Update

“ I want Jesus inside of me”, “Yay for Gays”, “Honor the fallen”. These were just some of the signs that protestors held up last week during the WBC’s protest on Miami’s campus. Around three hundred people showed up to the corner of Maple and Spring Street coming by foot, motorcycle, and car to counter protest the church. Pictures and video cameras were everywhere capturing this monumental moment in Miami’s history. To counter protest many students held signs, waved American and Gay Pride flags, and some even dressed in nothing but underwear then ran through the streets chanting.

Four members from the Westboro Baptist Church showed up on campus waving their infamous signs in student’s faces. The members of the church were fenced off and guarded by both the Oxford and Miami Police because of threats and harassment by students and townspeople. It was quite an experience to be part of, and although I chose to stay silent during the protest; it was amazing to see such hatred between two groups of people who have such similar backgrounds.

Freedom of speech is a right that every individual is entitled to and deserves; therefore, the only acceptable action was to let the WBC protest on Miami’s campus.. If Martin Luther King had not shared his opinions and beliefs we might still be attending segregated schools. However, he changed an entire nation because he was willing to fight for what he believed in, and knew was right. The Westboro Baptist Church is abusing the freedom of the first amendment, but freedom of speech is something that many countries do not have and we should not let one negative experience ruin that privilege.

I think in this situation silence was the best way to get our message across. It was disappointing to hear students shouting hateful and immature things back at the members of WBC.  If students had stood by and watched the protest or not shown up at all they would have made more of an impact than shouting phrases that carry no meaning for the church members.  We were not standing up for what is right, or proving their beliefs wrong, but instead we were sinking down to their level, exactly what they wanted.

Each person deserves the right to voice their opinions, and not feel threatened by others. We may not agree with them, but it is important to keep an open mind because we never know when one person’s opinion will have the ability to change the entire world.