The infamous Westboro Baptist Church, or WBC, is a Kansas-based organization that hosts protests across the country at funerals, events and college campuses. The group visited MSU to protest last April. Because it constantly spreads a message of hate, especially for homosexual American citizens, the church is receiving backlash from state governments, who do not wish to censor their speech, but to restrict the areas where the church can protest.

Although freedom of speech and expression is an integral right for citizens, everyone should have the right to a peaceful funeral, and while the WBC has a right to voice its opinions, it should not infringe on the rights of others.

California Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law on Monday legislation restricting protests at funerals. The legislation creates a 300-foot buffer zone around memorial and burial sites, allowing families to grieve in peace rather than face protests at funerals. The new law was not endorsed by the American Civil Liberties Union, or ACLU.

Brown’s signature comes nearly a year after initial legislation that would have created a 1,000-foot buffer zone around funerals, but was vetoed because Brown believed it infringed upon free speech rights.

But Brown isn’t the first to restrict the rights of the WBC. President Barack Obama” signed similar legislation”:http://veterans.house.gov/hr1627 into law in August, creating a 300-foot buffer zone around military funerals and prohibiting protests two hours before or after funeral services.

Many, including the WBC, find these types of legislation to be unconstitutional, pointing to a 2011 Supreme Court ruling that upheld these protests as a protected form of free speech. Although a great majority of Americans disagree with WBC’s hateful message, the church has a right to say it without facing criminal charges.

But American families, whether military or not, deserve to hold proper funeral services for their deceased without interruption. While grieving after the loss of a loved one, especially for those who fought for their country, these families should not have to face loathsome complaints from a group of hateful strangers.

Because of this, more states should adopt this type of legislation restricting the protests of the WBC. Funerals honoring deceased military members already are covered through federal law, but the rest of America’s deceased citizens deserve the same rights to a proper funeral without protests. A buffer zone of 300 feet allows this group to protest these funerals, while still granting families the right to private services without extreme persecution.

The WBC has a constitutional right to protest and to spread its message of hate and repentance for what it sees as America’s wrongdoings in allowing homosexual Americans to live freely. But every American deserves the right to a private burial, where family members can mourn and grieve for their loss, listening to kind words said in honor of their loved ones rather than hateful words shouted by the WBC.