Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/10pdf/09-751.pdf
Page Number: 13.0

Cite as:  562 U. S. ____ (2011) 

9 

Opinion of the Court 

street,  reflect  the  fact  that  the  church  finds  much  to  con-
demn in modern society.  Its speech is “fairly characterized
as  constituting  speech  on  a  matter  of  public  concern,” 
Connick,  461  U. S.,  at  146,  and  the  funeral  setting  does 
not alter that conclusion. 

Snyder argues that the church members in fact mounted 
a  personal  attack  on  Snyder  and  his  family,  and  then 
attempted  to  “immunize  their  conduct  by  claiming  that 
they were actually protesting the United States’ tolerance 
of  homosexuality  or  the  supposed  evils  of  the  Catholic
Church.”  Reply  Brief  for  Petitioner  10.    We  are  not  con-
cerned in this case that Westboro’s speech on public mat-
ters  was  in  any  way  contrived  to  insulate  speech  on  a
private matter from liability.  Westboro had been actively
engaged in speaking on the subjects addressed in its pick-
eting long before it became aware of Matthew Snyder, and 
there  can  be  no  serious  claim  that  Westboro’s  picketing 
did  not  represent  its  “honestly  believed”  views  on  public
issues.  Garrison,  379  U. S.,  at  73.    There  was  no  pre-
existing  relationship  or  conflict  between  Westboro  and
Snyder  that  might  suggest  Westboro’s  speech  on  public 
matters was intended to mask an attack on Snyder over a 
private  matter.  Contrast  Connick,  supra,  at  153  (finding
public  employee  speech  a  matter  of  private  concern  when
it was “no coincidence that [the speech] followed upon the
heels of [a] transfer notice” affecting the employee). 

Snyder  goes  on  to  argue  that  Westboro’s  speech  should 
be afforded less than full First Amendment protection “not 
only  because  of  the  words”  but  also  because  the  church 
members  exploited  the  funeral  “as  a  platform  to  bring
their message to a broader audience.”  Brief for Petitioner 
44, 40.  There is no doubt that Westboro chose to stage its 
picketing  at  the  Naval  Academy,  the  Maryland  State 
House, and Matthew Snyder’s funeral to increase publicity
for  its  views  and  because  of  the  relation  between  those 
sites  and  its  views—in  the  case  of  the  military  funeral,