BOONE – The right to free speech, religion, press, assembly and petition are constitutional liberties granted to all Americans under the First Amendment – but at what point do such rights infringe upon the peace of a community?

Pastor Fred Phelps and his Westboro Baptist Church congregation of Topeka, Kan., have tested this contract in the past by erecting monuments celebrating the death of homosexuals as a result of hate crimes and waving signs thanking God for America’s dead soldiers.

“This land is fag land – a raging mad land,” sang Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of Fred Phelps, and three of her children to the tune of “This Land is Your Land.”

The protesters were positioned outside the memorial service of Command Sgt. Maj. Marilyn L. Gabbard on Tuesday morning.

According to the Iowa National Guard, Gabbard, 46, was killed when the helicopter she was traveling in crashed outside of Baghdad on Jan. 20.

Affiliates of Fred Phelps and his WBC congregation are adamant haters of several groups, including the United States Armed Forces, who “are fighting for a nation that hates God,” said Megan Phelps-Roper, daughter of Shirley Phelps-Roper. The WBC has multiple Web sites – GodhatesAmerica.com and Godhatesfags.com are two that envelop the church’s foundations.

They cite their hatred toward America and Canada to their conception that the nations are “fag-enablers,” and that homosexuals are abominations. The driving force behind their motivation is their belief that the injustices in our country are brought upon by Americans’ disobedience of God, and credit such disobedience as the cause of dying soldiers and the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11.

These extreme forms of protest resulted in former Gov. Tom Vilsack passing a bill to set zone limitations for protesting at funerals in April 2006. President Bush followed the legislation trend by enacting the Respect for America’s Fallen Heroes Act in May 2006, which prohibits protests within 500 feet of cemeteries, according to the Library of Congress Web site.

Shirley and her children gathered at the mandatory distance from the entrance to Boone High School, where a commemoration ceremony was held for the fallen soldier.

The family boasted signs reading, “You will eat your children,” “America is doomed” and “God is your enemy.” Two patrol squad cars kept a close eye on the picketers throughout the demonstration.

“We are here to remind this town that the same God who destroyed Saddam is not dead. He killed this soldier and he will continue to kill soldiers for as long as people refuse to obey him,” Shirley said.

She wore an inverted American flag around her waist and grew increasingly intense while engaging in discussion with a passerby.

Nick Schuler, a senior at Boone High School, was on his way home when he came across the WBC members.

“Your parents hate you, and you hate your parents. You swim in an orgy of lies,” Megan said to Schuler.

Schuler was able to remain collected and walk away from the angry rants.

“No matter what you say to them, they are stuck in their own beliefs,” Schuler said.

“I think it’s pretty stupid what they are doing, and I do not agree with it.”