they may be a small and extreme example of hatred toward the LGBT community, but i think they also represent a huuuuuuge population of people who are just as hateful if not as vocal. i agree that they don't pose much of an actual threat to equal rights because they're so extreme and over-the-top, but they exemplify the fear and violent hate that many americans feel toward queer people in general.

they're also known for acts of intolerable cruelty (like protesting the funerals of young men killed in iraq), which i think makes them incredibly relevant to equal rights. i also think that making their awful antics known and keeping them in the public eye helps unify people against their hate; just an example, the documentary this interview will be in is made by a young man who organizes counter-protests and raises money for every minute the phelps family protests...he's raised tens of thousands of dollars toward LGBT rights, which wouldn't have been possible if he had overlooked their relevance.

aaanyway, that's just my thoughts (like 5 days too late, oops)

naw... I don't think anyone's arguing that they're a serious threat to the gay rights movement. They're more like a freak show. And you're right - I think they help the cause more than hurt it. I mean, they're protesting at funerals of soldiers who've died in Iraq telling families that their kids' death is punishment on the US for it's acceptance of homosexuals. And lots of their signs have pictures of stick figures engaged in sexual acts (that's part of what this nutbag says here - she doesn't get why people are offended by the images because they're not anatomically correct...?). So they piss off the gung-ho Americans AND the super conservative religious folks. They're not a threat to anything.

I think this interview is a relevent part of the documentary in question because it illustrates just how deep some people's fear and hatred of homosexuality runs. The Phelpses are the most vocal and visible example but I'm sure that level of hate does not start and end within their group. As unbelieveable as it sounds, there are people who don't know that groups like this, however small, exist until they see or hear it for themselves.

And it's entertainment and shock value. I don't think anyone can deny that. But there it's not without any merit. I was responding mostly to when you said it's like watching a chimp in a bikini. Sort of, but not really. In the respect that they are both ridiculous spectacles to gawk at - yes, but there's nothing fascinating to me from a human or psychological persepctive about a chimp in a bikini (except for that some asshole human put them up to it for a laugh) the way that there is with someone like Shirley Phelps.