The Satanic Temple is threatening to sue the state of Mississippi if the plan to include the words “In God We Trust” on the new state flag goes ahead.
The nontheistic religious organisation penned a letter to Attorney General Lynn Fitch, citing “constitutional concerns regarding the First Amendment” after it was revealed that the state flag would be updated following racial reckonings around the globe.
The state previous Mississipi state flag had long been a source of controversy due to its resemblance to the Confederate battle flag, which has racist connotations and is often used by white supremacy groups.
While the Satanic Temple had no issue with refreshing the outdated flag, they were concerned about the image containing religious wording, saying it excludes those who don’t share their Christian views.
“While the Satanic Temple supports the removal of the Confederate flag, removing one divisive symbol of exclusion only to replace it with a divisive phrase of exclusion does not eliminate exclusion, but rather moves it from one group to a collection of others,” states the letter sent to Fitch.
The group explained that if the phrase “In Satan We Trust” were to be emblazoned on the state flag, Christians would be similarly “put off”.
“If you can imagine that, then you might imagine how atheists, Satanists, and other people of nontheistic faiths could feel excluded by the addition of ‘In God We Trust’ to the state flag,” states the letter.
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“We can not allow opportunistic politicians to insist on collapsing the wall of separation between Church and State as a consolation for the removal of Confederate iconography,” TST spokesperson, Lucien Greaves, stated. “They are not being given a choice of whom they can marginalise next.”
If you recognise the name Lucien Greaves, you may have already watched the documentary Hail Satan? which aimed to observe the often misunderstood religion, explaining that while traditionally Satanic imagery is used throughout their religion, it’s not supported by any actual belief in Satan, but rather used as a tool to remind others of the importance of separating church and state within the US.
“The Satanic Temple is fully dedicated to preserving Religious Liberty, and that includes the rights of non-believers and believers of alternative faiths to live free of government coercion or sanction related to their personal religious opinions,” Greaves said. “To us, this is no small matter.”
Designs for the new state flag will be presented to legislators by September 14th, then voters will decide in November on which design will represent Mississippi.
