c. 2006 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON _ Legislation that would slap protesters at funerals of U.S. soldiers with hefty fines and federal jail time is on the fast track in Congress.

Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., the bill’s main sponsor, said he hopes the House and Senate will approve the bill by May so President Bush can sign it into law before Memorial Day. A House hearing on the bill is scheduled for Thursday (April 6).

“I heard them taunt and jeer and harass mourners and the family as they went in to pay their last respects to a fallen soldier,” Rogers said of protesters at the funeral of Army Sgt. Joshua Youmans of Flushing, Mich. “It was vile and awful. It goes beyond the bounds of decency.”

In the last month, a spate of protests at military funerals around the country have angered state and federal officials. The protests were led by the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., which argues that the war in Iraq is God’s way of punishing the United States for tolerating homosexuality.

The church is led by the controversial Rev. Fred Phelps, who is best known for his “God Hates Fags” campaigns and protests.

“When the death of a soldier is turned into a public platform to lionize America, worship the dead and defy God, we will be there,” the church said in a written statement on the proposed legislation. “We stand a respectful distance, on lawfully accessed public rights-of-way, and hold up some signs with words.”

Some of those signs say: God Blew Up the Soldier, Thank God for Dead Soldiers and Too Late to Pray.

Members of Congress say there are other avenues for expressing opinions.

“Mourning the loss of a loved one in uniform should not be disrupted by the despicable acts of others,” said Rep. Steve Buyer, R-Ind. “This legislation is a clear sign that there is no tolerance for those who choose to disrupt the sacred and sacrosanct burial of a loved one.”

Known as the Respect for America’s Fallen Heroes Act, the bill prohibits protests within 500 feet of military funerals on federal property, such as national cemeteries. It also bans them 60 minutes before and 60 minutes after a funeral. Violators would be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor and face a fine of up to $100,000 and one year in prison.

The legislation includes language encouraging state officials to adopt similar restrictions on funeral protests, since the federal law applies only to protests on federal land.

More than a dozen states, including Indiana, Maryland and Michigan, have already started. States are considering bills to create large buffer zones around soldiers’ funerals and funeral processions. Violators would face heavy fines and multiyear jail terms, in some cases.

State legislation may face court challenges, though. The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan says the 500-foot buffer zone in Michigan’s bill is too wide, and most likely would be struck down.

“This is an egregious situation,” said Shelli Weisberg, legislative director of Michigan’s ACLU chapter. “But if they want to accomplish their goal of trying to limit the exposure of families while they’re mourning, this bill is not going to do it because it’s unconstitutional.”

The constitutionality of the restrictions has been a concern in the federal bill as well, although sponsors believe they’ve written it in a way that would not infringe on First Amendment rights, in part by limiting it to federal property.

“It is sad that such legislation is needed, as these families are bearing the brunt of this war,” said Rep. Silvestre Reyes, R-Texas. “This bill is necessary to protect their peace and dignity during their time of great loss and personal tragedy.”

(Sarah Kellogg writes for Newhouse News Service.)

KRE/PH END KELLOGG