Expert: Michael Troy - 3/22/2004

Question
Dear Mr. Michael Troy,
I am doing a research paper on creation vs. evolution for my English III class in high school.  I need information from an expert on the subject to use as one of my sources. My topic was derived from the John T. Scopes trial.  What is your opinion on this topic and why do you feel the way you do?


Answer
Hi Amber,

The Scopes trial was actually a rather straight-forward case.  The State of Tennesee passed a law that made it illegal to teach evolution in the public schools.  John Scopes was a biology teacher.  He violated the law by teaching evolution in defiance of the law and was found guilty.  The Tennessee Supreme Court later overturned the conviction on a technicality and dimissed the case.  The courts never reached the question everybody wanted to get to: the Constitutionality of the statute.

From a legal perspective, the trial itself was a joke.  Much of the trial was held outside in the town square where there was a festival-like atmosphere.  Much of the testimony involved the truth or falsity of the Bible and of the value of the theory of evolution.  Most of that testimony was later stricken.  The most irregular part of the trial was when the lead defense attorney put the prosecutor on the witness stand to examine him on the logic of the Bible.

Of course, as everyone realized, what was most important was not the trial itself but the political issue of whether the government could use the educational system to supress scientific theories in favor of religion.  By making a mockery of the law and the dogma beyind it, the defense team helped encourage many Americans to be more open to modern science and not blindly obedient to religion.

Ironically, many of the arguments today are exactly the opposite of what they were in 1925.  No one is arguing today that evolution should not be taught.  But many people think that creationism should be taught as an alternative theory.  In short, the creationists are now seeking a greater diversity of views on the matter while evolutionists are seeking to ban one viewpoint from the classroom.

I hope this helps!
- Mike