Mel and Norma Gabler
Encyclopedia
Melvin Nolan Freeman Gabler (January 5, 1915 - December 19, 2004) and his wife, Norma Elizabeth Rhodes Gabler (June 16, 1923 - July 22, 2007) were campaigners against public school textbook
s which they regarded as "anti-family" or "anti-Christian
".
The couple began their work in 1961 at their kitchen
table in Hawkins
, a small town in Wood County
in northeastern Texas
, after they claimed to have uncovered numerous errors in a son's history
text. They established the nonprofit organization
, Educational Research Analysts
, a conservative Christian
interest group based in Longview
, the seat of Gregg County
in east Texas.
Educational Research Analysts claims to uncover factual errors and examples of secular humanism
, or the censorship
of conservative political or social views in textbooks. Neal Frey, who worked with the Gablers (or, as Norma Gabler insisted they be called, "the Mel Gablers") since 1972 and now runs the organization, said that the Gablers' network of national supporters was invaluable to the cause. The organization has had national impact because Texas is second to California
in population
and is one of twenty-two states with a textbook-approval process which influences decisions made by other smaller states. Frey said that Mrs. Gabler’s larger public role was deceptive. "Mr. Gabler wore the pants in that family, and Mrs. Gabler wanted it that way", he said in an interview
Mel Gabler claimed much modern education was designed to undermine traditional, moral absolutist education with a viewpoint
based on moral relativism
: "Allowing a student to come to his own conclusion about abstracts and concepts creates frustration. Ideas, situation ethics
, values, anti-God humanism - that's what the schools are teaching. And concepts. Well, a concept will never do anyone as much good as a fact". The Gablers also claimed humanism as a
"religion" that taught ideas such as evolution
, sex education
, internationalism
and an optimistic view of human nature
. According to writer Randy Moore, in addition to opposing textbooks that taught evolution, the
Gablers also objected to "statements about religions other than Christianity
, statements emphasizing
contributions by minorities
, and statements critical of slave owners."
The Gablers were "volunteer workers", according to the organization website. Mrs. Gabler, however, often traveled to Austin
to present her case against some textbooks. Son Jim Gabler of Phoenix, Arizona
, recalled that his father was a behind-the-scenes force in the organization, while his mother handled public relations
. "They made a real good tandem pair. My dad was very thorough, and really my mother was more the extrovert", he told the Longview News-Journal.
Famously, in 1973, they criticized a fifth-grade American history text that devoted more attention to Marilyn Monroe
than to George Washington
. “We’re not quite ready for Marilyn Monroe as the mother of our country”, Mrs. Gabler said at the time. In the 1970s, the couple had a major impact on the textbook riots in Kanawha County, West Virginia
.
In 2001, Time
magazine
reported that the Gablers' "scroll of shame" of textbook mistakes since 1961 was fifty-four feet long. They even once found a book which claimed that U.S. President Harry Truman ordered atomic weapons to end the Korean War
. In the early 1990s, Texas fined publishers about $1 million for failing to remove hundreds of factual errors that the Gablers had found in eleven history books . Some publishers even sent drafts of textbooks to the Gablers for their pre-clearance so as to avoid costly delays and challenges to being included on the state-approved list.
One result of the Gablers' organization was reflected in 2004 when several publishers of health
textbooks defined
"marriage
" as a "lifelong union between a man and a woman". They also insisted that textbooks refer to the Reagan administration's 1983 military intervention in Grenada
as a "rescue", not an "invasion".
Some of their objections were aimed at the story of Robin Hood
on the grounds that it sanctioned stealing and a history textbook that says, "The law that allowed slavery
in America was wrong, so people could break the law." on the grounds that the statement encourages insubordination
.
, a University of Minnesota
biology
professor, said that Mel Gabler was "a dishonest old man who reviewed biology textbooks through the lens of his own stupidity and religious prejudice, and he was darned good at it."
Myers also criticized the Texas Board of Education for "taking Gabler seriously" . Myers noted that unlike many Young Earth Creationists who claim to make a distinction between "microevolution" (which they acknowledge) and "macroevolution" (which they do not) the Gablers explicitly rejected microevolution as well. Critics often noted that neither of the Gablers had college
degrees, although Mel Gabler attended college for one year.
, near Dallas. Melvin Nolan Freeman "Mel" Gabler worked in the oil
fields, served in the United States Army Air Corps
during World War II
, and was a clerk for thirty-nine years for Esso
, now part of Exxon-Mobil, until he retired in 1974. He later opened a Christian
drive-in theater
. The couple married in 1942. Melvin Gabler died at the age of eighty-nine of a brain hemorrhage after falling at his home.
in 2005. She was on the association board until her death, but health problems had rendered her unable to be involved actively for the last two years of her life. She moved to Phoenix early in 2007 to be near Jim during her illness. She died at the Biltmore Assisted Living Facility in Phoenix.
In addition to James, who lives in Phoenix, Mrs. Gabler is survived by another son, Paul, of Houston, and six grandchildren.
's 60 Minutes, ABC
's 20/20 (twice in 1999), ABC's World News Tonight, the former syndicated Phil Donahue Show (3 times), ABC's Nightline, NBC
's
Today, CNN
's The Freeman Report, PBS
's The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour, CBS's Morning News, PBS's former Firing Line with William F. Buckley, Jr.
, Jerry Falwell
's Old-Time Gospel Hour and CNN's former Crossfire
with Patrick J. Buchanan.
After Mel Gabler's death, columnist
Gary North wrote that if one wants "a model of what the 'little guy' can do, begin with the Gablers."
Textbook
A textbook or coursebook is a manual of instruction in any branch of study. Textbooks are produced according to the demands of educational institutions...
s which they regarded as "anti-family" or "anti-Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
".
The couple began their work in 1961 at their kitchen
Kitchen
A kitchen is a room or part of a room used for cooking and food preparation.In the West, a modern residential kitchen is typically equipped with a stove, a sink with hot and cold running water, a refrigerator and kitchen cabinets arranged according to a modular design. Many households have a...
table in Hawkins
Hawkins, Texas
Hawkins is a city in Wood County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,331 at the 2000 census. A post office was established in Hawkins in 1873.-Geography:Hawkins is located at ....
, a small town in Wood County
Wood County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 36,752 people, 14,583 households, and 10,645 families residing in the county. The population density was 56 people per square mile . There were 17,939 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...
in northeastern Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, after they claimed to have uncovered numerous errors in a son's history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
text. They established the nonprofit organization
Nonprofit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
, Educational Research Analysts
Educational Research Analysts
Educational Research Analysts is an organization based in Longview, Texas in the United States, founded by the late Mel and Norma Gabler to monitor public school textbooks....
, a conservative Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
interest group based in Longview
Longview, Texas
Longview is a city in Gregg and Harrison Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 80,455. Most of the city is located in Gregg County, of which it is the county seat; only a small part extends into the western part of neighboring Harrison County. It is...
, the seat of Gregg County
Gregg County, Texas
There were 42,687 households out of which 33.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.00% were married couples living together, 13.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.50% were non-families. 26.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.50% had...
in east Texas.
Educational Research Analysts claims to uncover factual errors and examples of secular humanism
Secular humanism
Secular Humanism, alternatively known as Humanism , is a secular philosophy that embraces human reason, ethics, justice, and the search for human fulfillment...
, or the censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
of conservative political or social views in textbooks. Neal Frey, who worked with the Gablers (or, as Norma Gabler insisted they be called, "the Mel Gablers") since 1972 and now runs the organization, said that the Gablers' network of national supporters was invaluable to the cause. The organization has had national impact because Texas is second to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
and is one of twenty-two states with a textbook-approval process which influences decisions made by other smaller states. Frey said that Mrs. Gabler’s larger public role was deceptive. "Mr. Gabler wore the pants in that family, and Mrs. Gabler wanted it that way", he said in an interview
Mel Gabler claimed much modern education was designed to undermine traditional, moral absolutist education with a viewpoint
based on moral relativism
Moral relativism
Moral relativism may be any of several descriptive, meta-ethical, or normative positions. Each of them is concerned with the differences in moral judgments across different people and cultures:...
: "Allowing a student to come to his own conclusion about abstracts and concepts creates frustration. Ideas, situation ethics
Situation ethics
Situational ethics, or situation ethics, is a Christian ethical theory that was principally developed in the 1960s by the then Episcopal priest Joseph Fletcher...
, values, anti-God humanism - that's what the schools are teaching. And concepts. Well, a concept will never do anyone as much good as a fact". The Gablers also claimed humanism as a
"religion" that taught ideas such as evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
, sex education
Sex education
Sex education refers to formal programs of instruction on a wide range of issues relating to human sexuality, including human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, reproductive health, emotional relations, reproductive rights and responsibilities, abstinence, contraception, and...
, internationalism
Internationalism (politics)
Internationalism is a political movement which advocates a greater economic and political cooperation among nations for the theoretical benefit of all...
and an optimistic view of human nature
Human nature
Human nature refers to the distinguishing characteristics, including ways of thinking, feeling and acting, that humans tend to have naturally....
. According to writer Randy Moore, in addition to opposing textbooks that taught evolution, the
Gablers also objected to "statements about religions other than Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, statements emphasizing
contributions by minorities
Minority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
, and statements critical of slave owners."
The Gablers were "volunteer workers", according to the organization website. Mrs. Gabler, however, often traveled to Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
to present her case against some textbooks. Son Jim Gabler of Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
, recalled that his father was a behind-the-scenes force in the organization, while his mother handled public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
. "They made a real good tandem pair. My dad was very thorough, and really my mother was more the extrovert", he told the Longview News-Journal.
Famously, in 1973, they criticized a fifth-grade American history text that devoted more attention to Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
than to George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
. “We’re not quite ready for Marilyn Monroe as the mother of our country”, Mrs. Gabler said at the time. In the 1970s, the couple had a major impact on the textbook riots in Kanawha County, West Virginia
Kanawha County textbook controversy
The Kanawha County textbook controversy was a violent school control struggle in the 20th century United States. It led to the largest protests ever in the history of the county, the shooting of one bystander, and extended school closings.-School Board Ruling:...
.
In 2001, Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
reported that the Gablers' "scroll of shame" of textbook mistakes since 1961 was fifty-four feet long. They even once found a book which claimed that U.S. President Harry Truman ordered atomic weapons to end the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
. In the early 1990s, Texas fined publishers about $1 million for failing to remove hundreds of factual errors that the Gablers had found in eleven history books . Some publishers even sent drafts of textbooks to the Gablers for their pre-clearance so as to avoid costly delays and challenges to being included on the state-approved list.
One result of the Gablers' organization was reflected in 2004 when several publishers of health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
textbooks defined
"marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
" as a "lifelong union between a man and a woman". They also insisted that textbooks refer to the Reagan administration's 1983 military intervention in Grenada
Grenada
Grenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
as a "rescue", not an "invasion".
Some of their objections were aimed at the story of Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
on the grounds that it sanctioned stealing and a history textbook that says, "The law that allowed slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
in America was wrong, so people could break the law." on the grounds that the statement encourages insubordination
Insubordination
Insubordination is the act of willfully disobeying an authority. Refusing to perform an action that is unethical or illegal is not insubordination; neither is refusing to perform an action that is not within the scope of authority of the person issuing the order.Insubordination is typically a...
.
Criticism
Many people were alarmed at the activities of the Gablers. PZ MyersPZ Myers
Paul Zachary "PZ" Myers is an American biology professor at the University of Minnesota Morris and the author of the Pharyngula science blog. He is currently an associate professor of biology at UMM, works with zebrafish in the field of evolutionary developmental biology , and also cultivates an...
, a University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
professor, said that Mel Gabler was "a dishonest old man who reviewed biology textbooks through the lens of his own stupidity and religious prejudice, and he was darned good at it."
Myers also criticized the Texas Board of Education for "taking Gabler seriously" . Myers noted that unlike many Young Earth Creationists who claim to make a distinction between "microevolution" (which they acknowledge) and "macroevolution" (which they do not) the Gablers explicitly rejected microevolution as well. Critics often noted that neither of the Gablers had college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
degrees, although Mel Gabler attended college for one year.
Backgrounds
Norma Elizabeth Rhodes was born in Garrett, TexasGarrett, Texas
Garrett is a town in Ellis County, Texas, United States. The population was 448 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Garrett is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land....
, near Dallas. Melvin Nolan Freeman "Mel" Gabler worked in the oil
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
fields, served in the United States Army Air Corps
United States Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps was a forerunner of the United States Air Force. Renamed from the Air Service on 2 July 1926, it was part of the United States Army and the predecessor of the United States Army Air Forces , established in 1941...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and was a clerk for thirty-nine years for Esso
Esso
Esso is an international trade name for ExxonMobil and its related companies. Pronounced , it is derived from the initials of the pre-1911 Standard Oil, and as such became the focus of much litigation and regulatory restriction in the United States. In 1972, it was largely replaced in the U.S. by...
, now part of Exxon-Mobil, until he retired in 1974. He later opened a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
drive-in theater
Drive-in theater
A drive-in theater is a form of cinema structure consisting of a large outdoor screen, a projection booth, a concession stand and a large parking area for automobiles. Within this enclosed area, customers can view movies from the privacy and comfort of their cars.The screen can be as simple as a...
. The couple married in 1942. Melvin Gabler died at the age of eighty-nine of a brain hemorrhage after falling at his home.
Norma Gabler's death
Mrs. Gabler was diagnosed with vascular Parkinson's diseaseParkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
in 2005. She was on the association board until her death, but health problems had rendered her unable to be involved actively for the last two years of her life. She moved to Phoenix early in 2007 to be near Jim during her illness. She died at the Biltmore Assisted Living Facility in Phoenix.
In addition to James, who lives in Phoenix, Mrs. Gabler is survived by another son, Paul, of Houston, and six grandchildren.
Televised appearances
Over the years the Gablers became well-known nationally for their activist conservative strategy. They appeared on such television programs as CBSCBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's 60 Minutes, ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's 20/20 (twice in 1999), ABC's World News Tonight, the former syndicated Phil Donahue Show (3 times), ABC's Nightline, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's
Today, CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
's The Freeman Report, PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
's The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour, CBS's Morning News, PBS's former Firing Line with William F. Buckley, Jr.
William F. Buckley, Jr.
William Frank Buckley, Jr. was an American conservative author and commentator. He founded the political magazine National Review in 1955, hosted 1,429 episodes of the television show Firing Line from 1966 until 1999, and was a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist. His writing was noted for...
, Jerry Falwell
Jerry Falwell
Jerry Lamon Falwell, Sr. was an evangelical fundamentalist Southern Baptist pastor, televangelist, and a conservative commentator from the United States. He was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church, a megachurch in Lynchburg, Virginia...
's Old-Time Gospel Hour and CNN's former Crossfire
Crossfire (TV series)
Crossfire was a current events debate television program that aired from 1982 to 2005 on CNN. Its format was designed to present and challenge the opinions of a politically liberal pundit and a conservative pundit.-Format:...
with Patrick J. Buchanan.
After Mel Gabler's death, columnist
Columnist
A columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....
Gary North wrote that if one wants "a model of what the 'little guy' can do, begin with the Gablers."
Further reading
- Jo Lee Ferguson, "Norma Gabler: She helped change the way books are adopted", Longview News-Journal, July 27, 2007
External links
- BP news
- NY Times obituary for Norma Gabler
- Obituary for Norma Gabler
- Washington Post obit for Norma Gabler
- CWFA.org
- Textbookreviews.org
- Lew Rockwell.com
- Eagle Forum official website
- Scienceblogs.com
- Time magazine
- PZ Myers' summary of Gablers anti-evolution arguments, with links to refutation of the Gablers' arguments