The Satanic Temple has officially declared May 15th as “Protect Children Day” in an effort to eradicate corporal punishment and the use of isolation rooms across the country.
In a press release obtained by The Daily Caller, the group of epicurean lovers of the Prince of Darkness officially announced its Protect Children Project. The campaign seeks to persuade students to register at the Satanic Temple website so that Satanic leaders can inform school boards that the students oppose the use of corporal punishment, physical restraints and isolation rooms.
The homepage of the Satanic Temple website includes a five-pointed star and a goat-like Satan symbol. The background color is a sort of blood-spattered, obscure-KISS-album red.
The press release from the New York City-based group also notes figures from the Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education which show that school officials used corporal punishment on more than 220,000 students and physically restrained 39,000 more in a recent school year.
“One of the fundamental tenets of The Satanic Temple is personal sovereignty and the inviolability of one’s body and mind,” said Temple spokeswoman Lucien Greaves. “Hitting a child or placing them in solitary confinement goes entirely against our beliefs.”
Greaves calls views such punishment as a civil rights violation.
“The physical and psychological abuse of children is completely immoral. It is disturbing that no other religious organization has publicly expressed this sentiment and we sincerely hope our colleagues of other faiths will come forth to protect children from these kinds of violence and support our initiative,” Greaves proclaimed.
“If students report to us that they have notified their principal of their religious views and they are physically or psychological abused despite that, it is our intention to intervene,” she added.
The Satanic Temple also refers to studies linking corporal punishment to lower IQ, depression, early heart attacks and a connection to obesity and addiction.
Students and parents can also download the same letter the Satanic Temple plans to send on their behalf if they want to deliver it personally to school principals.
In addition to the letter, the Satanic Temple is also making a fact sheet on corporal punishment available. There’s a Satanic-themed activity book, too.
“We want children to know that they are permitted to pray to Satan in school and that they can even share their religious beliefs with others in accordance with certain guidelines,” Greaves explained.
The Temple notes that students do not need to be members of the Satanic Temple to take advantage of its offer. Also, “registration does not make you a member of the Temple.”
The last time the Satanic Temple made the news was when the group announced plans to erect a 7-foot goat-headed Baphomet statue at the Oklahoma state Capitol. (RELATED: Satanic Temple plans monument at Oklahoma state Capitol)
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