If it weren’t a serious concern for all Americans, Christian denialism of basic science would be laughable. The latest attack on reality comes from Redwood Heights Elementary School, in Oakland, California. It seems the science teachers there have had the unmitigated audacity to teach 4th graders that the animal kingdom is full of gender diversity.

The SHAME!

The icky fact for many Christians is that the animal kingdom is full of “non-Christian” gender-bending. The students learned about single-sex Hawaiian geckos, fish that switch genders and boy snakes that act “girly.” (For anyone interested in learning about the remarkable diversity of sex and gender in the animal kingdom, check out Evolution’s Rainbow.)

The thing is, this is scientific fact. It’s the truth about the world. But when has that ever stopped Christians from plugging their ears and going “lah lah lah lah lah” all the way to the altar?

Said the main contrarian blowhard: “This instruction does not represent the values of the majority of families in Oakland.”

Well… I’m very sorry, but that is science. And last I checked, science is supposed to be taught in science class. Not religious “values.” And most certainly not values that rely on pretending that a huge portion of the animal kingdom doesn’t exist.

Related articles