Another Stealth Creationism Bill Dies, No One Mourns
As we noted in early February, Florida Republicans introduced a bill modeled on the one signed into law by Bobby Jindal in Louisiana, intended to sneak creationism into science classes under the disguise of “academic freedom.”
Today there’s good news; the Tampa Tribune reports that this bill is dead: Anti-Evolution Bill Still A Fruitless Exercise.
TALLAHASSEE - A bill aimed at undercutting acceptance of evolution in Florida science classes, which kicked up a fuss but didn’t pass in the Florida Legislature last year, apparently is going nowhere this year.
A Senate version of the bill has yet to receive a committee hearing and has no companion bill in the House. That means, said one proponent of the idea, that the bill has little chance of passage in this frantic session, heavily devoted to cutting and balancing the state budget.
“With no companion in the House, it doesn’t have much likelihood,” said Rep. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla.
Sen. Stephen Wise, R-Jacksonville, filed the bill in the Senate in late February. It would require that public schools “teach a thorough presentation and critical analysis of the scientific theory of evolution” in science classes.
Last year, Hays filed a similar bill in the House and Sen. Ronda Storms, R-Valrico, filed a Senate bill that Hays said had the same goal but different wording. Storms’ bill prohibited discipline or lawsuits against science teachers who taught alternatives to evolution as theories on the origins of species.
Also see:
Using ‘Academic Freedom’ to Keep God in the Science Classroom
Frank says: