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The Faces of Dover
28 September 2005Looking beyond cultural shorthand in Intelligent Design. By Raegan Johnson The debate over the teaching of Intelligent Design and evolution is not a scientific one; it's political. In fact, it's less a debate than yet another tool in the movement to degrade the separation of church and state. Laura Goodstein’s article, "A Web of Faith, Law and Science in Evolution Suit," in The New York Times, concerns the current court debate in Dover, Pennsylvania, where parents who don't want Intelligent Design taught in their children's schools are suing the district. Lacking from Goodstein's article and most mainstream coverage is a serious consideration of the argument that Intelligent Design is itself a political movement and not simply an "alternative" to evolution. Moreover, the news media has done very little coverage regarding the philosophical implications of the Intelligent Design movement. For instance, what does it mean to teach students about a "creator" in a scientific context? Goodstein dismisses much of the political agenda of the religious right with a cursory statement that, "with the new political empowerment of religious conservatives challenges to evolution are popping up with greater frequency." The new political empowerment. Historically, Christians in this country have always been politically empowered. Perhaps what she is vaguely referring to is the rise of Dominionism. Goodstein is quick to point out the proponents of ID in Dover are quaint suburbanites; meter readers and office managers whose walls are covered with little plaques reading, "Let Freedom Ring." Those against the teaching of Intelligent Design stealthily sit across town keeping track of the case in offices decorated with diplomas and degrees. It’s this dichotomy that enables those in the religious right to be so successful a movement: a clear-cut division between the salt of the earth and the educated elite. Never mind that those pulling the strings in Dominionism are themselves the rich and elite. The face of Intelligent Design isn't really the idyllic Christian family that believes "God created the heaven and earth and its creatures," but rather the operatives pushing the Intelligent Design theory in the school systems in the first place. The media would do well to look beneath the standard stereotypes and see who's really involved in this case. Raegan Johnson is a graduate student at New York University.
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