TL;DR - #TheSatanicTemple’s federal lawsuit against four former members is ongoing
They can’t be allowed to use their power to intimidate others, but in order to match their wealth & resources, we need your help
https://gofundme.com/f/legal-fund-for-victims-of-satanic-temple1
Tweets:
https://twitter.com/deus_ex_lasagna/status/1401792170433028098
ThreadReader version:
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1401792170433028098.html
Medium:
https://medium.com/@queersatanic/satanic-temple-torments-its-queer-satanic-heretics-d4cbded192ba
“#TheSatanicTemple, an allegedly progressive religion that claims to fight religious overreach, is secretly spending tens of thousands in litigation to target former members after TST's owners were criticized on FB for a pattern of failing to live up to their own professed tenets”
The Satanic Temple is suing four former members in federal court over criticism of them made on a Facebook page.
We got the case dismissed once already, but it's a SLAPP* suit so they've re-filed because the whole point is to waste our money defending against silly arguments.
*Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation
https://www.socialactuality.com/post/schism-the-satanic-temple-a-lawsuit-and-the-necessity-of-clear-minded-settlement
Exploring the details of a lawsuit filed by the Satanic Temple against four former members. The details of the litigation and legitimacy (or lack thereof) of the claims are discussed. Additionally, tertiary matters such as the importance of reaching settlement when appropriate and the morality of certain types of protest actions are covered.
FAQs
Question: Wait, why is the Satanic Temple suing you?
Answers:
A little more detailed: https://queersatanic.tumblr.com/post/651836199072333824/hey-i-know-you-have-probably-mentioned-this-on
More detailed, more about TST also suing Newsweek for writing about all this, plus our invoices:
https://queersatanic.com/the-costs-of-defending-yourself-from-the-satanic-temple/
Q: Can I see all the court documents from this case for myself?
A. Absolutely.
1. PACER's Western District of Washington, 2:20-cv-00509: https://pacer.uscourts.gov
2. CourtListener docket: https://courtlistener.com/docket/17042463/united-federation-of-churches-llc-v-johnson/
3: The wiki:
https://the.satanic.wiki/index.php?title=United_Federation_of_Churches_LLC_v._Johnson_et_al
Q: At least this is the only questionable thing The Satanic Temple is up to, right?
A: Oh, you sweet summer child.
https://queersatanic.com/why-you-havent-left-the-satanic-temple/
https://queersatanic.com/this-invoice-reveals-the-inner-workings-of-the-satanic-temples-finances/
When it comes to The Satanic Temple, there's always more and it's always worse.
For a long time, it’s been known that The Satanic Temple’s co-owner Lucien Greaves once went on an antisemitic rant about how the Nazis ruined the word antisemitism for everyone and that it was “OK to hate Jews” so long as you were hating observant Jews.
We won the lawsuit at federal district court in January 2023 with a second full dismissal of TST’s SLAPP suit against us.
#TheSatanicTemple is currently appealing their latest loss to us.
More here:
https://kolektiva.social/@QueerSatanic/109746821289411499
Attached: 1 image As they have threatened in the past, The Satanic Temple is now *officially* stating it plans to appeal its multiple losses in their case against us to the Ninth Circuit https://courtlistener.com/docket/17042463/50/united-federation-of-churches-llc-v-johnson/ Well, not exactly a surprise that #TheSatanicTemple thinks so little of their supporters' money
Q.
Wait, why is The Satanic Temple (still) suing you?
A.
Because The Satanic Temple is an abusive religious organization owned by two thin-skinned men who use their organization’s collective wealth and resources to intimidate and punish critics.
https://queersatanic.com/wait-why-is-the-satanic-temple-still-suing-you/
Wait, why is #TheSatanicTemple (still) suing you?
GOOD NEWS EVERYONE (maybe)
We have a voluntary dismissal of what remained of The Satanic Temple's federal court case against us.
United Federation of Churches LLC v. Johnson
Notice of Voluntary Dismissal (case) — Document No. 58
District Court, W.D. Washington
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17042463/58/united-federation-of-churches-llc-v-johnson/
So we may finally get to take this part out of the ol' standby:
"Moreover, we’re still being sued by The Satanic Temple in f̷e̷d̷e̷r̷a̷l̷ ̷c̷o̷u̷r̷t̷ ̷a̷n̷d̷ ̷n̷o̷w̷ King County Superior Court."
If you would like to help us cover our ongoing legal expenses as they are about to reach into a fourth year, you have some options here:
-https://www.gofundme.com/f/legal-fund-for-victims-of-satanic-temple1
-https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/queersatanic
-https://cash.app/$queersatanic
-https://www.patreon.com/QueerSatanic
-https://www.redbubble.com/people/queersatanic/shop
If you need a refresher on how we got here, including the #NinthCircuit opening the door for TST to have another crack at its #defamation claims:
https://queersatanic.com/ninth-circuit-gives-satanic-temples-slapp-suit-mixed-response/
If you're wondering, "Wait, why is The Satanic Temple (still) suing you?" or want to help other people with questions understand what's going on:
https://queersatanic.com/wait-why-is-the-satanic-temple-still-suing-you/
#TheSatanicTemple is also still suing Newsweek and its reporter (but maybe not her anymore!) for writing about us. In addition, TST is now suing a #TikToker in #Texas for talking about our case.
The #Newsweek case continues to progress, the #TikTok creator not so much:
https://queersatanic.com/2023-was-a-very-bad-year-for-the-satanic-temple-in-court/
If we're very lucky, The #SatanicTemple will finally take its L and use this as an opportunity to close out its state case, too.
However, more likely is #TST will add in the defamation to the currently stayed case sitting in #KingCounty Superior court to consolidate everything there, and we will have to beat them there instead, the devil willing.
If you're still a member or know people who are, see if you can get TST's owners to justify using other people's money to keep a failing #SLAPP action going four years after they started it and lost every step along the way.
How much is enough?
Queer Satanic is dead; long live Queer Satanic
It’s official and it’s final: We won.
If The Satanic Temple were going to appeal its loss against the defendants it called “Queer Satanic”, the notice of appeal was due in King County Superior Court by 4:30 p.m. today. We have received no electronic notice of a filing, so we are very pleased to say that the case is finally concluded.
https://queersatanic.com/queer-satanic-is-dead-long-live-queer-satanic/
The nontheistic religious organization used its for-profit corporation “United Federation of Churches LLC d/b/a ‘The Satanic Temple’ ” to sue four former members of its Washington State chapter from April 2020 till September 2024. They sued us in federal court, the Ninth Circuit Court, dragged us into giving depositions for the Southern District of New York, and sued us in King County Superior Court, but TST has lost everywhere it went. The claims that we always maintained were frivolous and without merit have been found so in every court TST made those claims by every judge who has looked at them. Now, a month after TST’s most recent loss, the deadline for the Temple’s appeal has come and gone, and so we’re done.
Years ago in dark times where it seemed like there would be no end to this and The Satanic Temple and its owners would never stop being vexatious litigants against us, we wrote the bottom section (in the link). The website’s administrator was supposed to add some sort of explainer and then publish it, keeping the site up and running for as long as that was feasible for them since we would be in no position to be involved anymore.
What it talks about has not come to pass — but in other ways, it certainly has. This was not sustainable indefinitely. The machine was breaking down for a long time, grinding metal on metal without pause, but it can be turned off now. “Non serviam” — until further notice, this machine is out of service.
Certainly, there is still research to be done and still other articles to be written about The Satanic Temple, its owners, and how they actually operate in contrast to how they present themselves. But to be done by us? That’s less clear.
We don’t plan to completely disappear, and there is still some tidying up to do, but mostly, there’s some much needed rest. Just as likely, there will be other fights that now we can focus on, given the way the world is going. In either case, this sabbatical may be indefinite.
“Queer Satanic” was never an organization, never a hierarchy, only a vibe. We were Heretical Satanists, heretics of heretics, so in the midst of defending ourselves from a lawsuit, we tried to put forward positive ideas and examples about what a more useful Satanism might look like; we tried to show a radical and rebellious way of approaching and acting in the world beyond just aesthetics of painting it black or upside-down Christianity slapped on bog-standard reactionary and liberal politics.
We didn’t do enough of it, and there is still so much more to be done.
For now at least, we leave you to it.
#QueerSatanic #TheSatanicTemple #SatanicTemple #Satanism #Lawsuits #SLAPP #CourtVictory
It's official and it's final: We won. If The Satanic Temple were going to appeal its loss against the former members it called "Queer Satanic", the notice of appeal was due in King County Superior Court by 4:30 p.m. today. We have received no electronic notice of a filing, so we are very pleased to say that the case is finally concluded.
All the best for y'all!
Queer Satanic
☆ ANARCORAXA ☆
undead enby of the apocalypse
Dr Suzanne she/her