TOPEKA — A group of about 30 Satanist protesters shouted “Hail Satan” on the front steps of the Kansas Statehouse while counter-protesters crowded barricades set up by law enforcement, singing songs and shouting gospel.
“From this point on, you can still make your way to heaven,” Topeka resident Daniel Casteel yelled in his megaphone. “You just have to accept it. … Hell is not fun. The devil will give you nothing more — you’ll be worshiping him in hell. Remember that.”
The Satanic Grotto held a Black Mass on March 28 outside the Capitol, sparking public outcry from religious residents and the Catholic Church.
After the Grotto’s president, Michael Stewart, released an announcement of the event via Facebook, a petition titled “Oppose the Satanic Black Mass Scheduled to Take Place in the Kansas Capitol Building!” gathered over 23,000 signatures.
According to the petition, “As faithful Catholics, it is our moral obligation to fight against this demonic sacrilege. Please use this short, secure form to add your name to this petition and demand Governor Laura Kelly immediately cancel the Black Mass!”
A press release detailing Gov. Kelly’s response to the Black Mass was issued March 12.
“I have been informed about concerns regarding an event at the Statehouse on March 28, and I share those concerns,” it said. “There are more constructive ways to protest and express disagreements without insulting or denigrating sacred religious symbols. … all events planned for March 28 will be moved outdoors to the grounds surrounding the Statehouse. Again, no protests will be allowed inside the Statehouse on March 28.”
“You will have to have us arrested to stop us from practicing our free speech and religious rights,” The Satanic Grotto responded in a Facebook post. “Shame on you, Gov. Kelly.”
Hundreds of Catholics held a ceremony of reparation at the south steps of the Capitol in counter-protest, including Logan Church, the national political director for the advocacy group CatholicVote.
“A big part of what we do is encouraging Catholics to have their voice heard in the public square, and so this was the perfect opportunity to do that here,” Church said. “We have a huge following in Kansas, so we decided that it was time to get everyone together and protest this horrible, horrible event today.”
One anonymous protester was observed unplugging the speakers of the Catholic Church during its ceremony. Audio was restored shortly after.
Jocelyn Frazee, a member of The Satanic Grotto, said negative experiences with Christians makes her untrusting of their message.
“I’m here to do my Black Mass so I can relieve my feelings of all this Christian hate that I’m experiencing right now — here especially,” Frazee said. “I struggled with my own trauma with Christianity, be it when I was trying to practice it or, you know, it’s always interrupted in my life, I guess you could say. It’s always tried to control things I don’t even believe in.”
Protester William Heinen said while he isn’t a Satanist, he doesn’t agree with the limits that were placed on The Satanic Grotto.
“… I believe in freedom of religion,” Heinen said. “I’m a pagan, and I don’t like the way we are turning into a theocracy in America — full of Christian nationalists who don’t seem to understand what their Jewish God believed in. I just wanted to show my support and be a part of the counter movement.”
Stewart attempted to move the Black Mass ritual inside the Statehouse at the rotunda, where 21-year-old Marcus Schroeder tried to grab a paper Stewart was holding while chanting a satanic verse. In response, Stewart struck Schroeder in the face and was wrestled to the floor by Kansas Highway Patrol officers.
A total of four arrests were made, including Stewart and Schroeder. Grotto members 32-year-old Frazee and 50-year-old Sean Andrews were also arrested for unlawful assembly.
Stewart’s wife, Maenad Bee, organized a GoFundMe page dedicated to raising funds to help pay off impending legal fees.
A counter-protester using the pseudonym “Templar,” dressed in a mixture of tactical equipment and religious iconography, remained posted at a street corner near the Capitol. He knelt in prayer without moving for the entirety of the event.
The Templar said his intention was to promote “compassion, kindness, [and] peaceful, free assembly.” In response to the violence against Satanists by religious counter-protesters, he said he was praying for the protection of all people present.
“I’m just here for protection, for protecting everybody, you know,” he said. “So that’s what we do, is we protect the flock. And sometimes the flock is black sheeps, so sometimes we just pray for them, we corral them, we bring them in with love. And for those that fight back, that’s just part of the flock. You get the bad ones with the good ones.”
William Davis, who said Friday was his final day interning for Sen. Tori Marie Blew, was “shocked” by how much support the Christian protesters had.
“I honestly thought there would be more support for the Satanists,” Davis said. “But being in Kansas, I should have assumed that the Christians would beat it out. I think it’s really disappointing because the Satanists are really out here trying to show that the laws [are] leaning one way … They have the same rights just as everyone else, and the showing today really came out and showed them, it’s not.”
He said Senate President Ty Masterson (Rep.), Senate Majority Leader Chase Blasi (Rep.), Senate Minority Leader Dinah Sykes (Dem.) and Senate Agenda Chair Marci Francisco (Dem.) all declined to address the crowds.
Davis said the decision to restrict the Grotto from holding a ritual in the Statehouse was inconsistent and showed favoritism toward Christianity.
“It is very frustrating, because every day before the Senate votes or before any Senate hearings, they always pray, and they always invite God into the Senate hearing to help lead the senators in the right direction and make them help them make the right choices,” Davis said. “Yet they’re not allowing people of other religions to have that same grace.”
The counter-protest included representation from across the state. Manhattan pastor Jon Hastings said Topeka wasn’t a long way to travel to express what he believes in.
“We’ve got a smaller group chat that we post it on, saying that if anybody wants to come, they can come,” Hastings said. “It’s something like this that throws into stark reality that there are different worldviews that are radically opposed to each other. In a world that wants to be egalitarian, who want to get along, that’s going to be difficult as long as people have massively different world views. And you can just see that in a powerful display.”
