up! Many people driving by honked and cheered us on. There was only a split second of negativity when a man screamed "fucking faggots!" from his car-a reminder that we still have work ahead of us if we want a more tolerant society. Even though we can't eradicate homophobia overnight, we can and should help raise awareness about it. To paraphrase Judy Shepard, something as simple as correcting a friend or relative who makes a homophobic remark can make a difference.

The president of APSU weighs in

I asked the president of APSU, Timothy Hall, J.D., to share his thoughts about the demonstration. Dr. Hall wrote:

"Many or most of our students believed the WBC's views to be wrong or abhorrent and were prepared to express this belief through a peaceful demonstration. I am happy to see that they were prepared to do this, even though the WBC did not show up […] Furthermore, the values of civility and tolerance are crucial allies of the kinds of debate necessary to discover and preserve the truth, and so a demonstration in favor of these values […] speaks well of our university and its students."

Tips to "welcome" WBC to your town

In the free software tradition, I encourage the use, sharing, and modification these of tips to suit your needs.

1. Check the WBC picket schedule; they might be coming to a town near you.
2. Tell everyone you know. If there is a time to send mass e-mails and invitations to your social network buddies, this is it.
3. Tell the media, especially local papers and local news channels. People who hear about your demonstration might feel inspired by your actions.
4. If you are an organizer, suggesting a few guidelines to the participants, such as no profanity and no violence, should suffice. Too much micromanaging may discourage participants.
5. Activism doesn't have to be dull-have fun!

Our demonstration gives me hope because it shows that people with different (and perhaps even conflicting) beliefs can join forces to confront homophobic bigotry. Homophobia is antithetical to civilized coexistence in a modern society, so if we want to live in harmony with our fellow humans, we-secular humanists, specially-must not let the likes of WBC go unchallenged.

Luis A. Morán Morales is the founder and president of Students for Secular Humanism at APSU and an eMpirical volunteer. He is pursuing a B.S. in computer science with concentrations in Web technology and database administration and a minor in graphic design. His Identi.ca microblog covers free software, free culture and more.