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Web Cover Story: An All Time Low? A Radical Protest Group Try To Spoil ATL's Tour Finale in Philly

Photo: Ben Phelps

STORY: Casey Boland

“All Time Low MEETS All Time Perverts!”–that’s the announcement on the website of Westboro Baptist Church in regard to All Time Low’s show on Dec. 6 in Philadelphia. The WBC-an independent Baptist church focused on anti-gay propaganda–brought their message of hate to the City of Brotherly Love to vilify the band and their “doomed” fans. While it remains unclear why WBC specifically targeted the Maryland-based pop-punk band, WBC’s online protest schedule criticizes All Time Low for being “gender-confused, haphazard freakazoids.”


Photo: Edwina Wai

The Topeka, Kansas-based organization is better known for its protests of funerals for soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as its aggrandizing veiled anti-gay stance (its website URL is “godhatesfags.com”). Founded by Fred Phelps in 1955, the church (with no affiliation to any mainstream Baptist institution) consists mostly of Phelps’ kin. Since 1991, the group has regularly staged protests across the country against any individual or institution it believes goes against the will of God. Though homosexuality serves as its arch nemesis, WBC also targets nearly every other sect of religion. In their view, the U.S. is “doomed” and “God’s hatred is one of His holy attributes.”

Watch local news footage of the protest here.

The WBC posted their own video of the protest featuring member Sara Phelps (it should be noted that at least four of the six WBC protesters all share the same last name):

In the end, the WBC protesters were far outnumbered by a contingency of about 30 counter-protesters at the show. Counter-protester Paul Zilber said that they drowned out the chants of the WBC by singing ATL songs and providing chants of their own like, “Gay, straight, black, white, same battle, same fight.” All Time Low frontman Alex Gaskarth tweeted, “I was just informed by picketers that I’m ‘leading a generation of rebels to hell.’ No ma’am. I’m leading a rebellion against the Empire!” and “If embracing all lifestyles will lead me to hell, then I’ll see you all there. It’s going to be one incredibly tolerant and happy inferno.”


Photo: Rachel Opitz

After less than an hour of picketing by the WBC, one protester ended the rally by shouting, “Fags!” and then they quickly packed their signs, scurried to a rented red minivan across the street and were gone. The demonstration did little to change the attitudes of the band’s fans. A few (who declined to give their last names) told Altpress.com that they were far from impressed. “They look dumb,” said a fan named Nicole. “It’s like a small family from the middle of nowhere. No one here cares. We’re all going in to have fun. They’re the ones out here being miserable.” Others were left confused. “It’s scary that these people came from wherever they came from just to wave dumb signs to scare a band and the kids coming to the show,” said a concertgoer named Joanna. “Do they really think anyone cares or won’t go to the show because of their signs? I don’t know what their point is.”

Religious groups’ antipathy for rock music is nothing new. Long lambasted as “devil music,” alleged defenders of the faith have a rich history of seeking its eradication. Elvis Presley, the Beatles, KISS, Judas Priest, Ozzy Osbourne and Marilyn Manson represent a small sampling of bands and artists who have experienced the wrath of religious reactionaries. More recently, rabidly conservative British tabloid The Daily Mail accused My Chemical Romance of causing the suicide of a teenage girl.

A representative for ATL told Altpress.com that the band had no official comment on the matter and that they don’t know why the group targeted them. Considering the band’s innocuous lyrics and relatively understated image (compared to, say, Marilyn Manson), they seem an odd choice for picketing. Far more provocative bands played or will play Philly the same week, including Rob Zombie, GWAR and Jill Sobule (whose ’90s hit single was “I Kissed A Girl”–not to be confused with Katy Perry’s song). The Queers performed in the city four days before ATL. One would presume the long-running New Hampshire punk act would certainly make a large blip on the anti-gay radar. “Every once in a while, [a protester] will have a point I loosely agree with. But they are so obnoxious [that] I [end up hating] all of them,” says Queers vocalist Joe King. “It’s ridiculous in this day and age to be worried about bands like All Time Low. They’re just kids having fun.”

While many bands have faced criticism from religious zealots, few have seen protests at their shows. “I can’t think of any situation where any of our bands have dealt with a situation of protest,” says Asian Man Records owner Mike Park. “That includes Alkaline Trio, who have definite satanic overtones in their imagery and music. I think the Westboro situation is extreme. Ninety-nine percent of Christians will be quick to denounce such vile and disgusting behavior. It’s a sad situation when your organization is content that all is going to hell. When you are protesting the funeral of [children’s-TV icon] Mr. Rogers, you know you’re fucking nuts.”


Photo: Sara Phelps

Detroit hardcore band Hellmouth, consisting of former members of Suicide Machines, are no strangers to hostile reactions from the self-avowed defenders of morality. A Logansport, Indiana, priest threatened to protest and shut down a fest the band performed earlier this year. Bassist Jeff Uberti explains, “This happened because a kid got a flyer for the show and for some reason, his parents decided to look up our band. I guess they didn’t like what they saw and called the priest at their church. He looked up our MySpace page and liked it even less than [the parents] did.” In the end, the priest never filed a petition to protest and did not picket outside the fest. The mayor of Logansport attempted to shut down the show, but was equally unsuccessful. The unabashedly anti-Christian band encountered similar resistance in their home state. Guitarist Alex Awn says, “We were playing a skate fest in Michigan, and the hall wouldn’t let us play there because of religious reasons and because we allegedly promote underage drinking, drugs and violence. So the promoter actually moved the fest to a different venue.” He adds, “It doesn’t surprise me that we’ve gotten this sort of attention. We’re playing with Marduk this month, the self-proclaimed ‘most blasphemous band on earth.’ We’ll see how many protesters are willing to picket the slums of Detroit for that show.”

Perhaps the reason for WBC’s protest of All Time Low is a simple matter of scheduling. WBC planned a busy itinerary for their Philadelphia-area excursion on Dec. 6 and 7. Their picket schedule includes stops at a Jewish convention, the National Museum of American Jewish History, a Catholic church and a New Jersey high school–all within the span of 24 hours. But regardless of where WBC and its contemporaries strike, rock bands will continue to arouse the ire of the intolerant. WBC would surely disapprove of Torche. The Miami/Atlanta-based band play metal and are led by an outspoken homosexual. Steve Brooks says, “Fortunately, I haven’t had any anti-gay protesters at our shows, but even if we did, I’d be amused. Did they get these orders from God? Apparently, God sounds like an asshole. If I’m into assholes, wouldn’t that make WBC gay, too?” alt

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