John T. Scopes was a biology teacher in Dayton, Tennessee. In 1925, he was charged with teaching evolution in his class, which at this time was against state laws in Tennessee. The court found Scopes guilty and fined him $100. The Tennessee laws were in act for another forty two years before removed. Even though Scopes lost at the trial, this case succeeded in publicizing evolution and began a very long battle that still occurs today in some places. Scopes believed in educational freedom and allowed himself to be displayed to the nation. He professes his beliefs in this quote:
I feel that I have been convicted of violating an unjust statute. I will continue in the future, as I have in the past, to oppose this law in any way I can. Any other action would be in violation of my ideal of academic freedom—that is, to teach the truth as guaranteed in our Constitution of personal and religious freedom. I think the fine is unjust.*
On the Kansas Memory site, there are many cartoons and articles dealing with the trials and of teaching evolution. In the Topeka Daily Capital, there is a cartoon entitled “All the World Watches Dayton”. This cartoon emphasizes how the nation is watching and waiting to see what happens to the young teacher. The people at this time can see the importance of the events and to see if more freedoms in the classroom will be granted. On another issue of the Topeka Daily Capital, the focus of evolution is called “the question of the hour.” The majority of the front page of this issue of the newspaper is covering evolution, religion, and the trials that took place. Another political cartoon from the Emporia Gazette, shows how Dayton is gaining prominance and large monetary gain due to the popularity of the trials that are taking place. This shows just how important this trial was to the people of the country at this time.
I think it is interesting to see how the nation was riveted on the outcome of the Scopes trials. Academic freedoms I think were at stake. Still today, there is controversy about whether or not Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution should be taught in public classrooms. As a future teacher, my opinion is that the more knowledge one has the better one will be on making educated decisions about certain theories and beliefs.
*Doug Linder. “John Scopes.” 2004. http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/scopes/SCO_SCO.HTM
Accessed July 9, 2008.
July 11, 2008 at 11:50 am
It’s so interesting that it used to be against the law to teach certain subjects in school, and that breaking that law would lead to such a controversial trial. I guess it might be parallel to religion or sex education in schools today; depending on the content and age of the student, that subject can lead to some pretty angry parents. It’s also interesting that one teacher believed so strongly that knowledge is power, that it became a national issue and probably changed the way teachers view controversial topics in the future. I couldn’t agree with you more that the more knowledge students have, the more able they will be to make educated decisions for themselves. Good blog post al!
July 11, 2008 at 4:19 pm
I have lived in Kansas all my life where the teaching of evolution or lack there of is such a big deal. I feel like my teachers spent more time talking about the controversy and debating if they should even talk about it, then the actual about of time it would have taken to teach it. Go figure.
July 12, 2008 at 7:44 pm
Interesting post! You may remember that during my lecture on Populism I mentioned a Presidential candidate named William Jennings Bryan, who delivered the famous “Cross of Gold” speech. He would later serve as a prosecutor for the Scopes trial. Bryan was quite well known during this period, although I think most people today don’t know who he is.
But, then again, if he is remembered for anything, it probably would be for the Scopes trial, since evolution is still a big issue today.