Federal judge orders Iowa to allow Satanic Temple to hold holiday event at state Capitol

DES MOINES, Iowa — A federal judge on Monday ordered Iowa state officials to allow a local Satanic Temple organization to hold a celebratory event in the state Capitol rotunda after years of its request being denied.

The court order is the latest in a back-and-forth between the religious organization and Republican state officials, who intend to appeal the federal judge’s decision, according to Attorney General Brenna Bird’s office. Iowa Republican leaders have banned holiday celebrations at the Satanic Temple of Iowa in recent years, citing the Capitol building’s policies that prohibit gratuitous violence and lewd demonstrations.

In August, the Satanic Temple and the head of its organization in Iowa sued the state in federal court, arguing that current and former Iowa officials discriminated against their religion by repeatedly refusing to permit their holiday event and violating their constitutional rights and state law.

Chief District Judge Stephanie M. Rose said in her order that the Satanic Temple was likely to succeed in its free speech claim and ordered the current director of the Iowa Department of Administrative Services to approve the group’s request for a holiday event within seven days.

Founded in 2013, the Satanic Temple based in Salem, Massachusetts, says it does not believe in Satan, but describes itself as a “non-theistic religious organization” that advocates secularism. It is distinct from the Church of Satan, founded in the 1960s.

The Satanic Temple has not always been barred from participating in the holiday season at the Iowa Statehouse, where a Christmas tree and other religious holiday fixtures are included in the rotunda. The Satanic Temple of Iowa’s exhibit, which depicted Baphomet, a goat-headed figure, was vandalized three years ago, leading to increased scrutiny of the group and its observances. In 2024, their proposal for an exhibition and event was rejected.

The group said its holiday event will include costumes of the European folk character Krampus, as well as Christmas carols, coloring for children and ornament making. In refusing its enforcement, state leaders cited policies aimed at protecting children who may be present in public spaces and highlighted the use of sticks in costumes, which could be used as weapons. Members of the Satanic Temple reject this premise.

The district’s chief judge wrote that the Iowa officials’ arguments likely don’t justify the denials. Rose wrote that concern that the Krampus character might frighten children is “not a permissible basis for excluding speech,” adding that concern about sticks carried as part of the costumes “cannot justify denial of the entire event.” She said the State Department could impose the same conditions it applies to other events at the Satanic Temple event, saying props remain subject to the building’s regular security checks.

Members of the Satanic Temple celebrated the decision, as did the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa, which represents the religious organization.

“Too often, fear or misunderstanding of ‘the other’ is amplified by small government bureaucrats who seek to score cheap political points by portraying unfamiliar beliefs as ‘dangerous,'” Matt Kezhaya, attorney for the Satanic Temple, said in a statement.

“It was always going to be a family event,” he added. “None of this became ‘harmful’ simply because state officials disapproved of the phrase we chose.”

Spokespeople for the Iowa Department of Administrative Services and Gov. Kim Reynolds did not immediately respond to requests for comment.