(Springfield, IL) — August 14, 2011. Governor Pat Quinn yesterday gave a swift kick in the behind to the Westboro Baptist Church and its unhinged pastor, Fred Phelps.
Quinn signed legislation to protect the funerals of military personnel from the disruptive protests of hate groups, such as the 71-member, Kansas-based “church”.
Phelps and his equally unhinged extended family often protest at military funerals spewing their own singular brand of homophobia that claims that the soldier’s death is an expression of God’s wrath toward America’s assorted progressive public policies regarding gay and lesbian Americans. You can’t make this stuff up.
The new law, “Let Them Rest in Peace”, will prohibit protests within 300 feet of a funeral site and ensure that no protest can take place within 30 minutes before and after a funeral or memorial service.
“Every family has a fundamental right to conduct a funeral with reverence and dignity,” said Quinn, who signed the law at the Illinois State Fair.
“This law ensures that the families of those who have given their lives for our country can grieve without harassment. It is our duty to honor their sacrifice by ensuring they are remembered with the respect and solemnity.”
The measure, House Bill 180, was sponsored by State Senator A.J. Wilhelmi (D-Joliet) and State Rep. Kay Hatcher (R-Yorkville), strengthens an existing law spearheaded by then-Lt. Governor Quinn in 2006 that prohibits protests within 30 minutes of a service and within 200 feet of a funeral site.
Quinn was joined by Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs (IDVA) Acting Director Erica Borggren, Assistant Adjutant General of the Illinois National Guard Major General Dennis L. Celletti.
For more information on the Westboro Baptist Church, visit their Web site: http://www.godhatesfags.com. Nice, huh?
Gov. Pat Quinn
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