Westboro Baptist to Picket MRH Play on Homosexuality and Tolerance

Members of The Westboro Baptist Church, from Topeka, KS, are planning to picket the Maplewood Richmond Heights theater production of The Laramie Project, on Saturday.

The play is about the reaction, in Laramie, WY, to the murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay University of Wyoming student in 1998.

The protest is planned from 1:15 to 2:00 p.m., before the 2:00 p.m. performance on Saturday, Oct. 20. The play’s opening night is Thursday (tonight) at 7:00.

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MRH Director of Communications Brian Adkisson said he was told there would be approximately eight picketers around the south end of Martini Avenue.

“They’ll have signs with very inflammatory slogans,” Adkisson said. “They traditionally will sing. They really kind of stick to themselves because they don’t want to necessarily cause a scene.”

He said he doesn’t know if there will be a counter-protest, but if it happens he hopes it will be peaceful and respectful.

MRH Superintendent Karen Hall, in an email to families today, said the school is working with the Maplewood Police Department to maintain a safe environment.

Members of Westboro Baptist Church protested homosexuality at Clayton High School last February. They have protested against homosexuality nationally, including at the funeral of a reportedly gay U.S. military member.

Read more about the Westboro Baptist protest at Clayton.

• Westboro Protest: Complete Clayton Coverage
• Westboro Response Detailed by Clayton High School
• Replay: Westboro Baptist Church Protests in Clayton and St. Peters
• Westboro Baptist Church Schedules Clayton High School Protest
• VIDEO: Westboro Baptist Church Protests at Clayton High School
• Westboro-Clayton Reactions: 'It Must Be a Hoax'