ALERT SERIOUS ISSUE: What the hell does Fred Phelps want with Albany?

Last night Dan Savage came to the University at Albany as the keynote speaker for Sexuality Week (there was also a book signing and reception). As a fan of Dan Savage I was really excited to go and he lived up to all of my expectations. He was warm, hilarious, honest, smart and all around delightful. During the Q & A someone in the audience mentioned that Fred Phelps was coming to Albany and would be protesting at Albany High School and University at Albany Headquarters on Broadway and asked Dan Savage if he had any advice. This was a complete shock to me, what the hell does Fred Phelps want with Albany?

Have to be honest, I don't know that much about Fred Phelps, I know that he protests at the funeral of dead soldiers, and claims "that the dead are proof that God hates America for tolerating homosexuality" and he protested at Matthew Shephard's funeral -- so I knew that he is a fucking bigot and an asshole of the highest degree.

"Fred Phelps, leader of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka announced on his Web site that his group will protest outside Albany High School and the University at Albany the morning of March 6.
The Web site said Phelps aims to share "the truth" with the "2,900 young souls (who) are attending and being lied to regularly at this High School." In its explanation for choosing Albany as a stop on its national tour, the group uses numerous anti-gay slurs, quotes Bible verses and refers to President Barack Obama as "Antichrist." "

Dan Savage said that one school where Fred Phelps was protesting held a counter protest and over 300 people from the community went, and he said that if he were a closeted teen, that would have been an incredibly important moment for him, especially if his parents were intolerant. But on the other hand the best thing to do would be ignore them completely. Basically if you are going to counter protest, you need 300 people--it can't just be 10 people shouting back at them. In a Times Union article, they discuss that dilemma, do you ignore them and not take the bait? Or can we all come together and basically run their insane asses out of town? My concern is that if we ignore Fred Phelps, that a closeted teen will feel like we're ignoring them too--that they will feel unsafe and unwelcome in Albany, if we let these bigots come and spew their hatred all of our community and innocent kids who just want to be who they are. (Read Times Union piece here:http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=766954) If they think they can come to my school, a school were I spent 4 years learning more about the world than these insane, hateful, bigots will ever know, if they think they can come to Albany High and hold me (and anyone who goes or has gone to AHS) accountable to "the word of God," they have another thing coming. So I'm not sure what you guys think, but I know where I'm going to be Friday March 6, 2009.