REEDLEY – The Westboro Baptist Church, designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), plans to demonstrate in Reedley and Fresno next week.
In Reedley, members of the Westboro Baptist Church will stage a demonstration outside of Reedley High School at 7:30 a.m. Oct. 31. According to a press release from the city of Reedley, the city received a fax on Oct. 3 from Phelps-Chartered, Attorneys-At-Law — a law firm operated by the family that founded the Westboro Baptist Church — to announce the church’s intended demonstration.
“We do not know why Reedley was chosen as a site for their demonstration,” City Manager Nicole Zieba said in the press release. “Reedley is a diverse community that respects one another, honors one another and treats one another with dignity.”
The Westboro Baptist Church is a well-known hate group founded in Topeka, Kansas, in 1955. Church members are known for picketing outside of events they disagree with, protesting at military funerals and spreading hateful speech about LGBTQ+ individuals and anyone who supports LGBTQ+ rights.
The city’s press release said that the Westboro Baptist Church is exercising its constitutional right to free speech and peaceable assembly. Zieba said that as city employees, Reedley staff have “taken an oath to uphold the Constitution, which guarantees them their right to free speech, regardless of how incendiary and divisive we may personally find their message.”
The demonstration is scheduled to last for 30 minutes, and the Reedley Police Department will be present to ensure a peaceful demonstration, the press release said.
According to a press release from the Westboro Baptist Church, the church is visiting the area to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to high school students at schools that have both “faux-Christian” student clubs and LGBTQ+ clubs. In addition to Reedley High School, the church will demonstrate outside of Roosevelt High School in Fresno at 3:55 p.m. on Oct. 28.
Fresno City Council President Annalisa Perea also released a statement on the demonstrations and said that the city will work with Fresno Unified School District and local law enforcement to ensure the safety of all involved.
“Let me be clear: any attempt to spread hate, intimidation or division will not be tolerated,” Perea’s statement said. “Our schools must remain safe spaces for all students, teachers and staff. We will not allow hate groups to disrupt the inclusive and respectful environment we foster in the city of Fresno.”
Nonprofit LGBT Fresno is planning peaceful counter-demonstrations for both events by partnering with Parasol Patrol, an organization that “shields kids from hate” by providing hearing protection and using rainbow umbrellas to walk between students and protesters.
