On Sunday, a public monument service was held at the State Farm Stadium in Glandale, Arizona, to honor a hard-line commentator Charlie Kirk, who was popular with young Americans on the right to ideological spectrum and the founder of turning points, who were shot in September.
The event attracted thousands of mournings across the country and depicted US President Donald Trump, prominent right -wing leaders and announcements as “symbols of orthodox and Christian values”.
Shortly after the service ended, the viral social media post claimed that “liberals” and Democrats had gathered outside the stadium to protest. Some also alleged that thousands of leftist protesters “raided” the memorial.
The DW Fact Czech examined the video.
Who was the protesters at Kirk’s funeral?
claim: “Liberals” or “leftist protesters” protested a large number of Charlie Kirk’s memorial service.
Most posts made vague claims about the video. For example, A version seen by more than 1.3 million users on X Capged the footage: “Imagine opposing a memorial service for a killer father and husband and think you are a good person. Really evil.”
The DW Fact Czech found several similar posts on the X, reaching each millions of users. In the comments below these posts, countless users attributed the protest to “left,” “liberals,” or protests.
But some accounts clearly claimed that the subjects of the protesters were liberal or democrats. A tikok videoFor example, declared: “The protesters raided Charlie’s Memorial !!” In which the user says, “Charlie Kirk Memorial on screen is 5000 liberals just out of the ceremony”. During this time A user on X The protesters are called “disgusting liberals hate”.
DW fact check: Untrue
The protesters outside the memorial were not liberal or democrats – they were members of the Westborough Baptist Church, a fringe religious group located in Kansas.
DW fact check Geolocated footage For West Maryland Avenue, directly north of the State Farm Stadium, where Glandale officials named “Free Speech Zone”.
Signs appearing in the video, “Breeding of sins” and “America Doomed”, Search, in accordance with Westborough Baptist Church rhetoric. Similar slogans have appeared in previous ceremonies, and such protests Is documentedBy American media.
Westboro Baptist Church website Was publicly announced The intention to picket the Kirk’s monument. Report by American media The description of only a handful of protesters on the site, not thousands of people claimed online.
What is Westborau Baptist Church?
Westborough Baptist Church is notorious for staging inflammatory performances in funeral and public events. Group led by Fred Phelps and now by his family members is notorious for its LGBTQ ideas and abusive language.
Since the 1990s, the group has chosen military funeral, schools and cultural programs with aggressive slogans. The central message of the group is that America is subject to divine decisions to consider sins, especially homosexuality, abortion and secular or liberal values. He targeted Kirk as part of his long strategy for spreading his message and using high-profile funerals to draw media attention.
Scholars and watchdogs Often deskib Westborough as a creed because it is tightly controlled by Phelps family, applies rigid internal discipline, and separates members from external influences. Opposition to its confrontation and shock strategy maintains its visibility despite its very small size.
While their actions are roughly chosen, US Supreme Court In 2011, such protests have been protected by the first amendment. Officers can only restrict them in areas or from time to time.
Edited by: Rachel Baig