How Social Media Turned The Youngest Of The Founding Family Against Westboro Baptist

According to NPR, Phelps-Roper was taken aback by the conversations and feedback she received on Twitter. The New Yorker adds that she made several online friends, including David Abitbol, founder of the Jewish culture blog Jewlicious. Notably, the Westboro Baptist Church is anti-Semitic (per the Anti-Defamation League). Phelps-Roper explained to NPR how these interactions affected her. She stated, "They started asking questions and digging into our theology. ... As they were able to find these contradictions and present them to me," Phelps-Roper added, "I understood that we could be wrong about something. ... That was the beginning of the end for me. I had this unshakable faith and it had been shaken."

Per the BBC, Phelps-Roper also befriended a man named C.G. on Twitter. The New Yorker states that he confronted Phelps-Roper on how her words and actions affected others, especially when it involved celebrating the deaths of individuals the church opposes, such as soldiers and celebrities. As her friendship with C.G. grew, Phelps-Roper's sentiments about death changed. She told The New Yorker that she felt a shift when actress Brittany Murphy died in December 2009. While her family rejoiced, Phelps-Roper admitted that this made her uneasy.

Eventually, her feelings toward C.G. turned romantic and Phelps-Roper decided to cut him off (via The New Yorker). She told the BBC that she decided to focus on the church. She explained, "Life went back to normal but it was greyer than before. I'd finally seen what I'd been missing, and my world felt impoverished without it. Without him."

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