Satanic Temple sues Tennessee school board for discrimination over after school club

The Satanic Temple and an anti-religion watchdog have filed a lawsuit against a Tennessee school board for alleged discrimination.

In November 2023, the atheistic group known as the Satanic Temple unsuccessfully tried to start an After School Satan Club at Chimneyrock Elementary School in the Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) district.

The group claimed it was charged extra fees not levied against the district’s Christian Good News Club to rent space from the district.

The Satanic organization has a history of targeting schools with Christian clubs by attempting to start Satan clubs, and then threating legal action when rejected.

On March 20, the Freedom From Religion Foundation filed a lawsuit alleging the district violated the First Amendment and sought a court order requiring the district to host the Satan Club. 

FFRF is an anti-religion watchdog founded in 1978 by abortion activist Anne Nicol Gaylor, who authored the book “Abortion is a Blessing.” 

“MSCS has attempted to thwart the Satanic Temple at every turn in order to constructively block and deter the ASSC from meeting at Chimneyrock Elementary,” the lawsuit alleged. “Further, MSCS’s unconstitutional behavior has chilled the Satanic Temple’s speech and substantially burdened its ability to exercise its religiously motivated practice of offering inclusive, welcoming religious clubs at public schools.” 

However, the MSCS community felt the Satanic Temple was trying to use elementary school children to push a “political agenda.” 

“Satan has no room in this district,” quipped Bishop Althea Greene, chair of the Shelby County Board of Education. 

“Today we stand here strong and united as we push our collective support for Memphis Shelby County schools, students, teachers, and this entire community. We know that cancel culture exists, and we refuse to become victims to agendas driven by distractions. Here’s something to cancel: we cancel the agenda of the enemy.” 

The Satanic Temple website claims the group doesn’t endorse belief in the existence of Satan or the “supernatural,” but rather uses Satan as a “symbol of the Eternal Rebel in opposition to arbitrary authority.” 

The Satanic Temple previously filed suit against the Saucon Valley School District in Pennsylvania. A federal court forced Saucon Valley to pay $200,000 in legal fees and grant the Satan group the same access to school facilities as religious student organizations are given.