by Justin Manucci

Created on: May 18, 2009

A highly controversial topic in The United States is the issue of isolating any idea of a dominant religion from the public. Such cases have included situations that have occurred in public schools. Other occurrences involve public areas such as stores. Indeed, these conflicts have brought many opinions and sides to the matter. I happen to like the system that exists today. It is only fair that we don't inflict any sort of a religious superiority in the schooling systems.

The movement towards how the system is now, started in the 1960s when the Supreme Court dismissed any religious relations from the public school system. This federal decision tried to promote schools as a religion-free zone. The government tried to separate religion from state by telling the students to leave their faith at their homes. This restriction tried to bring the notion that there isn't a domination of any religion in The United States. This enforcement broke out many disputes between pro religious leaders called Restorers and those against it called Removers. However with the Equal Access Act of 1984, the schools have now allowed student- initiated religious clubs. By present day most issued textbooks include a considerable amount of religious influence and students are given their freedom to practice their daily rituals within their space without trying to influence others.

This part of history has come a long way from the time that Christianity was the dominant religion in The United States. It has been an extensive journey since the time where creationism was the supreme influence in the school systems. Now it is the complete opposite with creationism being banned from school lectures and the theory of evolution being the central teaching in science classes. This occurrence has been highly debated since the Scope vs. State trial. This case occurred when John T. Scopes was charged with teaching Darwin's theory of evolution to a high school science class in Tennessee. Scopes was accused of not teaching the state's standard curriculum of teaching creationism. The trial dated on July, 13 1925 at the Rhea County Courthouse in Dayton Tennessee. The trial proceeded with the Secretary of State, William Jennings Bryan, as the head prosecutor and Clarence Darrow as the head attorney for the defense. The presiding judge for the case was John T. Raulston.

The trial opened up with the defense accusing the judge and the jury for favoring the state. This aroused constant arguments between

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• Next Page >>