Westboro Baptist Church protests Pride Night at Cardinals game

The Westboro Baptist Church, known for controversial protests, plans to protest the St. Louis Cardinals’ inaugural Pride Night event Friday.

The Pride Night is scheduled to take place during the 7:15 p.m. game against the Tampa Bay Rays. The Cardinals’ page for the event invites “LGBT friends, family, and allies” to the stadium.

On the church website’s list of events, there are two news releases saying there would be a “public preaching ceremony” at Busch Stadium in response to Pride Night.

The Westboro Baptist Church also protested at Zumwalt High School in O’Fallon, Mo., Friday afternoon in response to the school offering free breakfast, according to the church’s site. The news release said there “is a much greater need for spiritual food” at the school rather than actual breakfast.

A portion of each ticket sold at Busch Stadium on Pride Night is to benefit the Pride STL Scholarship, which is awarded annually to St. Louis-area students.

This story was originally published August 25, 2017 at 4:21 PM with the headline "Westboro Baptist Church protests Pride Night at Cardinals game."