Tenn. school district pays $15K in legal fees over banning ‘Satan club’ at elementary school
A Tennessee school district will pay nearly $15,000 in legal fees as part of a settlement reached in response to its decision to ban an After School Satan Club from offering its program to elementary school students.
In response to Good News Clubs being allowed at various public elementary schools, The Satanic Temple launched several ASSC chapters to meet at the same campuses.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation announced last week that it had reached a settlement with the Shelby County Board of Education for banning an After School Satan Club chapter.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
The board will pay $14,845 in attorneys’ fees and related expenses, as well as $1 for nominal damages to The Satanic Temple and $196.71 for various fees previously paid by the group tied to rental reservations that were not yet refunded, according to the FFRF.
“We’re glad the district has mutually resolved this case and agreed to treat The Satanic Temple’s club fairly going forward,” said Patrick Elliott, FFRF’s legal director, as quoted in the announcement.
“This settlement should send a message to public schools that the First Amendment applies to all organizations, including minority groups.”
Last year, The Satanic Temple announced plans to launch an After School Satan Club chapter at Chimneyrock Elementary School, in part because the school had a Good News Club that met on campus.
The Salem, Massachusetts-based group claims to be comprised of religious skeptics and nontheists who believe in a strict separation of church and state, and oppose religious expression on government property.
Many local parents, clergy, and school district officials took issue with the club, with Memphis-Shelby County Schools Interim Superintendent Toni Williams explaining at a press conference last December that the group had a right to meet there.
"Like many of you, I have strong beliefs and resonate deeply with the questions and concerns in our community surrounding a club's upcoming rental of school space,” she stated at the time.
“I want to assure you that I do not endorse or support the beliefs of the organization at the center of the recent headlines. I do, however, support the law. As superintendent, I am duty-bound to uphold our board policies, state laws, and the Constitution."
However, at the group’s inaugural meeting in January, they were met with protests, required to pay extra fees and eventually had their rental applications denied.
“The district’s discriminatory and illegal behavior left The Satanic Temple and FFRF with no choice but to sue,” stated FFRF. “The [Satanic] Temple didn’t want special privileges, just to be treated the same as all other organizations renting from the district.”
“The lawsuit asked the court to order the district to approve The Satanic Temple’s reservation requests, treat [The Satanic] Temple fairly, and refund it the discriminatory fees the district forced it to pay.”
