University of Melbourne Secular Society [UMSS]

Did anything weird happen to you last week? Were you handed a particular scientific and literary classic, with an odd and badly written introduction? Specifically, let’s say, on Tuesday? Near the tram stop?

If all this hinting sounds oddly cryptic to you, you missed out on a spectacle when a group of Creationists parked themselves at the corner of the Asia Centre to hand out 2,500 of copies of On The Origin of Species with a ‘special’ introduction by Kiwi Creationist Ray Comfort. This mostly plagiarized introduction touches on such topics as the so-called ‘problems’ with evolutionary theory, Darwin’s supposed sexism and racism, as well as the links between evolution, Social Darwinism, the Holocaust, and atheism.

You can read about the incident over at Homologous Legs and Divisible By Pi, both blogs from members of the Secular Society who managed to talk with the Creationists.

The University of Melbourne Secular Society have managed to (at very late notice) organise a coordinated response to the Creationists, and we’d love if you could attend.

Details:
Dr James Bradley (History & Philosophy of Science)
“A history of Creationism”
1 PM Thursday 18th March
Threatre 4, Alan Gilbert Building

RSVP and invite friends via Facebook.

We know that a lot of you were as outraged as we were at this coordinated attack on science happening on our very own campus – this is our chance to strike back, not with political rhetoric, but by furthering understanding of the Creationist movement and letting facts be known. If you were angry at the idea of Creationists spreading falsehoods on campus, come along and invite as many of your friends as you can. We will have extra copies of the book to hand out to those who ‘missed out’.