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#UMassUnited: Thousands show to support Derrick Gordon during Westboro Baptist Church protest

Umass-united

Photo via MassLive.com

Umass-united

Photo via MassLive.com

Five members of the Westboro Baptist Church showed up at UMass on Wednesday, holding their typical array of hateful, anti-gay signs and sparking a counter-protest from more than 1,500 students.

According to MassLive.com, a rowdy group of around 100 students showed up across the street from the Westboro protesters, but a larger group gathered about a quarter of a mile away.

The counter-protest, which was dubbed #UMassUnited, was a show of support for Derrick Gordon, the UMass guard that became the first openly gay Division I men’s basketball player. He was appreciative:

Thank you all for the SUPPORT!!!! #LGBT #BETRUE

— Derrick Gordon (@flash2gordon) April 16, 2014

It’s hard for any rational person to take anything that the Westboro Baptist Church does seriously, but it is nice to see this many students turn out in support of Gordon and the LGBTQ community at UMass.