Scopes Monkey Trial :: John Scopes

Scopes muck around TrialPerhaps one of the some famous trials in our history was that of the John Scopes. Scopes was a high give lessons teacher in Dayton, Tennessee and was arrested because he was teaching the surmisal of evolution in his high school biology class. During the 1920s it was against the law in Tennessee to teach anything separate than the theory of creation as written in the Bible. These laws were a resolution of a strong fundamentalist movements spreading throughout the United States. In 1925 the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) volunteered to defend any teacher ordain to challenge these laws concerning the teaching of evolution. John Scopes agreed to their challenge, and after teaching Darwins theory of evolution Scopes arrest duly followed.The trial began on July 10, 1925. The prosecution consisted of doubting Thomas Stewart, the Attorney General of Tennessee who was assisted by a famous politico and orator Williams Jennings Bryan. The defense team put t ogether by the ACLU consisted of Clarence Darrow, Dudley flying field Malone, and Arthur Hayes. Judge John F. Raulston presided over the trial.The Scopes Trial became known as the Monkey Trial because most people believed that evolution dealt with the theory that humans descended from monkeys. The substantial trial was widely publicized and made the little town of Dayton, Tennessee a booming city. Journalists and photographers poured into the little town and the monkey trial became an instant emotion Most of the coverage focused on the heated debate amongst Darrow and Bryan on the issue strict interpretation of the Bible. The issue had become more than than just what was taught in high school curriculum but became an bang on the whole fundamentalism movement.