Lake Zurich School Board Candidates Want Creationism Taught

By Prescott Carlson in News on Feb 26, 2011 10:00PM

The entire slate of candidates running for school board in Oklahoma Lake Zurich say that they are all for science teachers introducing creationism in their classrooms.

During candidate interviews with the Daily Herald, three incumbents and one newcomer running for three available four year school board terms said that when evolution is brought up in the classroom, creationism should be, too. One candidate, Chris Wallace, even seemed to imply that creationism should usurp evolution in the science curriculum:

"Creationism to me is factual," [Wallace] said. "Darwinism is a theory."

Another candidate, Doug Goldberg, reportedly stated:

"Yes, [creationism should be taught]. Clearly, religion in general is a big part of our daily lives as Americans. I believe that allowing a student to be exposed to the theory of creationism is a relevant and reasonable thing to do."

Goldberg then admitted he had no idea the "legal ramifications" of teaching creationism in Lake Zurich public schools. We're happy to offer you a refresher, Mr. Goldberg.

In 1987, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 7-2 decision, ruled that a law in Louisiana which required creationism or "creation science" be taught alongside evolution did in fact violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The majority opinion stated that the law's "primary purpose was to change the public school science curriculum to provide persuasive advantage to a particular religious doctrine that rejects the factual basis of evolution in its entirety."