As we all know though, the idea of creationism had been written in the Bible long before Darwin had ever been born. Thus creationism was the known and accepted method for the creation of man for several hundreds of years.

Shortly after Darwin's Origin of Species was published, it seemed as if creationism and evolution could peacefully coexist as alternate theories regarding the

President Eisenhower charged Congress with passing the National Defense Education Act of 1958, which spurred science agencies like the National Science Foundation and the American Institute of Biological Sciences to spend heavily on new textbooks and other science materials. One researched of the period noted: "The National Science Foundation funded the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS) at the University of Colorado to develop and publish high school biology textbooks. Between 1963-64, the BSCS published three science textbooks...that were thoroughly permeated by evolutionary theory. By 1970, nearly half of American high schools had adopted the BSCS books.

Judging on the Butler Act, and John Scopes' admission of teaching evolution in a Tennessee public school, Judge Raulston had no choice but to find Scopes guilty. The Judge fined him $100 instead of the $500 dollar penalty that was stated in the Butler Act .

At the same time George Rappelyea, a scientifically oriented engineer along with a group of Dayton businessmen, saw this controversy as an opportunity to bring in crowds from afar to the small town of Dayton, in order to hopefully jump-start the town's lagging economy. Rappelyea contacted the ACLU, and they confirmed that they would financially and legally support and evolution case in Dayton to test the Butler Act .

The four Board members who voted against the Alternative Plan believed it was intended to remove from the state curriculum any idea or theory that questioned or contradicted the teaching of creationism. Consideration of the background of the Board members responsible for the enactment of Kansas Action also suggests that evolution was removed from the state curriculum because of its apparent conflict with the teachings of creationism. For example, in early 1999 Celtie Johnson, a staunch supported of creationism, "pulled together a loosely knit group of creationists from Kansas and Missouri, to prepare a science curriculum plan to compete with the Draft. Johnson "firmly believed in the biblical account of creation" and sought to prevent the Board from approving science standards that emphasize macroevolution. According to Johnson and her husband, "you have to believe that the Bible is true, if it's not true it's just a paperweight." Like Johnson, the Board's chairperson, Linda Holloway also openly expressed her belief that "the Bible reveals...truths...and tells the story of God's creation of the Earth and the universe. It does not mention evolution." Holloway in unequivocal about these beliefs and "her faith plays a part in everything she does."

Many religious groups have tried to use public schools as a forum to teach ideas consistent with their religious beliefs. These efforts have historically taken two forms, the public school presentation of religious doctrine for its religious value and the prohibition of teaching material that conflicts with religious doctrine. Prayer in school and the posting of the Ten Commandments are examples of public school presentation of religious doctrine. The removal of objectionable textbooks stands as an obvious example of creationists' efforts to prohibit teaching material that conflicts with religious doctrine.

During the next three decades, the teaching of evolution retreated greatly from American public schools. During the 1940's, only a small minority of high school Biology teachers were teaching Darwin's evolution theory in class.

Shortly after the Butler Act passed, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) claimed that the Act violated Constitutional rights. Because the state of Tennessee banned the discussion of evolution in public schools, the ACLU, along with many other private citizens, saw this as a blatant infringement upon the rights granted by the 1st Amendment, and public school teachers' right to free speech . Also the ACLU was concerned about the relationship between church and state. Both the U.S. and Tennessee Sta

Some common words found in the essay are:
Kansas Action, Alternative Plan, Supreme Court, Board Education, Ten Commandments, Origin Species, Teachers Association, Union ACLU, University Colorado, Janet Waugh, public schools, alternative plan, teaching evolution, kansas action, science standards, butler act, public school, defense team, national science, wills creationist plan, tennessee public, evolution public schools, balanced treatment evolution, teaching darwin's evolution, butler act passed,
Approximate Word count = 4086
Approximate Pages = 16 (250 words per page double spaced)