US EditionOn This Day, July 21: Monkey Trial Ends with Guilty Verdict in Tennessee
DAYTON, TENNESSEE, JUL 20 – The 1925 Scopes Trial challenged Tennessee’s Butler Act and sparked a lasting debate on academic freedom, with 62% of Catholics now accepting evolution, a 2024 Gallup survey shows.
- The Monkey Trial concluded on July 21, 1925, in Dayton, Tennessee, with John Thomas Scopes found guilty and penalized $100 for instructing students in evolutionary theory, which was prohibited by state law.
- The trial originated after Tennessee lawmakers enacted the Butler Act in early 1925, which prohibited teaching evolutionary theories that conflicted with the biblical creation narrative.
- The highly publicized courtroom drama pitted defense attorney Clarence Darrow against prosecutor William Jennings Bryan and was the first nationally broadcast trial over radio.
- According to the leader of the Rhea Heritage Preservation Foundation, the trial's issues remain unresolved, continuing to fuel discussions about education and the rights of parents.
- Although Scopes’ conviction was later overturned on a technicality and the Butler Act repealed in the late 1960s, debates over evolution education continue in Tennessee and beyond a century later.
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Catholic News AgencyCatholics reflect on 100th anniversary of Scopes trial, 1920s evolution debate
William Jennings Bryan (seated at left) being interrogated by Clarence Seward Darrow, during the trial of the State of Tennessee v. John Thomas Scopes, July 20, 1925. Because of the extreme heat, the proceedings were moved outdoors. / Credit: Sm... [...]
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Total News Sources20
Leaning Left0Leaning Right7Center5Last UpdatedBias Distribution58% Right
Bias Distribution
- 58% of the sources lean Right
58% Right
C 42%
R 58%
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