http://www.ktva.com/local/ci_15439308

From CBS, KTVA in Anchorage:

Gay Community Rallies Back After Parade Float Burnt
Natalie Travis
CREATED: 07/04/2010 07:03:56 PM PDT

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTVA-CBS 11 News) Two days after fire officials call a blaze that destroyed a gay pride float possible arson, leaders from the gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender community’s Imperial Court were able to rebuild their float, taking first prize in the July 4 parade contest.
On a day meant to celebrate freedom of self-expression, the LGBT community seemed to express that this obstacle could not stop them from rising again.

“No matter what happens we will rise above it and we will come together as a community. And we will hold each other up and we will support each other no matter what happens,” says Imperial Court Member Colleen Crinklaw.

Back from the ashes, the float’s theme depicted a phoenix rising, surrounded by the fun parade goers expected to see on the Forth of July. Through that, one soldier’s mom says Lady Liberty’s true meaning was reaffirmed.

“Today we’re celebrating my favorite holiday of the whole year,” Eileen Williams says. “We’re very proud to be Americans. My daughter is leaving next month to go fight for our country. My husband has been in the military for 30 years, so it’s a proud day for my family.”

The ADN story about the Pride float was posted by a blogger on Bakersfield.com

One of the nice Bakersfield Christians who participates there had this to say:
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What is a parade for To draw attention to a cause in this case Gays they have had a float for years and just maybe a little fire might draw more attention than floating down the street in a parade

People have been known to set fire on their own property we can’t pre judge now can we we should wait for the whole truth I’m willing to wait for the truth
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The nice Bakersfield Christian thinks it was a publicity stunt. Notice the gratuitous use of spaces between sentences and the total absence of punctuation? That’s a variation of the illiterate writing style Phyllis Burgess has. Instead of space between sentences,

Phyllis….uses….periods…like…this

I’ve engaged Phyllis Burgess on our local newspaper’s web site and, believe me, it’s hard to engage someone who is as illiterate and delusional as she is. I was at that candlelight vigil and my view of her presence there was akin to Fred Phelps showing up at a funeral to condemn the deceased. That’s what the vigil seemed like to me – a funeral. Lots of us were crying and trying to console each other. I felt like we’d all just experienced death and, truly, my heart was broken by Prop 8 and it’s still hasn’t recovered.

Into this profound moment of grief walked Phyllis Burgess and she proceeded to do what Rev. Fred Phelps does at military funerals – He lashes out at the hurting, grieving people gathered. He breaks their hearts again.

That’s what Phyllis Burgess did. Congress enacted a law to keep Fred Phelps away from funerals. They didn’t do so with Phyllis Burgess. She’s still at it. She is the archetype media whore here in the desert and she simply plagues the Palm Springs City Council with a range of idiotic conspiracies.

Supposedly, she struck several people with her styrofoam cross as well. Eyewitness accounts posted to the Desert Sun indicated that she attempted to incite a riot, and supposedly the police considered charging her accordingly, but backed down when the fundie press idolized her. And then there’s her subsequent hate-filled posts on the Desert Sun’s website that appeared under her own name.

Poor thing. Guess it really makes what happen to Matthew Shepherd and all of the thousands and thousands of victims of anti-gay violence look pretty petty in comparison – at least, in the eyes of homophobes it does.