The Satanic Temple has officially endorsed the Keeping All Students Safe Act, federal legislation that would prohibit the use of seclusion and dangerous restraint practices on students in federally funded schools and require the adoption of evidence-based behavioral supports.
This endorsement reflects The Satanic Temple’s (TST) commitment to protecting the civil rights of student TST members, as well as any student who shares TST’s sincerely held religious beliefs in bodily autonomy. TST’s Protect Children Project (PCP) has long worked to address abuses in public schools that violate these beliefs, including corporal punishment, solitary confinement, physical restraint, and bathroom restrictions, when school officials carry out such actions.
The Satanic Temple asserts that these practices violate the civil rights and religious liberty of student TST members. By asserting a religious exemption consistent with TST’s beliefs, students and families have a legal basis to demand protection from these forms of mistreatment in public schools. The Protect Children Project supports students in asserting their rights by distributing Student Rights Cards in English and Spanish, which formally notify schools of their religious exemption from such mistreatment.
The Keeping All Students Safe Act supports PCP’s efforts by establishing national standards requiring federally funded schools to use evidence-based behavioral interventions instead of restraints or seclusion. This approach reduces the burden on students and families to assert religious exemptions to avoid harmful practices at school.
Supporters who wish to take action can use TST’s letter-generation tool to contact their elected officials and urge them to support this important legislation.
