Uvalde Foundation to protest After School Satan Club in Memphis
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A non-profit organization in Texas says it’s planning to protest after the Satanic Temple announced plans to host its After School Satan Club at a Memphis elementary school.
The Uvalde Foundation for Kids, created after 19 children and two teachers were killed in a shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, said in a press release Wednesday that students in Memphis and multiple states, including California, Texas, and Kansas, will join a national hunger strike protest in an effort to stop the Satanic Temple from installing the after-school program.
On December 12, the Satanic Temple announced plans to host the After School Satan Club at Chimneyrock Elementary School in Cordova beginning Jan. 10. The program is set to run through the spring semester.
The Satanic Temple to launch ‘After School Satan Club’ at Memphis elementary school
The foundation says protests at Chimneyrock Elementary will take place on January 3 and January 10 at 9 a.m.
It’s the organization’s fifth active club in the nation. Campaign Director June Everett said the club at Chimneyrock started after she was contacted by parents expressing interest.
The next day, officials with Memphis-Shelby County Schools addressed the after-school program. Interim Superintendent Toni Williams said she does not support their beliefs but is “duty-bound to uphold school board policy, state laws, and the constitution.”
Memphis school officials address ‘After School Satan Club’
The school system said all non-profit organizations seeking to use facilities after school hours are guaranteed equal access. Students must have signed parents’ permission to participate in the After School Satan Club’s activities.
Other school officials and faith leaders expressed their disapproval of the club.
“Satan has no room in this district,” said MSCS school board chair Althea Greene, who is also a pastor.
In a statement posted on its website, the Uvalde Foundation for Kids expressed concerns about how the club’s presence at the school will affect the safety of students.
“While the foundation does not agree with the values and teachings of the Satanic Temple nor its nationwide clubs in school campuses & while we question the influence it potentially has on our nation’s students – We are primarily concerned with the club’s presence at the school being a potential threat to student safety; by creating conflicts between students, community members & outside groups; disrupting students and the school community and potentially placing students in harms way.”
They also said foundation officials have contacted the Satanic Temple and asked them to find another place to hold their club.
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