Press Release

Creation Story Has No Place At Public Zoo

For Immediate Release - Contact: Roy Speckhardt (202) 238-9088
rspeckhardt@americanhumanist.org - www.americanhumanist.org

June 8, 2005

(Washington, DC) “Displaying a creationist view of the earth’s origin at a publicly funded institution blatantly violates the First Amendment ban on government promotion of religion,” states Tony Hileman, executive director of the American Humanist Association.

Creationism is a sectarian religious belief ascribed to by fundamentalist Christians who see their bible as literal truth. Evolution is the only scientific theory that explains the existence and diversity of living organisms.

“By deciding to exhibit a religious view, the Tulsa, Oklahoma Park and Recreation Board have failed in their responsibility to educate and inform children regarding science,” continues Hileman. “There is no comparison between what this deliberate religious display conveys to impressionable children and existing cultural religious references at the zoo, such as a printed American Indian saying that reads, ‘The earth is our mother. The sky is our father.’”

“The creationist display is no different from governmental displays of the Ten Commandments—both are unconstitutional endorsements of religion, whether they are new or old, and whether they stand alone or next to secular displays,” adds AHA president and constitutional lawyer Mel Lipman.

“There is no room for theological exhibits in a public zoo. To justly display a fair representation of culturally diverse creation stories, the zoo would be compelled to display literally thousands of such stories—the one from scientific research and the rest from religious stories. The teaching of religion should remain out of publicly funded scientific institutions, whose time and resources should not be diverted from their core missions,” Lipman concluded.

The American Humanist Association is the oldest and largest Humanist organization in the nation. The AHA is dedicated to ensuring a voice for those with a positive nontheistic outlook, based on reason and experience, which embraces all of humanity .

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