Fred Phelps is coming to Durham tonight and this weekend. He's coming to protest the Laramie Project, a play about the reaction to the beating and death of
Matthew Sheppard.
Durham (and its neigbor, Chapel Hill) is a solidly Democratic area, and a counter protest is being organized. From the local paper, the Herald Sun.
"At 1 p.m. Friday on Duke's East Campus lawn, a communitywide celebration and fundraiser will begin, with food, games and music. Celebration organizers and leaders from the N.C. Lambda Youth Network will give speeches and materials will be available for participants to make signs and shirts. Then, about an hour before the [Durham School of the Arts] performance begins at 7:30 p.m., celebration participants will move to the area in front of the school at 400 N. Duke St., where they plan to fill the sidewalk and leave no room for Phelps' group to protest."
Phelps and his crew of hate will be in town all weekend, but this is the only currently planned counter protest. Phelps is also planning protests of a number of local churches, which are apparently too tolerant for his liking. Many of those protests are on Sunday morning, so that innocent churchgoers can be met with a message of hate on their way to honor the Prince of Peace.
The schedule of protests (taken from Phelps' website) is as follows:
1) May 6, 2005
2:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Durham, NC
Duke University, Main St. & 15th St.
2) May 6, 2005
7:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Durham, NC
Durham School of the Arts, 400 N. Duke St.
3) May 7, 2004
5:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Durham, NC
St. Paul Lutheran, 1200 W. Cornwallis Rd.
4) May 7, 2005
7:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Durham, NC
Durham School of the Arts, 400 N. Duke St.
5) May 8, 2005
8:00 am - 8:30 am
Durham, NC
Aldersgate United Methodist Church, 1320 Umstead Rd.
6) May 8, 2005
9:00 am - 9: 25 am
Durham, NC
First Presbyterian Church, 305 E. Main St.
7) May 8, 2005
9:15 am - 9:45 am
Durham, NC
First Baptist Church, 414 Cleveland St.
8) May 8, 2005
9:35 am - 10:00 am
Durham, NC
St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 1737 Hillandale Rd.
9) May 8, 2005
10:30 am - 11:00 am
Durham, NC
Our Savior Lutheran Church, 2109 N. Duke St.
10) May 8, 2005
10:45 am - 11:15 am
Durham, NC
Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, 810 W. Chapel Hill St.
The first entry is confused. Duke University isn't at that particular corner. I'm told that there are a couple of churches there that might be the real target, or perhaps it's a staging area, or simply the wrong intersection.
The second entry is the Friday night showing of the Laramie Project, with the counter protest noted above. The fourth entry is the Saturday night showing of the play. (Note also that this play is being performed by high-school students. This professional homophobe is coming to town specifically to pick on children.)
I'll update this diary if I get word of additional counter protests. Unfortunately, I have a previous engagement for this evening, so I won't be at tonight's counter protest, which I expect is the best place I might find information regarding the rest of the weekend.