The John Scopes Trial

How would you feel if you were shamed over things you couldn’t control? Based on only prejudice and stereotypes, some people hate others. Internalized intolerance can exist in everyone, mentally and legally. Court cases and trials can distinctly show this. To Kill A Mockingbird focuses around an unfair trial of Tom Robinson, who was wrongfully arraigned for raping a white woman. Although clear evidence pointed to Tom being innocent, he was still found guilty. Trials from the 1930s to today can compare to this. Many trials compare to Tom Robinson’s case on accounts of false accusations, discrimination, and unfair verdicts.

The Scottsboro trials happened in the 1931 and dragged on for years. These cases were solely based on the prejudice surrounding blacks and gender. The cases presented in the Scottsboro Film represented the fight for justice. Nine boys were wrongfully arrested and imprisoned for years while society used these young black mens oppression to further its own agenda.These cases ruined the life of nine young men but they also helped make dramatic, vital changes in the criminal justice system and the constitution. The misfortune of the nine men tried and convicted during this time opened the eyes of so many blind to the injustice that african americans suffer from still to this day. The Scottsboro trials greatly defined the future of the criminal

John Thomas Scopes trial began on July 10, 1925, and I watched as the trial unfolded. The famous Clarence Darrow defended Scopes and Williams Jennings Bryan was leading the prosecution. Williams Jennings Bryan had run as the Democratic presidential candidate three times, and he was the fundamentalist hero. After a few days of the trial, many spectators and reporters flocked to Dayton. I watched as the Dayton’s streets became more and more crowded and I saw many preachers with revival tents, who taught how the Theory of Evolution went against the Divine Creation of man.

“We knew in advance the parole hearing would be a smah, sham. just something for the media to distort [sic]” (Ray). These were the words written by James Earl Ray to my uncle in one of eight letters which was dated June 8th, 1994, in which they correspond with each other in regards to the case of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Personally, I believe that Ray’s case does not show true justice of the court system we have in place. His repeated denial of a real trial, despite support from the King family, suggests that he may have been innocent, and that the truth was being covered up. This shows how the court system can put someone who may be innocent into prison without even giving him or her a fair trial.

"The hand that writes the paycheck rules the school," said William Jennings Bryan. From the beginning, Americans have struggled knowing what they should teach their children. In the 1920's, education was starting to boom. More and more people were attending school and as an effect school sizes were increasing dramatically. Then, the recurring topic of science and religion began to start controversy with public.Soon, two sides formed, the Fundamentalists and the Darwinist. Then, an antievolution law was passed in Tennessee. The American Civil Rights Union (ACLU) was against the new law, because it violated freedom of speech. As a result the Scopes trial formed. The Scopes trial brought big names to the town of Dayton, including Clarence Darrow defending John T. Scopes and William Jennings Bryan persecuting Scopes for teaching evolution. To the town of Dayton, the trial was hope. For Clarence Darrow, the trial was an opportunity to bash religion. For the ACLU, the trial was a cry for freedom. William Jennings Bryan believed he had the chance to protect his faith. Summer for the Gods by Edward J. Larson gives a reader every detail about the Scopes Trial there is to know. The book goes through the steps leading up to the trial, the actual trial, and the lasting effect of the trial. Larson believes that the Scopes Trial was a unique case and meant something different to everyone.

Dayton, Tennessee was the location of which John Thomas Scopes was charged with a crime. The crime charged against Mr. Scopes was that he was teaching evolution. The law in Tennessee states that the misdemeanor is punishable and the law states “teach any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead of that man has descended from a lower order of animals.” Scopes asked for the aid of the American Civil Liberties Union to assist him in his trial. When William Jennings Bryan heard of the attack on Christian fundamentalism went to assist the prosecution. Clarence Darrow an amazing attorney agreed to help the defense. The trial began on July 10, 1921 and within a few days many reporters

The Scopes Trial induced a pivotal point in American history because it symbolizes the conflict between science and theology, faith and reason, individual liberty, and majority rule. This trial was to decide not only the fate of an evolution-teacher, but also to decide if traditionalists or modernists would rule American culture. An object of intense publicity, the trial was seen as a clash between urban sophistication and rural fundamentalism.

The Scopes Trial of 1925 was one of the quandary case ever witnessed by the American government and public. It was a conflict between science and theology, faith and reason. Lasting eight days this was one of the first media extensive coverage of that time resulted in thousands of print, interviews, and commentary sent from Dayton which helped to shape the public perception of what occurred in the nation. In addition, the trial was a maze run itself where many thought that it was challenging the constitutionality of the bill, to publicly advocate for the legitimacy of Darwin’s theory of evolution, many other thought it was a publicity stunt for the town of Dayton, Tennessee. In simple words, it was a contest between evolution and Christianity.

“The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil.”  – Hannah Arendt, The Life of the Mind. People don’t always get to decide what they actually think is right or wrong, most of the time they are pressured to do what they know is wrong. Society is one of the most powerful forces that can alter people’s actions and choices. During the Scottsboro trials of 1931 this is shown through Victoria Price and Ruby Bates as they are impacted by society’s pressure.

Next Larson explores the role the ACLU played in the Scopes Trial. They saw the Scopes trial as a means to advance the rights of laborers and academic freedom using the First Amendment. Clarence Darrow, when he heard that William Jennings Bryan would be prosecuting the trial, eagerly joined the ACLU defense team. Darrow claimed that he was fighting for individual rights but he was also obsessed in his determination to overturn the fundamentalist adherence to creationism. Larson delves deep into the internal documents of the ACLU to reveal how difficult it was to control Darrow and keep the case centered on a test of the law, not creationism. By revealing the ACLU’s agenda, Larson effectively shows that the Scopes trial was a battle between the concept of majority rule and individual rights.

Spooner, Lysander. An Essay On The Trial By Jury. Champaign: Project Gutenberg, 1999. Print. "The Bill of Rights: A Brief History." American Civil Liberties Union. ACLU, 2015. Web. 11

The Scopes Trial was an eight day court case brought up around the issue of teaching evolution within schools, and the morality of it, which ultimately led to the defendant, John Scopes, to be pronounced guilty of teaching evolution within schools. Although it would seem that the Scopes Trial was an issue of legality, it was chiefly a religious conflict between the old generation’s way of thinking, and the new generation’s cultural rebellion. Because of the major focus on William Jennings Bryan’s knowledge of the bible, it would be best to observe and evaluate the seventh day of the trial. As the day starts, Clarence Darrow, the defendant’s lawyer, calls Bryan to the stand, and asks of his “interpretation of the Bible,” (144).

The Scopes trial happened mainly because the Butler Act was passed, the Butler Act made it illegal to teach human Evolution in a public school. And even though the main objective of the scopes trial was to attract business to the small town of Dayton, Tennessee it ultimately ended in science gaining higher value in the American society over religion.

Under the theme of leadership, many colleges and university taught Christianity and later Roman Catholic institutes were established as separate parochial schools in order to avoid the Protestant tone of the religion. The presence of the immigrants and people from different countries with different cultures also influenced Christianity in the United States. This is mostly raised due to the Black Americans. Upon their freedom, many of the Black American decided to take the Christianity as their missionary activity and remain active in their own churches and political and moral leadership. Under the activities of the Black American the elements of evangelical, fundamentalist and charismatic denomination grew, but it was Christianity that slowly and steadily grew into a power religion especially after the Hispanic immigration in the 1970. With the passage of time, European people rejected the teaching of Catholic and in the 20th century, American become the largest country with the larger population as Christian. Within the United States, moral position and other direction are discussed under the largest religion i.e.

The Fundamentalist/Modernist controversy that enshrouded the arena of religious beliefs in the Western world is actually a theological controversy which is still continuing to instigate a myriad of debates. Its inception took place significantly after the end of the First World War, and the controversy is still going on even in this 21st century. The controversy centered on the differences that were ingrained in the traditional and modernist believes about the role of the Church, the purpose of the Gospel, and the social role of religion as a whole. Refuting the fundamentalist beliefs about Christianity, the modernists employed scholarly methods “to interpret sacred scriptures and compare the world religions, seemingly discounted supernatural