Church members enter Canada, aiming to picket bus victim's funeral

[MrsCat 6]

Members of a fundamentalist American church group planning to stage a protest at the funeral for a Winnipeg man brutally killed on a Greyhound bus have managed to enter Canada, a spokeswoman told CBC News on Friday.

Canadian border guards are under orders to prevent members of the Westboro Baptist Church, a controversial Kansas-based sect, from entering the country.

The group intends to picket the funeral of 22-year-old Tim McLean to tell Canadians his slaying on July 30 was God's response to Canadian policies enabling abortion, homosexuality and divorce and remarriage.

Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day's office sent an alert to border patrol to "look out" for people with signs and pamphlets consistent with the messages that the church promotes and to keep them out of the country.

Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of church founder Fred Phelps, said a group of church members was turned away from a border crossing at Niagara Falls, but a small group did manage to get into Manitoba overnight.

"They were looking for picket signs and they were looking for leaflets. Well, we don't do leaflets, and the picket signs, you know, Fed Ex ships them overnight," she said.

However, Phelps-Roper said the reaction the group has raised from some police and public officials has her questioning whether the planned protest will go ahead.

"The question to my mind [is] whether or not we ought to get them the heck out of that country, because that's some crazy stuff when you've got your officials talking like they are in a back-alley brawl and not government officials who took an oath to obey the law and so forth."

Phelps-Roper said she would advise church members not to go ahead with the protest if there is a concern they might be arrested or harmed.

Counter-protest planned

A counter-protest against the church's picket plans was launched on the social networking site Facebook on Thursday.

More than 700 people have since joined the group; postings indicate they plan to form a "human wall" around the family to shield them from the church protest, if it takes place.

Winnipeg NDP MP Pat Martin said the group should be "sent packing," and should not try to show up in Winnipeg "for their own safety."

"We're not going to allow these people to compound the tragedy of the McLean family loss, and Canadians simply won't tolerate these lunatics disrupting what should be a respectful service," he told CBC News on Friday.

"Your freedom to swing your arm in the air ends when it touches the end of my nose," he added. "What these people were going to do was hurtful, harmful and disruptive to the peace, order and good government that we guarantee to our citizens, so they have no place in this country."

Family in shock, requests privacy

Meanwhile, Tim McLean's mother released a short public statement Friday morning, saying the family is in "complete shock at the horrifying loss of our loved one."

Carol deDelley expressed frustration that some media outlets have not identified McLean's family members properly; the statement identifies Tim's parents and step-parents and the six siblings in his blended families.

DeDelley asked for privacy during the family's time of mourning.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/20...st.html?ref=rss

[Ban Hammer 13,619]

this should be interesting lock them up in canada and make them eat poutine.

[Sassy1natl 0]

this should be interesting lock them up in canada and make them eat poutine.

A double batch.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Those rabid church members sound about as sick as the man who committed the assault. This is an additional cruel and callous act planned against those already suffering because one another cruel and callous assault.

[MrsCat 6]

Those rabid church members sound about as sick as the man who committed the assault. This is an additional cruel and callous act planned against those already suffering because one another cruel and callous assault.

Yup - I wish they had never made it through the border. How horrible to do to someone's family after a tragedy like this.

[Reba 2]

More than 700 people have since joined the group; postings indicate they plan to form a "human wall" around the family to shield them from the church protest, if it takes place.

Winnipeg NDP MP Pat Martin said the group should be "sent packing," and should not try to show up in Winnipeg "for their own safety."

"We're not going to allow these people to compound the tragedy of the McLean family loss, and Canadians simply won't tolerate these lunatics disrupting what should be a respectful service," he told CBC News on Friday.

Woo Hoo! Go Canada! Send the fuckin' wackos packin

[Scott & Lai 12]

Do the creatures have to be sent back to the USA?

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Unfortunately, they are ours. Can't exactly deport them to Gitmo. Or can we?

[Emancipation 2]

Love it.. a little street justice for these kooks...

Go get 'em mounties!!!

[pedroh 21]

vamos Canada!

[Amby 490]

The group intends to picket the funeral of 22-year-old Tim McLean to tell Canadians his slaying on July 30 was God's response to Canadian policies enabling abortion, homosexuality and divorce and remarriage.

#######?

has he done any of these things himself?

these people are insane!

[Ban Hammer 13,619]

Woo Hoo! Go Canada! Send the fuckin' wackos packin

oh no.......they are in canada, they are your problem now

[Peikko 1,575]

The group intends to picket the funeral of 22-year-old Tim McLean to tell Canadians his slaying on July 30 was God's response to Canadian policies enabling abortion, homosexuality and divorce and remarriage.

#######?

has he done any of these things himself?

these people are insane!

Sadly I think there is a fine line between fundamentalist belief and insanity and a justification of a picket at a funeral on the grounds that this is somehow 'just deserts' for Canada's laws that they don't like pushes them over into the insane bracket.

Edited August 11, 2008 by Purple_Hibiscus

[maggieNomar 0]

Unfortunately, they are ours. Can't exactly deport them to Gitmo. Or can we?

Oh I think in this case we can.

There are few people on this earth I hate, but this group falls into that category. Unfreakingbelievable what they do.

Charles, pass the popcorn please.

[Heracles 417]

Those rabid church members sound about as sick as the man who committed the assault. This is an additional cruel and callous act planned against those already suffering because one another cruel and callous assault.

No that guys is sick.

These guys are just idiots who need to be beat up by us other Christians.