Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Photos: Anti-Gay Westboro Baptist Protesters Outside the Oscars, Counter Protestors Try to Balance the Mood
Just like last year, the folks from Kansas' Westboro Baptist Church brought their version of hate to Sunset and Highland to garner attention from celebrities as limos passed by. "We are out here to broach a message and that message is this country has turned itself over to the fags and now this country's doom is inevitable," one protester said.
Among the crowd of around 15 Westboro protestors were five counter-protesters. "We're trying to cover up their crazy hate with absurdity and hilarity," said one man dressed in a tin foil space helmet and cape. But that didn't matter to Westboro members who simply ignored them.
"You've got these people [the film industry] who've got a platform that was given to them by their lord their god, and what are they doing with that platform?" one of the Westboro protesters said. "They are serving themselves, they are serving their lust, they are serving their greed. What they ought to be doing is saying 'Guess what, America, it is not to be gay, it is not okay to fornicate at the age of 14, it is not okay to murder those babies when you do that fornication.'"
"We pretty much think they're hypocrites," said another counter-protester. "They're standing out here trying to spread God's will, but no where in the bible does it say or call people fags, and say they're going to hell for being a Jew or anything. We're coming out here pretty much to spread the happy and keep everything calm because that's how they make money because they will sue you for attacking them."
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake. -
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity.
-
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
Best of LAist