FROM A PRESS RELEASE
New York, N.Y.—The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) has called on the nationally syndicated Mike Gallagher Show, KXXT-AM in Tolleson, Ariz., and CFNY-FM, 102.1 "The Edge" in Toronto, Ontario, to rescind their offers to reward the Westboro Baptist Church with airtime.
The radio outlets agreed to host the Westboro Baptist Church after it announced plans to picket the funeral of Christina Taylor Green, the 9-year-old girl killed Jan. 8 in Tucson. The group also called off additional plans to picket the funeral of U.S. District Judge John Roll after the Mike Gallagher Show, a nationally syndicated radio show reaching millions, offered the group a platform to, according to a Westboro spokesperson, "communicate its message with as wide an audience as possible."
According to The Los Angeles Times, the group had made no decisions about whether it would picket the four other victims' funerals.
"The promotion of the Westboro Baptist Church's hateful vitriol has no place on our airwaves or at the funerals of these victims," said GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios.
"While countless media outlets around the country are properly paying tribute to the fallen, these radio outlets have decided to cave to blackmail tactics and reward one of our nation's most anti-American groups," Barrios continued. "Such action only incentivizes groups like Westboro with an opportunity to broadcast their hate to millions."
For more than 20 years, the Westboro Baptist Church has cynically and maliciously exploited the suffering of countless brave and patriotic American families by protesting the funerals of innocent victims and fallen heroes. Westboro Baptist Church has held up signs at the funerals of fallen soldiers, saying "Thank God for IEDs," "Pray for More Dead Soldiers" and "God Killed Your Son." Before the families of victims of Sept. 11, 2001, they held up signs saying "Thank God for 9/11" and "God Hates America." Westboro has picketed the funerals of hate crime victims with placards reading "God Wants Your Son Dead" and "God Hates Fags."
This week Westboro has reacted to the tragedy in Tucson with messages like "God Sent the Shooter."
On Jan. 13, GLAAD launched an online action for concerned community members and allies to send e-mails to the media outlets. The action had more than 1,500 participants as of the morning of Jan. 13. For more information, visit www.glaad.org/nowestboro.
