Unfollow: A Memoir of Loving and Leaving Extremism

At the age of five, Megan Phelps-Roper carried signs protesting homosexuality and other alleged vices alongside fellow members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas. As she grew, she watched the church—an enterprise consisting almost entirely of her immediate relatives—become notorious for picketing soldiers’ funerals and celebrating death and tragedy, causing the BBC to label the Phelpses “the most hated family in America.” For Megan, however, Westboro was a source of comfort and inspiration. She admired the congregation’s familial warmth and religious zeal. And as the church’s Twitter spokesperson, she mastered its messaging—skillfully expounding upon pop culture, current events, and all the reasons “God Hates Your Feelings.” But Megan’s Twitter evangelizing triggered a remarkable transformation. As she jousted with online critics, observed church members mistreating one another, and tried to make sense of her own evolving beliefs and desires, she started to question her mission.Soon, she was exchanging messages with a man who would help change her life.

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