Free speech is extremely important to many Americans. It’s one of a few basic rights that every American citizen has, and it allows people to express their beliefs without being censored or restricted. However, that doesn’t mean that people always use their given rights to do good in the world.
One group, the Westboro Baptist Church, uses the claim of free speech to spew hate all over the country. According to Westboro’s official website (www.godhatesfags.com), Westboro preaches about the Bible and its true meanings. The church often pickets at locations that they deem in need of saving from sin and many of those locations include public universities. Two universities that were visited by the Westboro Baptist Church are the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Colleges that encourage tolerance and acceptance of all people are often targeted by Westboro, and hateful groups simply don’t belong in those areas.
For many students (especially those who are minorities or members of oppressed groups), choosing a college means choosing a place where you’re able to feel safe and comfortable. No one wants to attend a school where swastikas are drawn on doors and slurs are thrown around casually, and that is the kind of behavior that the Westboro Baptist Church encourages.
The church often speaks against LGBT+ people, Catholic people, Jewish people, Muslim people, American soldiers and politicians. Since most universities include a diverse amount of people, many students and staff are deemed to be sinful by the group. Universities can’t technically ban Westboro from protesting on campus because of freedom of speech, so Westboro is allowed to shout and chant and wreak havoc on campuses. It’s terrifying to hear a group of people enter into your safe space and condemn you and the people you care about without being able to do a thing about it, and groups that provoke that terror simply shouldn’t be allowed to do whatever they please.
As someone who attends a university that focuses on being progressive and allowing for an amazing education for everybody regardless of their differences, having Westboro on campus makes me question if my school is as tolerant as I’d been convinced to believe. At UW-Madison, safe spaces had to be created for students who were afraid of Westboro and their protesting. It seems clear to me that if students have to be given designated places to cope with an event occurring on campus, then maybe that event shouldn’t be happening in the first place.
Despite the harsh protests occurring on university campuses, students seemed to rally together against the hate groups, which appeared to make the protests a little less intimidating. Students at UW-Madison held up signs saying “Love is love” and “Free hugs”, assuring people that hate won’t be tolerated on campus. At least one good thing came out of the awful protesting by the Westboro Baptist Church: Students rallied together to make each other feel safe and loved, which almost makes the whole ordeal seem worth the pain and uncomfort.