Science is Fun Fridays!

 


Today marks the 100th anniversary of The Scopes Trial, aka Monkey Trial.

A teacher was on trial for teaching evolution, and all these years later, science is still in contention in classrooms and among adults.

He was found guilty of violating Tennessee's Butler Act, but the verdict was overturned on a technicality.  

While on one hand it set the stage for our ongoing fundamentalist versus modernist views, it was also a publicity stunt for the town of Dayton.

Scopes was a volunteer, a substitute biology teacher willing to say he'd violated the law.  Clarence Darrow came to represent him, mostly because he wanted to argue against William Jennings Bryan.

The Butler Act remained in effect for another 42 years, and in 2025 Tennessee wants to legislate display of the Ten Commandments in all classrooms.

In 100 years, we're going to look like a shitshow.


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