Westboro Baptist Church Protest of Gay High School Football Star Drowned Out by LGBTQ Supporters

The St. Louise American photo

The St. Louis American reports:

The chanting and singing from the more than 100 supporters for the LGBTQ+ community drowned out the hateful cries of the anti-gay protestors outside of John Burroughs School early Monday morning.

“The other protestors only had about 20 people,” said Alayah Lipnick, a sophomore at Whitfield High School, who stood among the crowd at about 7:45 a.m. on March 12. “I think we really brought it today to let the LGBT community know we support them no matter what.”

Last week, the approximately 600 students at John Burroughs School were informed in a morning assembly that they would be picketed by the Westboro Baptist Church, a hate group based out of Topeka, Kansas. Westboro learned that the school had a gay football star – Jake Bain, a senior who will be playing for Indiana State in the fall – and announced on their website that they would come protest the school.

While groups such as the LGBT advocacy organization PrideSTL held a counter protest outside the school, the students themselves decided to celebrate their community inside, instead of giving the hate group the confrontation they wanted, they said. First, members of the community, including Bain’s boyfriend Hunter Sigmund, gave speeches in response to the event.

Jake Bain gets help with his tie from boyfriend Hunter Sigmund and his mom, Cathy Bain.
Photo byRobert Cohen from the St. Louise Post Dispatch.

“This past week certainly has been a whirlwind of emotions,” Sigmund told his fellow students, who were dressed in rainbow attire this morning. “I’ve been struck with horror. I’m been struck with sadness. But now, as I’m standing before you, all I feel is incredible sense of pride and happiness.”

After hearing the announcement last Tuesday, about 200 students – over one-third of the student body – came together to “passionately discuss” how to respond to the Westboro group, he said. He thanked them for allowing Bain and him to “be themselves.”

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