Its been 80 years or so since the Scopes Monkey Trial was litigated in Dayton, Tennessee, but the controversy over teaching evolution in classrooms is still raging. Now, there’s word of a new trial that may determine how evolution is taught throughout the United States.
A landmark legal trial begins on Monday that could determine how the theory of evolution – one of the basic tenets of modern science – is taught in US schools.In the town of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, 11 parents of children who already attend the nearby Dover High school or who will in future, together with the American Civil Liberties Union, are suing the Dover Area School District for voting in new rules that will encourage children to consider alternatives to evolution such as ?intelligent design? (ID).
The court?s verdict will only bind schools within the Dover district, but could influence how schools teach evolution across the country, says Witold Walczak, a lawyer for the ACLU of Pennsylvania based in Pittsburgh, who will represent the parents.
My opinion on this controversy is pretty straightforward: teach science in science classrooms and leave religion for religious classes. Though it may be cloaked in scientific terminology, so-called Intelligent Design is, in effect, Creationism in new clothing. It is not science and should not be taught as science.
I have no idea how this trial will turn out, but one thing is clear, this case is headed straight to the U.S. Supreme Court no matter who wins.
H/T: The Agitator
