DefCon News: Announcing the New DefCon Logo!

		Update: News from the Front Lines
		It's been another incredible month in our fight against the religious right. Most significantly, we defeated intelligent design in Ohio on Valentine's Day. We also celebrated Darwin Day, announced the DefCon book club and, as of today, have a new DefCon logo. In the coming weeks we'll be forging ahead with a major new campaign, which we will unveil shortly. Stay tuned to DefConAmerica.org for updates and, of course, keep up the good work. Intelligent Design Defeated in Ohio! Utah Next Battleground On Feb. 14 the Ohio Board of Education voted 11-4 to remove language from the state's science standards that allowed for the teaching of intelligent design. This amazing reversal by the board came after DefCon members sent 30,000 emails to the state's pro-intelligent design board members, ultimately resulting in 11 votes to support evolution. Now, Utah students need your help. A bill is pending in the state legislature that would require teachers to present alternatives to evolution, such as intelligent design, as part of their life science lesson plans. Utah legislators are expected to vote on this measure, the House version of SB 96, within the next 10 days. Please take action now. The Ohio case is a huge victory and reflects growing national opposition to intelligent design. The issue is a key battleground in the fight between the religious right and science, and a true test of whether our nation will stand up to their extremist influence or continue to let them dictate policy on science, education and other fundamental issues. Our work is helping to turn the tide on this critical issue. Be proud of what we've achieved, and stay poised to take action wherever else this fight emerges. Evolution Sunday Sunday, Feb. 12 was Charles Darwin's 197th birthday. While we at DefCon celebrated the day with an array of actions including our Darwin Valentine, churches across the country held events and sermons in support of the theory of evolution. Click here to learn more. The events were organized by DefCon advisory board member Michael Zimmerman, and garnered stories in the New York Times, Washington Post, and Chicago Tribune. The national coverage highlighted the events and the reality that, despite the agenda of the religious right, there is no contradiction between faith and science. DefCon Book Club Last week we announced the DefCon Book Club. The book club will be a monthly opportunity for you to join a DefCon advisory board member as they discuss a seminal book they have written on the religious right. Reflecting the broad expertise of our board members, the chats will focus on a wide variety of issues month to month. Our first chat will take place on March 17, featuring Esther Kaplan and her book With God on Their Side. Esther is a seasoned journalist and an emerging expert on the religious right. Her book catalogues the relationship between the religious right and the Bush administration, chronicling their role in Bush's victory in 2000 and their influence over current policy. The book can be purchased here. Please pick up a copy, and be sure to join us on March 17. These book club chats come on the heels of our successful chat last month with Erwin Chemerinsky and Kate Michelman, discussing Judge Samuel Alito. An archived version of the chat can be found here. Last But Not Least: New DefCon Logo We are pleased to announce that Andy Otis from Empax Design in New York is the official winner of the DefCon logo contest. We are also pleased that our members are far more creative than we could have ever imagined. We received nearly 70 competitive entries, and in the end picked Andy's for its simplicity and overall effectiveness. The new logo will be integrated into our website and other materials over the next few months. In the meantime, you can view the winner here, along with a select group of honorable mentions. Thank you for all your entries and hard work. 2006 is already shaping up to be an unprecedented year in our fight against the religious right. Keep up the amazing work, and as usual, stay tuned to DefConAmerica.org and the DefCon Blog for immediate updates. Your friends at DefConAmerica.org
© 2006 DefCon: Campaign to Defend the Constitution info@defconamerica.org