Arizona Passes Law to Block Protests at Shooting Victims' Funerals

Arizona lawmakers today passed emergency legislation to bar Westboro Baptist Church members from picketing the funerals of the Tucson shooting victims, and outraged residents vowed to protect mourners from any protesters.

The measure, passed unanimously by the House and Senate, would prohibit protests within 300 feet of funeral sites. The bill now goes to Gov. Jan Brewer, who is expected to sign it this evening.

"This is just horrific that ... people have to deal with this," state Sen. Kyrsten Sinema told The Associated Press before the measure was passed. "We shouldn't have to do this in time of great pain for our state."

The Westboro Baptist Church announced on its website that it would picket the funerals of the six people killed when a gunman opened fire Saturday at a political meet-and-greet in Tucson sponsored by U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., who was shot in the head and remains in critical condition.

The Westboro group said it would begin its protests at the funeral Thursday for the youngest victim, 9-year-old Christina Taylor Green.

Dozens of Arizonans said they planned to don 8-by-10-foot angel wings and surround Christina's grieving family members to shield them from any protesters.

Arizonans made it clear that the fringe church is not welcome.

"How dare you come with your hateful message when we're in mourning," Tucson resident Christin Gilmer told ABC News. "Nobody comes into our beautiful town and tries to spew hate at the celebration and memorial of someone's life."

The Westboro group, which is not affiliated with any official Baptist denomination, claims deaths are God's punishment for American toleration of homosexuality. The Kansas-based church, led by Fred Phelps, gained notoriety by picketing the funerals of soldiers and high-profile Americans with homophobic signs.

Residents are organizing counterprotests through Facebook groups and word of mouth. One Facebook group, called "We Will Not Let Fred Phelps or WBC Protest Any Funeral in Tucson," had more than 5,000 members as of this afternoon. It vowed to "create a wall of humanity" so families of the shooting victims could mourn their loved ones in peace.

Chelsea Cohen, a 20-year-old senior at the University of Arizona, organized one of the buffers on the Facebook page "Show Support for the Families of the Tucson Shooting Victims." She said she hopes to encircle Christina's family at the girl's funeral and doesn't want to direct energy toward the Westboro group at all.

"We plan on being completely silent, and we're asking people not to bring signs or make comments about the Westboro Baptist Church," she told CNN today.