Scopes Trials Essay

As the Ku Klux Klan’s membership grew, organizations such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), which fought to end racial discrimination and segregation, grew as well. With these two growing groups pushing for opposite ideals, tensions continued to increase. The NAACP pushed for reform and rights for African Americans and the Ku Klux Klan combated their progress with lynching and

In 1921 the Number of new immigrants shot up to 805,000. Congress started to limit immigration. The Ku Klux Klan started to rise again searching for “Native, White, Protestant, supremacy.” Over time and after a few mishaps by leaders, the KKK’s membership decreased to 50,000. Darwinism was starting become more prevalent.

Founded during the Reconstruction Era (1865-1877), The Ku Klux Klan was an extremist hate group that violently challenged social and political laws which protected certain minority groups. The Klan’s deliberate use of terror and violence reflected the passion held for a racial hierarchy, with whites at the top of the social structure. The presence of KKK was seen not only during the Reconstruction Era, but also during the post–World War I era (1920s). There are distinct similarities and differences that define the motives of the 1860s Klan and the reincarnated 1920s Klan; however, I believe these characteristics hide the true representation of the intolerance of American citizens.

The Ku Klux Klan was founded in 1865 by six veterans of the Confederate Army. Over a period of three hundred years of slavery in America White slave owners built a sophisticated structure to sustain their brutally corrupt and immoral system. They founded “The Klan” to protect the interests of the white popularity. Evolving from the Slave Patrol to the Ku Klux Klan. The first generation was known for its brutal and immoral acts against immigrants and former slaves.

When Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were arrested for theft and the murder of two payroll clerks on May 5, 1920, their trial earned itself worldwide awareness. This awareness was gained, according to newworldencyclopedia.org, “With critics accusing the prosecution and presiding judge of improper conduct, and of allowing anti-Italian, anti-immigrant, and anti-anarchist sentiment to prejudice the jury” (Sacco and Vanzetti). Instead of being convicted and sentenced to death on the account of murder and theft, many believed that Sacco and Vanzetti were charged due to their anarchist beliefs and the fact that they were Italian immigrants. As stated by time.com, “There was plenty of reason to doubt that Sacco and Vanzetti had actually committed the crimes. The money [they stole] was never recovered and neither suspect had a criminal record.

The Scopes Trial began on July 10th, 1925 in Dayton, Tennessee when John Thomas Scopes was charged with violating the Butler Act by teaching the theory of evolution in his class by saying men have descended from apes claiming that was the theory of evolution. The prosecuting attorney William Bryant was flooded with questions from the bible by defending attorney Clarence Darrow, several he could not answer. William Bryant, a Christian, could not defend the Bible nor his beliefs and the point of being a certain religion is to understand what you believe and why you believe it. Furthermore, what makes this trial significant is that till this day we still have that debate of how were we created, whether it’s from the religion we possess or from

Due to the ratification of the amendments, many southern elites could not stand the fact that African Americans were freed. One solution that was developed was to destroy reconstruction by murdering Black Americans. The Ku Klux Klan was then formed, this group consisted of vindictive Confederate Army veterans. Sought out to be heros to many southern democrats, but a nightmare for African American families. The Ku Klux Klan terrorized many African American families, burned down churches, drove thousands of families out of their homes, and caused great mayhem.

The Scopes Trial took place in Tennessee, and the defendants name was John T. Scopes. He challenged the law for the American Civil Liberties Union, and so he taught evolution in the classroom. The trial was broadcast throughout the entire nation, to people curious about evolution, and it was the first trial to be broadcasted. The battle between the prosecuting attorney and defense attorney was great, as William Jennings Bryan was questioned in detail by defense attorney Clarence Darrow.

The United States of America in the 1920s was a period of debate, of shifting values and changing social structures, and was, above anything else, a battleground of clashing ideologies that ultimately boiled down and exploded within the Scopes Trial of 1925. The Scopes Trial was not in any way, shape, or form primarily a conflict of simply one issue alone. Instead, the Scopes Trial was the height of the tensions that emerged within America during the infamous Roaring 20s, and it, unfortunately, pushed smaller, less-debated topics to the sidelines to make way for the main conflict. Issues which revolved around racial and gender tensions existed and were debated at length within society, but were completely ignored during the proceedings of the

Dayton, Tennessee July 1925, The State of Tennessee vs. John Thomas Scopes. One of the most publicized trials in American history that held a great impact on the argument between fundamentalists and modernists. The Scopes Trial is still one of the most significant trials in American history. It was actually a case that had a broader importance, rather than a case about evolution in schools and the case has left a lasting impression on America. The State of Tennessee vs. John Thomas Scopes took place in the hot summer of 1925 Dayton, Tennessee and featured the likes of John Scopes, Clarence Darrow, and William Jennings Bryan.

Changes The Scopes trial or “monkey trial” took place on July 10, 1925 in Dayton, Tennessee. Where John Thomas Scopes was being tried for teaching Darwin’s theory of evolution in a public school. Tennessee was the first state to pass an anti-evolution law which prohibited the teaching of Darwin’s theory of evolution in public schools and universities. The trial was not just about science versus religion, it was much more complex.

While it is illegal to express so hate speech so long as one does not engage in acts of discuss, or commit illegal crimes. There is a group called the “KKK” They were founded in 1866 in almost every southern state by 1870. In the early 20th century, burning crosses and staging rallies. They were only against blacks, but then a 1915 film, “Burn of a Nation” came out. They rallied against blacks, catholics, jews, immigrants, and even the consumption of alcohol.

Chief Prosecutor Tom Stewart then asked seven students in Scopes class a series of questions about his teachings. They testified that Scopes taught that man and all other mammals had evolved from one-celled organisms. Darrow cross-examined the students, asking freshman Howard Morgan, “Well did he tell you anything else that was wicked?”. Howard replied, “No, not that I can remember.” . After, drugstore owner Fred Robinson took the stand to testify as to Scopes’ statement that “Any teacher in the state who was teaching Hunter’s biology was violating the law.”

As stated in the introduction, the most well-known hate crimes have been against people of the African-American community. The most successful terrorist group that have committed hate crimes against African- Americans in the United States has been the Ku Klux Klan. This group was created in 1865 in Pulaski, Tennessee and is still have many factions throughout the United States. The Southern Poverty Law Center estimated that the Ku Klux Klan has between 5,000 and 8,000 members nationwide.1 Their power has been on its ability to inspire racist ideology.

The Scopes Monkey trial was a battle over the right to teach Charles Darwin's theory of evolution in Tennessee public schools. The trial was named after the mistaken belief of many creationists that Darwinists believe humans directly evolved from monkeys. The trial began in July of 1925, the case prosecuted high school coach and science teacher, John Scopes. Scopes, pushed by leaders of his community, began teaching Hunters Civic Biology. The text book was the standard Tennessee text book until it was outlawed by Governor Austin Peay.