TOPEKA, Kan. —
Planting Peace has waged a war against Westboro Baptist Church. It's weapon? A paintbrush.
The non-profit environmental conservation agency — which raises money for such endeavors as de-worming children in Haiti, according to its Facebook Page — has purchased a home in Topeka, Kan., across the street from the infamous church and painted it the colors of the gay pride flag.
Westboro is known to picket funerals of slain soldiers and other victims of tragedy and preach a message of hate against the gay community.
Members of the church picketed the funeral of Enid resident Chris Hake in 2008.
Planting Peace came across the property for sale on a whim of its founder, Aaron Jackson, when he was researching the church after seeing a young child countering the its homophobic message with a sign that read, "God Hates No One," according to the Huffington Post.
"I didn't know anything about the church or where they were located, but that story kept popping up. And one night I wondered, Where is this church? I got on Google Earth, and I was 'walking down the road,' and I did a 360 view. And I saw a 'For Sale' sign sitting in the front yard of a house. Right away it hit me, Oh my gosh, I could buy a house in front of the WBC! And immediately I thought: And I'm going to paint that thing the color of the pride flag."
Since the paint was applied to Equality House, the group has received a lot of honks from passing cars, the OK from the city of Topeka that it is not violating an ordinances, and thank-yous from a soldier who walked up to the door with a personal message, according to Planting Peace's Facebook Page.
"U.S. veterans keep coming to the door & thanking us. We are united against bigotry. Out of Many, Come One."
Organization officials also posted, "Shirley Phelps of the Westboro Baptist Church just waved & said she loved the colors... So we all blew her kisses."
Details provided by The Enid, OK, News and Eagle.
CNHI/Southeast Iowa
Related Photos
-
The Enid, OK, News and Eagle
Non-profit gets back at Westboro church with rainbow house
- CNHI/Southeast Iowa
-
-
Kebabs: Health kick on a stick
Grilling is a simple way to feed your family well this summer. Start with a lean meat and a healthful marinade and then allow the grill to strip away additional fat for a heart-healthy and waist-friendly final result. Plus, grilling caramelizes the natural sugars in foods, which adds flavor without additional calories and fat.
-
Boy Scouts: Yes to gay youths, no to adults
The Boy Scouts of America on Thursday ended its ban on openly gay youths but maintained a prohibition on gay adult leaders, a decision framed as a compromise but one that could lead to litigation and thousands of defections from one of America's largest youth organizations.
-
Rain for Memorial Day weekend, but not a washout
Forecasters say this weekend will see good chances of rain, but they don't expect a complete washout since the highest chance of storms is in the overnight and early morning hours.
-
Expert: Schools need shelters
Ninety-four percent of Oklahoma schools do not have tornado shelters, according to Gov. Mary Fallin, even though at least one weather expert says they should be standard. With two Moore schools destroyed in Monday’s EF-5 tornado — and ...
-
Life and Times
-
Twitter introduces website security tool after AP account hacked
Twitter is adding a new security tool to its website, making it harder for outsiders to gain access to accounts, a month after a false posting triggered a stock-market decline.
-
Siblings withstand storm in fridge
Brother and sister co-owners of a Chinese takeout restaurant huddled inside a refrigerator to survive Monday’s deadly tornado that claimed 24 lives.
-
Pursuit that began in Marion County ends in Wayne County
CORYDON — A pursuit that began in Marion County Tuesday evening ended in Wayne County Tuesday night. The two-hour, high speed chase that went through several counties, with an alleged short stint in Missouri as well, involved several agencies with a
-
Mom delivered baby as tornado struck
Shayla Taylor was so far along in labor that her nurses at Moore Medical Center decided not to move her when Monday's tornado hit. They waited out the storm in an operating room, where the wall disappeared as the tornado hit the building.
-
Stabbing trial pushed back
OTTUMWA -- The trial of an Ottumwa man accused of stabbing another man to death has been pushed back. Twenty-year-old Brandon Seim was charged in November 2011, when he was 18, with the stabbing death of Andy Madren, 34. When officers arrived at the
- More CNHI/Southeast Iowa Headlines
-
