According to a copy of the request, tweeted by The Satanic Temple, the group asked Boston to wave the flag for “Satanic Thanksgiving Week” on July 23-29. The Satanic Temple said his request was in response to a recent decision.
CNN asked The Satanic Temple for comment, but did not respond immediately.
A spokesman for the Boston mayor’s office, Michelle Wu, said the office was “carefully reviewing the court’s decision and recognizing the city’s authority to run such programs”, adding: “As we consider the next steps, we will ensure future Boston programs are in accordance with this Decision. “
Boston, according to the city’s website, no longer accepts applications for the October 19, 2021 flag-raising.
The pressure comes after the nation’s supreme court unanimously ruled Monday that Boston violated the rights of the First Amendment group, which is trying to briefly raise a Christian flag on top of a city flag outside the town hall as part of a city program celebrating the greater Boston community.
The court said the display of the flag was a public forum, and because many other groups were allowed to raise their flags in honor of the Boston community, the city could not discriminate on the basis of the religious group’s views without violating the constitution.
“We conclude that, in general, Boston has not made raising and waving flags of private groups a form of government speech,” wrote Judge Stephen Brier.
The Satanic Temple, according to his Twitter account, was founded in 2013 and is the only federally recognized international (non-theistic) religious Satanist organization.
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