A New-York-based group of self-declared satanists has raised thousands of dollars to erect a devil's statue - complete with wings and a horned goat's head - in front of the Oklahoma legislature.
The project, says the Satanic Temple, is intended to claim the right of religious expression.
"As an 'homage' to Satan, the purpose of the monument is to complement and contrast the Ten Commandments monument that already resides on the North side of the building," the group said on its website.
The Ten Commandments refers to the Biblical text received by Moses outlining the moral code on which Judaism and Christianity are built, including "thou shalt not kill".
Paul Wesselhoft, a representative in the Oklahoma legislature, told Oklahoma broadcaster KFOR-TV that he did not think the monument to Satan would be approved by the Capitol's Preservation Committee.
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"I think they're trying to get our goat and I'm not going to let them do that," he told the broadcaster.
But he said the project would not be disqualified by the satanist angle as much as the fact that it has "no historical significance for the state of Oklahoma".
He said the Ten Commandments statue was justified because it was a set of laws, and "we are lawmakers".
