The Tennessee legislature, over the objections of the scientific community, Monday passed the "Monkey Bill," reminiscent
of the Scopes Monkey Trial of 1925. The "Monkey Bill" protects the
rights of public school teachers who want to put ''creation science''
and challenges to climate change in the classroom as subjects for
debate.
We offer assistance in keeping sound science education in Tennessee and other locations, using our expertise on hierarchies.
Our
research has shown that when science teachers and scientists suggest
that non-Christian creation stories be added to the science curriculum,
creationists back away from their demands to include their creation
story. This strategy works because people who place themselves or their
beliefs on top of a hierarchy cannot tolerate others as equals.
Here's some examples of creation stories from Tennessee's residents :
American
Indians – Chickasaw, Quapaw, Shawnee, Koasati, Yuchi, and Cherokee
tribes – have inhabited Tennessee for thousands of years, and their
creation stories have been told on what is now Tennessee soil long
before the first white settlers brought the Christian story less than
three hundred years ago.
The Muslim creation story from
the Quran has many of the same components as the Christian version. A
class discussion that encourages students to compare and contrast the
two interpretations could be a stimulating exercise in critical
thinking.
If Creationists support the inclusion of all
creation stories equally, then their claims of providing "critical
thinking," and "discussions of strengths and weaknesses" are true. If
Creationists push for the Christian creation story as the only
alternative to evolution, they expose to a wide audience their real
motives of building a hierarchy with only themselves on top.
