For a second straight year, Iowa officials have denied a Satanic Temple request to hold a holiday event in the Capitol rotunda because they believe it would harm children.
“Today the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) has denied an event request from the Satanic Temple based on the grounds the event was also denied last year,” department spokesperson Tami Wiencek said in a statement.
Last year, a similar event was denied by then-Department of Administrative Services Director Adam Steen after determining the “totality of the event request to include elements that are harmful to minors.”
The Satanic Temple described its proposed 2024 event as a “family-friendly one-day event celebrating the holiday season” with Satanic holiday carols, an all-ages Krampus costume contest, a large Satanic altar and display, an ornament-making station and a Satanic ritual.
Matt Kezhaya, general counsel for The Satanic Temple, criticized the state for unfairly denying the request.
“The heart of our complaint, currently in front of the Iowa Office of Civil Rights, is that in our country, we have a right to free exercise of religion and speech,” Kezhaya said in a statement. “The government is not permitted to deny public services or benefits to people or religious groups because officials disagree with their beliefs or viewpoints.
“Once state officials open up the Capitol to public events, as it has for displays and events around the holidays, they can’t legally exclude The Satanic Temple because of its disfavored or a minority viewpoint.”
Displays that are harmful to minors are prohibited in the Capitol under state rules. That includes obscene materials and gratuitous violence or gore, such as depictions of severe bodily injury or blood, organs or other bodily fluids.
After last year’s denial, the Satanic Temple group accused state officials of discrimination and retaliation in a claim filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa.
That complaint asserts that the Iowa Department of Administrative Services and Gov. Kim Reynolds’ office violated the Iowa Civil Rights Act. The ACLU filed the claim June 10 with the Iowa Office of Civil Rights, a necessary prerequisite to a potential lawsuit.
The complaint also noted past incidents of alleged discrimination against the Satanic Temple, including the high-profile vandalism of its display at the Capitol during the holidays in 2023 and the denial of a proposed multi-day reading of John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” in 2024 under rules that allegedly have not been applied to other religious groups.
A spokesperson for the ACLU did not immediately return a request for comment about the status of that case or the most recent event denial.
GOP governor candidate Adam Steen cheers state’s denial of Satanic Temple event
Steen, who resigned as department director earlier this year to run for governor as a Republican, held a news conference at the Iowa Capitol Monday, Nov. 24, to applaud the decision.
Steen has made his denial of the Satanic Temple event central to his early campaign pitch to voters, telling supporters at a launch event that he is “the guy that stood in front of the Satanists.”
“This shows what happens when leadership stands up in the face of evil,” he said at the news conference.
He called on Republican rival U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra and Democratic candidate Rob Sand to stand with him in applauding the state’s decision.
“The people of Iowa made it very clear they did not want this filth at our statehouse,” he said. “They demand clarity on where other candidates stand in this governor’s race as well.”
Feenstra is seen as the party frontrunner. In addition to Steen, there are three other Republicans currently vying for their party’s nomination: state Rep. Eddie Andrews, businessman Zach Lahn and former state Rep. Brad Sherman.
On the Democratic side, Sand is also seen as the frontrunner but will face a primary challenge from political operative Julie Stauch.
Brianne Pfannenstiel is the chief politics reporter for the Des Moines Register. She writes about campaigns, elections and the Iowa Caucuses. Reach her at bpfann@dmreg.com or 515-284-8244. Follow her on X at @brianneDMR.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa officials deny Satanic Temple request to hold event at Capitol
Reporting by Brianne Pfannenstiel, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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