The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Iowa has teamed up with The Satanic Temple (TST) in a new federal lawsuit against state officials, alleging they unconstitutionally blocked a proposed ‘family-friendly’ winter holiday event at the Iowa Capitol rotunda.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday, targets Iowa Department of Administrative Services (DAS) Director Mark Campbell and forum Director Adam Steen, accusing them of violating TST’s rights to free speech, religious exercise, and nondiscrimination, according to ABC 4.
In a press release, the ACLU of Iowa said it filed the lawsuit on behalf of TST to stop state officials from ‘unconstitutionally violating TST’s rights to free speech, religious exercise, and nondiscrimination.’ The release says the denial was based on the group’s request to hold an event ‘on the same basis as other religious and civic groups.’
The proposed event would have included Christmas carols, crafts, and a Krampus costume contest, as reported by KCRG. Krampus, according to Britannica, is a half-goat, half-demon figure from central European folklore who punishes misbehaving children at Christmastime and is often depicted as the devilish companion of St. Nicholas.
Matt Kezhaya, general counsel for The Satanic Temple, claimed that state officials raised concerns about the costume contest, alleging they misunderstood its nature. ‘The state said that we were going to beat children with sticks because we were going to have a costume contest which involved people holding sticks,’ Kezhaya said. He added that the local TST Iowa congregation ‘was very emphatic that wasn’t going to happen,’ but officials ‘just would not budge from that position.’
The lawsuit comes after a controversial December 2023 incident in which The Satanic Temple set up a holiday display honoring the occult figure Baphomet inside the Iowa Statehouse. That display sparked outrage among some Christians, and a U.S. Navy veteran, Michael Cassidy, was later charged with a hate crime after admitting to beheading the statue. Cassidy, who turned himself in, said he acted to ‘awaken Christians to the anti-Christian acts promoted by our government’ and argued that the founders would not have considered government sanction of Satanic altars acceptable under the First Amendment.
The ACLU of Iowa’s involvement in this case follows its recent participation in another religious liberty dispute—joining a legal fight to block statues of Catholic saints on public property in Massachusetts. The Satanic Temple has also been publicly supportive of abortion rights, with previous reporting noting its role in opening abortion clinics.
The lawsuit raises questions about how state officials balance religious expression and public forum access, particularly when the group seeking access is controversial. TST maintains that its proposed event was designed to be inclusive and family-friendly, while state officials have not yet publicly detailed their reasons for the repeated denials.
As the legal challenge moves forward, both sides will likely argue over the scope of First Amendment protections and whether the state’s actions constituted viewpoint discrimination. The outcome could set a precedent for how similar requests are handled in Iowa and beyond.
Source: www.breitbart.com — https://www.breitbart.com/faith/2026/08/15/video-satanic-temple-and-left-wing-aclu-sue-over-rejection-of-family-friendly-holiday-event-at-iowa-capitol/