Atlanta, Jan. 13 - A federal judge Thursday ordered a suburban Atlanta school system to remove stickers from its high school biology textbooks that call evolution "a theory, not a fact," saying the disclaimers are an unconstitutional endorsement of religion.
"By denigrating evolution, the school board appears to be endorsing the well-known prevailing alternative theory, creationism or variations thereof, even though the sticker does not specifically reference any alternative theories," U.S. District Judge Clarence Cooper said.
Thank you, Judge Cooper.
It is amazing to think that in 2005 we are still arguing over the validity of evolution and even the appropriateness of teaching real science in the classroom.
The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, a United Church of Christ minister and head of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, issued the following statement in favor of the ruling:
This is a great decision with national significance. These textbook disclaimers are part of a national campaign to undercut the teaching of evolution in public schools in accordance with fundamentalist Christian beliefs. Today' court decision will throw a major roadblock in the path of that crusade. Public schools may not be used to advance religious dogma, and the court has rightly upheld that principle.
You can read the decision here.
Related Post: "Intelligent Design Theory"
