Carolina Forest counter protest Friday morning.
Westboro Baptist Church, infamous for their controversial hate-filled protests against gays, Jews and other groups, began their day in Horry County at Conway, Socastee and Carolina Forest High Schools.
Their rants about God's punishment for America included a reference to an incident that's made headlines for weeks.
At Carolina Forest, there were signs and slogans from the protesters about what they claim is a warning to an immoral nation.
"We're delivering a final call to a nation whose destruction is imminent," said Westboro Church member Shirley Phelps-Roper.
To Phelps-Roper and her children, God's punishment apparently includes just about anything bad that happens to America, including the oil spill.
"That oil is all over this land. Now, everyone's talking about it. It's a work of God and it's marvelous."
Across the road from Phelps-Roper's demonstration, there were more signs and more slogans, but a very different message.
"We cannot abide such hatred in this world. Not in our community," said Lily Ann Revitch, a member of the Temple Shalom Congregation.
The Westboro church members put homosexuals at the forefront of their hatred and that prompted a response from gay rights supporters.
"I do not tolerate ignorance in this community," said Emily Rosen, a student at the Academy for the Arts, Science and Technology.
Jews are also targets of the group's hatred. The leader of a Myrtle Beach temple couldn't let that go without a response.
"People of Westboro church, they believe in a God of hate and I believe they demean God's name," said Rabbi David Weissman of Temple Shalom.
At Conway High School, there was another small group of Westboro protesters and another response from the other side.
"They were just telling people that they were sinners," said counter-protester Mark Bennett. "They weren't telling people how to become saints."
The five Westboro protesters at Socastee attracted not one, but two large counter demonstrations.
Police kept things in check at all three locations, and the principal at Carolina Forest tried to keep the day as normal as possible by allowing students and parents to use a back entrance.
"I was afraid that there would be a lot of traffic and a lot of sightseers this morning in the front of the school and I just didn't want our students to get involved in that."
At all three schools, the chants and songs were loud and heartfelt, but never out of control. On one side, there was hatred. On the other, something very different.
"Community and love and caring. Absolutely," said Revitch.
For those students who decided to stay home, Friday was not considered an excused absence. But the principal at Carolina Forest says many teachers did use the day as a learning tool about the first amendment.
