The Scopes Trial (July 10 to July 21, 1925) was a powerful aid to the cause of evolution; yet scientific discoveries were not involved. That was fortunate; since, except for a single tooth (later disproved) and a few other frauds, the evolutionists had nothing worthwhile to present (*The World’s Most Famous Court Trial: A Complete Stenographic Report, 1925).The ACLU (*American Civil Liberties Union) had been searching for someone they could use to test the Butler Act, which forbade the teaching of evolution in the public schools in Tennessee. *John Scopes (24 at the time) volunteered for the job. He later privately admitted that he had never actually taught evolution in class, so the case was based on a fraud; he spent the time teaching them football maneuvers (*John Scopes, Center of the Storm, 1967, p. 60). But no matter, the ACLU wanted to so humiliate the State of Tennessee, that no other state would ever dare oppose the evolutionists. The entire trial, widely reported as the “Tennessee Monkey Trial,” was presented to the public as something of a comic opera. (A trained ape was even sent in, to walk around on a chain in the streets of Dayton.) But the objective was deadly serious; and they succeeded very well. Although the verdict was against Scopes, America’s politicians learned the lesson: Do not oppose the evolutionists.

The Scopes trial, the first event nationally broadcast over the radio, was a major victory for evolutionists throughout the world. Ridicule, side issues, misinformation, and false statements were used to win the battle.

Click to see cartoon of Scopes Trial

Source: Evolution Handbook