Threats to Students + Staff Prompt High School’s ‘Satanic Club’ to Change Name
The 'Satanic Club of Carmel' — an Indiana high school club which made headlines over perceived controversy last month — has been forced to end and regroup under a new name as they no longer feel they can provide a "safe" space for its participants as students and staff received threats, among other issues.
The mere existence of the club drew the ire of many, who felt it was entirely inappropriate for the Satanic Club to organize within the public high school's walls. Now, the club has essentially been bullied out of their Constitutionally-protected right to freedom of religion. It appears, to borrow the title of Sodom's 1987 album, 'persecution mania' was in full effect as "hateful messages" and "threats" were lobbed in the direction of both child-age students and the school's staff members, which generated safety concerns.
The Satanic Club of Carmel, which was formed for a multitude of reasons, one being "a social experiment to investigate the Constitutional right of 'separation of church and state," which echoes a similar aim of the Satanic Temple, which consistently instigates legal challenges surrounding religious inequality and perceived instances of government entities asserting unlawful religious bias and exclusion.
Promoting community goodwill was another one of the Satanic Club's initiatives, such as the Oct. 30 'Park and Bark — Trunk or Treating for Dogs' event where 15 percent of the night's proceeds benefitted the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
Despite the harassment, the club said, "We appreciate the support from those that understood our intent, and we hope to encourage others to be inclusive."
The club's most recent statement about its dissolution and eventual renaming, reads, in full, as follows:
Due to recent events, the Satanic Club of Carmel will end and assume a new name. We started this group as a social experiment to investigate the constitutional right of 'separation of church and state' and provide a safe space for students of all identities to meet and discuss. Because we have received hateful messages, threats towards our students and staff, as well as a disruption to our school environment from outside sources, we no longer feel we can provide a 'safe' space. We appreciate the support from those that understood our intent, and we hope to encourage others to be inclusive.