Asylum for German Homeschoolers

InsideCatholic.com is reporting that a German family (The Romeikes) that was facing all kinds of legal actions in Germany (including the confiscation of their chidlren for homeschooling) has received asylum here in the U.S.

From the InsideCatholic web site: After attempting to homeschool their children and being threatened with thousands in fines, jail time, and loss of custody of their kids, the Romeikes finally fled to the United States in 2008.Now their story has taken an interesting turn: A federal judge in Memphis has granted them political asylum in the States, on the grounds that they face persecution in their home country for their desire to homeschool — a reason that has rarely, if ever, been used in asylum cases before:

In a harshly worded decision, the judge, Lawrence O. Burman, denounced the German policy, calling it “utterly repellent to everything we believe as Americans,” and expressed shock at the heavy fines and other penalties the government has levied on home-schooling parents, including taking custody of their children.

Describing home-schoolers as a distinct group of people who have a “principled opposition to government policy,” he ruled that the Romeikes would face persecution both because of their religious beliefs and because they were “members of a particular social group,” two standards for granting asylum.

“It is definitely new,” said Prof. Philip G. Schrag, the director of Georgetown Law School’s asylum law program, who added that he had never heard of such a case. “What’s novel about the argument is the nature of the social group.”

But, he said, given the severity of the penalties that German home-schoolers potentially face, the judge’s decision “does not seem far outside the margin.”

This is good news for homeschoolers in the U.S. as well. This sets a bit of a prescident in the “You homeschoolers can’t educate your own children, so the state must do it for you,” department. By comparison, our U.S. education laws are quite libertarian!

For those who read and remember history (probably 35 years and older) it’s not too hard to see the “Hitler Youth” and State Control tactics that Germany is using on its people. The only real difference is that all the textbooks and materials in their schools aren’t geared towards worshiping the narcissist Hitler.

Good thing we’re not doing that here! (yet.)

BbB

England’s Homeschoolers: The Canary in the Mine

Read Linda Dobson’s post on the Canary in the mine. Her blog is called: Parent At The Helm.

England  has always been a little more hostile towards home education than the U. S. They just can’t believe that there are any non-credentialed person can possibly teach anything to anyone over there.

The attitude aside, what is happening over there is very likely to begin happening over here. I’m specifically speaking to the fact that representatives in government at all levels, are taking less and less advice from the people they represent. It doesn’t matter what We The People think about how we should be governed, it’s coming down to We The Elite know what’s best for You the (little) People.

We have one recent case where two moms were charged and found guilty of educational neglect for not filling out an attendance sheet (Yeah, I know there’s more to the story, but no one is tellin’ it.) and the new cries for legislation and regulation are going to roll on from there.

I can feel it. 2010 will be the year of the “Hunted Homeschooler.”