The operators of a UC Berkeley Web site on evolution are being
sued by a California couple that believes the site’s
treatment of religion violates separation of church and state.
The suit specifically objects to the Web site’s links to
other religious sites that teach that religion can be compatible
with Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. The plaintiffs
contend it is a government endorsement of one religious group over
another and an effort to persuade students to believe evolutionary
theory to be true.
The Web site, titled “Understanding Evolution,” is a
resource for K-12 science teachers, said Judy Scotchmoor, a project
coordinator for the site. She believes it is an important tool in
providing teachers with up-to-date information about evolution.
This lawsuit comes at a time when the University of California
is already under legal fire from religious groups. The groups
criticize the UC for its refusal to recognize science courses that
teach creationism and “intelligent design,” the idea
that humans are so complex they must have been created by a higher
power.
Bob Sanders, a spokesman for UC Berkeley, said there is nothing
illegal about the site and that it will continue to run.
The suit was filed by Jeanne Caldwell and her husband Larry
Caldwell, a lawyer and founder of Quality Science Education for
All, a non-profit organization that challenges the teaching of only
evolution in public schools.
The organization advocates teaching students both the scientific
strengths and weaknesses of the theory of evolution.
Though Larry Caldwell believes evolution should be taught, he
believes students should be presented with scientific facts
contrary to evolutionary theory as well.
He has been involved in several lawsuits in the past year,
including a dispute over science textbooks in Minnesota, Texas and
California schools, and a lawsuit against a California school
district contesting its methods in teaching evolution.
The defendants in the current case include Roy Caldwell, the
director of the Museum of Paleontology and professor of integrative
biology at UC Berkeley, who has no relation to Jeanne and Larry
Caldwell; David Lindberg, museum curator and chairman of the UC
Berkeley department of integrative biology; and Michael Piburn,
program director for the National Science Foundation.
The foundation gave a $400,000 grant to fund the Web site, but
has not yet been formally served with the lawsuit or informed that
it has been filed, said Curt Suplee, a spokesman for the
foundation.
“All I can tell you is we only know about this
second-hand,” Suplee said.
Though the foundation gives awards to researchers, investigators
and educators, it does not control what the recipient does with the
money, he said.
The lawsuit is part of a broader discussion about the role of
religion in the classroom that has been going on for some time.
According to a November 2004 Gallup poll, a majority of
Americans think evolution is not the best explanation for human
origin. The poll found that only 13 percent of Americans think God
had no part in the creation of human beings.
Intelligent design teaches Darwin’s theory of evolution,
but also incorporates the idea that there may be another
explanation for creation.
Critics of intelligent design argue that teaching the theory
would violate the separation of church and state because it is not
strictly science. Meanwhile, advocates believe that by teaching
intelligent design, students are given access to more information
and have the opportunity to evaluate the issue from both
viewpoints.
The question over teaching evolution in public school has its
roots in the 1925 Tennessee v. John Scopes case, also known as the
“Monkey Trial,” in which the theory of evolution was
first contested in federal court.
With reports from Bruin wire services.