To hear a particular speaker, fast-forward to the following times: Lisa Bressman, first; Charles Israel, 3:31; Volney Gay, 11:35; Hedy Weinberg, 16:42; Larry Crain, 28:19; David Williams, 35:17.
Legal, political, historical and religious experts gathered to discuss the continuing debate surrounding the Scopes monkey trial in a forum preceding the performance of the Great Tennessee Monkey Trial Oct. 19.
The Great Tennessee Monkey Trial, drawn from the actual transcripts of the 1925 Dayton, Tenn., trial of a public school teacher accused of teaching evolution, was performed as part of the Great Performances at Vanderbilt. The national tour production stars Ed Asner, John de Lancie and Alley Mills.
Vanderbilt Professor of Law Lisa Bressman moderated the forum, "The Scopes Trial: A Continuing Controversy," which included Volney Gay, professor of religious studies and chair of the department and director of the Center for the Study of Religion and Culture at Vanderbilt; Charles Israel, associate professor of history at Auburn University and author of Before Scopes: Evangelicalism, Education, and Evolution in Tennessee, 1870-1925; Hedy Weinberg, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee; Larry Crain, senior regional counsel with the American Center for Law and Justice; and David Williams, Vanderbilt professor of law and the university’s general counsel.