DES MOINES, Iowa — The Satanic Temple of Iowa has taken issue with the Iowa Department of Administrative Services after an event planned for the Iowa State Capitol rotunda was cancelled.
The event included singing of holiday carols, making ornaments, a costume contest, and a religious ceremony.
According to the Satanic Temple, the state contended that part of the display was obscene, so permission to hold the event was denied.
Matt Kezhaya, the Satanic Temple of Iowa’s attorney, said the state requested information about the content of the celebration. He says it’s more a case of freedom of speech, rather than religious disagreement.
“We have first amendment rights for a reason and our government can’t be picking and choosing what kind of speech it wants to host, they clearly chose,” said Kezhaya. “They said we don’t want this particular speech, you can’t do that.”
The Satanic Temple tried to negotiate having the celebration this coming Saturday, but that didn’t work out.