Lobbyists Resort to Myth Information Campaign on Academic Freedom Legislation

It’s springtime (almost), which means that Darwin lobbyists are starting to come out in full force to spread misinformation about academic freedom legislation. This is most unfortunate because their goal, plain and simple, is to prevent students from hearing about scientific critiques of neo-Darwinian evolution in the classroom. I’ve already covered some of these bad objections here. Let’s consider the false claims being promoted by critics of academic freedom legislation. Myth #1. Academic Freedom Laws Have Led to Litigation Some critics, especially those in Oklahoma, have felt the need to promote outright falsehoods by claiming that the Louisiana Science Education Act has been subject to lawsuits. The truth is that there has never been a legal challenge to an academic Read More ›

Florida Evolution Academic Freedom Bill Moves Forward

The Florida Academic Freedom bill has moved forward today past Florida’s Senate Judiciary Committee. It has now been approved by both Senate committees and will soon get a vote on the floor of the Florida Senate. Unfortunately, the Florida newsmedia continues to misrepresent the bill, as the Orlando Sentinel wrongly claimed that, under the bill, “Florida teachers could mention religious theories about human origins.” The Florida newsmedia seems to be taking their talking points directly from Florida Citizens for Science. If one reads the text of the bill, it’s clear that it only protects the teaching of “scientific information” and does not cover the teaching of religion. Darwinist groups have attacked the academic freedom bill as being “smelly crap” or Read More ›

Darwinist Objections to Louisiana Academic Freedom Bill Based (Predictably) upon Misinformation

An academic freedom bill has been submitted in the state of Louisiana, and Darwinists have been quick to claim that the bill promotes religion. Columnist James Gill followed the Darwinist talking points perfectly in his editorial in The Times-Picayune, using the fear-mongering tactic of claiming that this bill is part of a “creationist attack” and that “[t]he bill is of no conceivable benefit to anyone but Christian proselytizers.” So what exactly does this bill’s dangerous “attack” say? The language of the bill simply states that “teachers shall be permitted to help students understand, analyze, critique, and review in an objective manner the scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses of existing scientific theories pertinent to the course being taught.” The only people Read More ›