Brook Griffin, Your Black World.
In what seems to be an odd twist of fate, the Ku Klux Klan has shown its “patriotism” by standing up against a group that protests the funerals of military veterans. The Westboro Baptist Church gathered a small number of members to prepare for the arrival of President Barack Obama. The president was planning to lead the nation’s Memorial Day observances at the Tomb of the Unknowns.
The Westboro group has become a staple at the funerals of members of the U.S. military, arguing that the deaths of soldiers is a response from God to the United States being open to homosexuality. As the Westboro group waited for the president to arrive, they were confronted by the Ku Klux Klan, who staged a counter-protest.
Both groups were relatively small: Westboro brought three protesters and the KKK had 10. The Klan group called itself the Knights of the Southern Cross. They stood to the side of the ceremony, handing out US flags with the words, “POW MIA.”
“It’s the soldier that fought and died and gave them that right to free speech,” said Dennis LaBonte, the “Imperial Wizard” of the KKK group.
“That’s fine,” said Abigail Phelps, the daughter of Westboro Baptist Church founder Fred Phelps. “They have no moral authority on anything.
“People like them say it’s white power … white supremacy,” Phelps said. “The Bible doesn’t say anywhere that it’s an abomination to be born of a certain gender or race.”
LaBonte said that he’s not a racist. He said that he is fighting for the white race, which he believes is being slowly denigrated. The Klan was joined by another group of protesters across the street, 70 in all, who were shouting at the members of the Westboro group.
