Dane McGuire Copy Editor
On April 28, Lewis and Clark Community College played host to some uninvited guests, an unspecified religious group with a message for the masses.
The group came to the open campus and preached of repentance, the absence of God in individuals’ lives, as well as the evils of man, including homosexuality. Members of the group did comment, using first names only.
“The message is a warning of judgement, you will be found innocent or guilty. We are here not to judge, but to warn. Your character should be holy and just, and understand that your wage for sin is death,” Nora, part of the group, said.
Nora, who was instructed by her husband, Steve, to not give out even her first name, admitted that the group is part of the highly publicized Westboro Baptist Church. This claim was later denied by the head of the demonstration, Don.
A small assembly of people gathered in the courtyard of the Trimpe building. From there, sparks flew, particularly when demonstrators spoke of intervening allegedly immoral in the lives of others.
LC’s campus security on location could not comment and asked that any requests for comments go through Eric Thomas, Chief of Security. Thomas did not respond to requests for a comment.
LC Pride offered the following response, “I understand they’re expressing their First Amendment rights, but it could have been done in a more appropriate fashion. We at LC Pride won’t discriminate for their beliefs, but the way they went about this was inappropriate and disrespectful. This demonstration put them in the bad spotlight,” Vice President, Brandon Everts said.
“In a school with such a diverse population, having a group here with such a narrow-minded view is counterproductive to what Lewis and Clark is trying to build,” Environmental Technology major, Heather Richardson said.
ndmcguire@lc.edu