The Westboro Baptist Church: A Hateful Organization that Violates the very Foundation of our Nation (blogpost 3)

The question in communicative justice raised by the case of The Westboro Baptist Church vs. The United States of America is to what extent is The Westboro Baptist Church violating the First Amendment when they picket, speak publicly or privately in regards to homosexuals, American soldiers and the war in Iraq. I claim that The Westboro Baptist church is guilty of “intimidating and causing fear in a certain group of individuals based on their sexual orientation.”

It is the government’s responsibility to protect the inherit rights of it’s citizens. Because The Westboro Baptist church causes emotional violence and disturbance of the peace, they are guilty of violating the First Amendment. It is the government’s responsibility to convict them of causing violence in others. As John Stuart Mill and John Milton argue, the First Amendment allows for the sharing of ideas in a marketplace. The goal of the First Amendment is to allow American citizens the chance of finding truth through dialogue. They would make the distinction between worthwhile speech and worthless speech.

Using Milton and Mill as philosophical grounding for my argument, I would say that the speech of The Westboro Baptist Church would be considered worthless by Mill and Milton. Furthermore, the Westboro Baptist Church’s ideals have no part in the journey to truth, for anyone. In previous similar cases, Judges have established that having the “intent to intimidate represents a “true threat” and true threats, such as expression directed at a person or group of persons that places the victim in fear of bodily harm or death, are not protected by the First Amendment.” This quote, taken from Justice O’Connor who ruled in the 1992 case, R.A.V. v. St Paul, describes that actions like cross burning or funeral picketing are done so in order to cause fear.

The actions taken by The Westboro Baptist church are examples of hate crimes motivated by the sexual orientation of others. Because their actions are considered group hatred (or hate targeted to a certain group), they are violating the First Amendment, “the only way to identify group hatred as the motivation is by statements the perpetrator has made or by other symbolic behavior engaged in before, during or after the commission of the crime.” This quote, taken from Franklyn S. Haiman, a member of the Supreme Court Case against Todd Mitchell, a young back black who was convicted of aggravated battery, demonstrates that the motivation behind these acts is the real factor we should be looking at.

The signs, the verbiage and the actions of The Westboro Baptist Church are driven or motivated by hatred and that is not constitutional. The majority of our society believes that every American has the right to the pursuit of Happiness. We embrace diversity and the American Dream, whatever that may be for the individual. We voted an African American president into office and women have more rights and equality than ever before. Why can’t we grant those same rights for homosexuals living in America? They have the right to a peaceful assembly at a funeral and the U.S. government should be protecting those rights.

I would apply the highest level of scrutiny to this case. The fact that The Westboro Baptist is able to instill this great amount of fear in American citizens is wrong. It should be stopped immediately. If Americans do not have the ability to pursue happiness, whatever that may be for them, in the peaceful ways that they choose, then our inherit rights that Americans are born with, are being violated and taken away. Everyone has the right to a peaceful funeral. Everyone has the right to live a life of love and to choose whom that love be directed to. If we take away an American’s chance of peace, love and happiness, we would be taking away the very foundations our country was built on.

The question in communicative justice raised by the case of The Westboro Baptist Church vs. The United States of America is to what extent is The Westboro Baptist Church violating the First Amendment when they picket, speak public ally or privately in regards to homosexuals, American soldiers and the war in Iraq. I claim that The Westboro Baptist church is guilty of “intimidating and causing fear in a certain group of individuals based on their sexual orientation.”