Satanic club’s plan to start chapter at elementary school draws outrage in Tennessee
The After School Satan Club is coming to a Tennessee elementary school, with some parents saying they’re blindsided and threatening to take their kids out of school.
Administrators of the Memphis school district say they have no choice but to allow the club to form.
The Satanic Temple describes itself as a non-theistic religion whose mission is to “encourage benevolence and empathy and reject tyrannical authority.”
The Massachusetts-based organization has chapters of its after school club in multiple other states, but its first club in the state of Tennessee is planned at Chimneyrock Elementary School in Cordova.
‘Can we transfer our children’
The school district sent an email to families about the club at 10:45 a.m. Dec. 12, hours after the Satanic Temple shared that it was starting its chapter.
The announcement prompted swift backlash from community members.
Many comments were directed at Memphis-Shelby County school officials, who held a forum to explain the situation and field questions.
“Myself as a (Chimneyrock) parent am hurt,” one person wrote. She said she loves the school but “unfortunately we will have to leave. My wish is the district stands up and does the right thing.”
Nonprofit organizations such as The Satanic Temple are allowed rent space in the building after hours if space is available, Memphis-Shelby County Schools said.
“Can we transfer our children before the transfer application opens?” one parent asked.
Some wondered why the organization chose Chimneyrock as their first club location in Tennessee, given the age of elementary school children.
Cathryn Scout, the chief of communications, said the organization selected Chimneyrock to hold meetings, which it has a right to do.
“I want to know what is the strategy on ground to prevent this club from luring our kids to participate against their will?” one parent asked. “Indeed parents may decide not to give their permission for their kids to participate but once their best friends in school are part of the club, the influence on the kids will be undeniable!”
The club is opt-in, so students must have a signed permission slip from a parent or guardian to participate.
‘Our hands are pretty tied’
Memphis-Shelby County Schools said in a statement that the district is compelled by the First Amendment to offer The Satanic Temple event space if it requests it.
The law “guarantees equal access to all non-profit organizations seeking to use our facilities outside of school hours, such as the Christian-based Good News Club, or the civics-focused (Boy) Scouts,” the school district said.
The group, which says it “supports children to think for themselves,” has received some support.
“Thank you for making opportunities available equally and following the laws,” one person said in response to the school district’s statement on their obligation to host the club. “With a student in MSCS & being an MSCS employee, I am grateful to know that our school district affords equal opportunities to all.”
Despite the legal obligation of the school, many parents were still upset by the decision and asked if the club’s meeting time could be pushed until students had left campus and if security would be tighter.
Some asked if the club could avoid meeting altogether.
The answer appears to be no.
The Satanic Temple reached a settlement with a Pennsylvania school district in November, allowing the organization to hold meetings on campus after a school barred the organization from using space there, the Associated Press reported.
“Our hands are pretty tied, the law is the law,” Memphis-Shelby County school board representative Mauricio Calvo said.
The club is slated to begin holding meetings in the school’s library in January.
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