On a Saturday in late August a loose group of 12 or 13 people walked across the median on Woodward Avenue, past protesters holding signs like "There's no price for a baby's heart", and towards the City of Ferndale's Planned Parenthood clinic.

A man wearing a cassock and holding a Bible led the group as they moved briskly onto the sidewalk, where protestors were offering fliers. Their hands were already full with several gallons of milk, some rope, a flag, and a sign. Only the cameraman took one.

As they began to set up, a man armed with a pistol and claiming to be the Chief of Police told the group to move on. Ignoring him, the members of Detroit's chapter of the Satanic Temple unfurled an American flag with an illustration of Satan in the middle, and began pouring the milk on two women who had bound their own hands as protesters recited the Lord's Prayer. Behind them, another woman held up a sign that read "America is not a theocracy. End forced motherhood."

Barely a year old, the Detroit chapter of the Satanic Temple has over 400 members and is "growing daily" according to its director, Jex Blackmore, who also serves on its nationwide Executive Ministry.

The chapter's act of political theatre in Ferndale—a response to the "day of protest" organized by various pro-life groups—would get it into the news for the second time this summer.