On Halloween morning, The Satanic Temple’s (TST) flag rose above Somersworth’s Ten Commandments monument near City Hall. The display presented a striking visual of religious pluralism on government property. Somersworth resident Sorin Malcontent, a TST member and volunteer with TST’s Satanic Representation Campaign, applied under the city’s Flag Policy, which invited groups promoting benevolence, tolerance, and diversity to request temporary use of the flagpole. The request was approved, and TST’s flag flew above the Ten Commandments monument for twenty-four hours.
A small but meaningful ceremony marked the occasion. Malcontent delivered an invocation before members of TST’s New Hampshire and Vermont congregation and State Representative Billie Butler. For a moment, Somersworth’s public forum reflected the diversity its Flag Policy appeared to celebrate. Five days later, the city moved to close that forum.
On November 5, Somersworth Mayor Matt Gerding proposed an amendment to the city’s Flag Policy. The revised policy, since approved by the City Council, designates flag displays as government speech and ends public access to the flagpole. The change followed no controversy, public outcry, media coverage, or procedural problem. It followed a single, quiet, and lawful display by a federally recognized religious organization.
Somersworth’s decision is lawful yet revealing. It mirrors a broader trend in which governments withdraw from pluralism when its demands become real. In Shurtleff v. Boston, the Supreme Court held that once a city opens a public forum, it must treat religious viewpoints equally. After that ruling, Boston shut down its flag program rather than allow The Satanic Temple’s flag to fly, prompting ongoing litigation. Somersworth followed the same pattern, closing its forum after a single Satanic display. The fleeting presence of The Satanic Temple’s flag exposed how quickly civic commitments to pluralism can erode when tested in practice.
November 13, 2025
Photo Credit: Failed Imagineer of TST NH/VT
Video Credit: Minister Vivian Hess-Mahan Co-Congregation Leader of TST NH/VT
