Two of Phelps' granddaughters leave Westboro Church

[magical thyme]

30. I didn't call 27 years old a child

But when you've been brainwashed your entire life, that is literally all you know. Their escape is no different than the escape of Jeffrey whatizname's Mormon child brides. It isn't easy, it doesn't happen over night, many never make the break. Even now, the "spokespeople" are calling for them to burn in hell. That is their parents and siblings calling for them to burn in hell.

It is not so easy to leave your family and the beliefs that were put into your brain your entire life. Many people are never able to...I suspect the majority.

Certainly I feel for the victims of their hateful words. As somebody who grew up bullied, I can totally empathize. But at least their hate was limited to words. Words hurt vulnerable children far more than adults, who normally have developed the capacity to tune them out. And their hateful words have repeatedly been mitigated by protesters turning up at funerals to surround the grieving families.

As somebody who has recently lost several loved ones, I also know that when one is grieving, stranger's words don't penetrate. Even a kind person officiating is barely present in your consciousness. I don't mean to suggest that what they do doesn't matter; only that the pain of loss is so great that what they do barely exists in comparison. It's like a hangnail when you've been stabbed in the heart. Your total focus is on your lost loved one and your bleeding heart.