Some days old farts just need a dose of the kid.
Last week the Phoenix area was rocked by the apparent murder-suicide of two 15-year-old girls at Independence High School in Glendale. According to friends, the young women had been in a relationship for years, but now one of them wanted to end it. We still don't know if it was a suicide pact, but allegedly the jilted lover shot her girlfriend outside a school building before turning the gun, provided by a classmate, on herself. A note was left but its contents have not been released to the public.
That happened last Friday, and the school was closed until this Tuesday. So what did many sad, traumatized and troubled students face that first day back? You guessed it: a few haters from Official Street Preachers, a wackjob group in lockstep with the Westboro Baptist nitwits, showed up with their anti-LGBT signs.
Students who lost their friends on Friday said the protest was inappropriate and insensitive.
"It hurts us even more to even have to go through this, really, because it was such a sensitive time; everyone just recuperating from our feelings," IHS student Timmy Tram said.
On a YouTube clip the protesters can be heard shouting, "Homosexual relationships are hateful,” "We know that these kids hate themselves," and "You're going to be suicidal, you're not going to know God.” How nice, adult “Christians” — tell teenagers to hate themselves, tell them to hate others, tell them they’re bound for eternal hell so they might as well shoot themselves too.
Some of the kids didn’t take it: they got in the bigots’ faces and shouted “I-H-S.” Later that day the principal sent an email to the community saying the protesters’ actions “were hurtful and offensive to many students who were grieving the loss of their classmates.” Then yesterday even more students responded to the homophobes:
Luis is a freshman at Independence High School and he was upset when he saw anti-gay protestors outside his school, while students are mourning...
So today, many other students like Luis are showing support for the LGBT community by wearing rainbow colors...
Students are now coming together to not only remember the two sophomores who died in the murder-suicide last week, but also to support their LGBT classmates.
On Wednesday the school’s campus was filled with students proudly wearing rainbow clothes, others painted their faces, colorful balloons and flowers were everywhere, and signs of support, some from alumni, graced the walls and fences. Meanwhile, dozens of teddy bears, candles and sympathy notes formed a makeshift memorial for the two girls. The haters were gone, the kids’ love won the day.