It would appear that this country no longer honors refuge to the downtrodden and repressed. Well, actually that is true only if the downtrodden and repressed are seeking LEGAL entry to the United States. Take the plight of German refugees Hannelore Romeike and his family for instance -
Briefly: The Romeikes fled to America from Germany in 2008 seeking asylum to escape the possibility their children would be taken away from them because they (the Romeikes) wanted to homeschool them rather than send them to a public school. They had withdrawn their children from public school because they were concerned that the educational material used by the school was undermining their Christian faith. The German Supreme Court has ruled that banning homeschooling is done to "counteract the development of religious and philosophically motivated parallel societies." After accumulating thousands of dollars in fines, police visits to their home and the threat of forcibly removing their children from their home, the Romeikes felt they had no choice but to leave their homeland and flee to America. The HSLDA (Home School Legal Defense Association) took up their cause filing an application for asylum which was sent directly to an immigration judge for a hearing. They continued to homeschool their children while waiting for a hearing date.
Two years later, on January 20, 2010, they went before the judge at which time a government attorney also appeared, did not supply a reply brief but gave an opposing argument as to why asylum should not be granted. HSLDA and the Romeikes testified how restricting their right to homeschool constituted persecution and the personal impact on them. Subsequently, the judge granted the Romeikes asylum because "homeschoolers were a persecuted particular social group in Germany, because the Romeikes' religious motivation impressed the judge, and because Germany's policy of persecuting homeschoolers would circumscribe the exercise of their faith".
Wonderful news? Yes, but wait - that decision has been appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit with the U.S. Government asking that their asylum be revoked. The reason? According to to U.S. AG Eric Holder's argument - parents have no fundamental right to home-educate their children. The hearing is scheduled for April 26, 2013.
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In my opinion: A decision in favor of the U.S. Attorney General's argument is a direct assault on the right of parental ability to raise our children in ways we see best for them and will ultimately affect millions of homeschoolers currently in America; it will also be a direct assault on religious freedom.
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For more details see:
http://www.hslda.com Seeking Refuge in the Land of Liberty
http://www.thehightide.com/1/category/homeschooling/
or search in the name of Romeikes
A petition on behalf of the Romeikes with over 100,000 signatures can be found on the government's website.
Briefly: The Romeikes fled to America from Germany in 2008 seeking asylum to escape the possibility their children would be taken away from them because they (the Romeikes) wanted to homeschool them rather than send them to a public school. They had withdrawn their children from public school because they were concerned that the educational material used by the school was undermining their Christian faith. The German Supreme Court has ruled that banning homeschooling is done to "counteract the development of religious and philosophically motivated parallel societies." After accumulating thousands of dollars in fines, police visits to their home and the threat of forcibly removing their children from their home, the Romeikes felt they had no choice but to leave their homeland and flee to America. The HSLDA (Home School Legal Defense Association) took up their cause filing an application for asylum which was sent directly to an immigration judge for a hearing. They continued to homeschool their children while waiting for a hearing date.
Two years later, on January 20, 2010, they went before the judge at which time a government attorney also appeared, did not supply a reply brief but gave an opposing argument as to why asylum should not be granted. HSLDA and the Romeikes testified how restricting their right to homeschool constituted persecution and the personal impact on them. Subsequently, the judge granted the Romeikes asylum because "homeschoolers were a persecuted particular social group in Germany, because the Romeikes' religious motivation impressed the judge, and because Germany's policy of persecuting homeschoolers would circumscribe the exercise of their faith".
Wonderful news? Yes, but wait - that decision has been appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit with the U.S. Government asking that their asylum be revoked. The reason? According to to U.S. AG Eric Holder's argument - parents have no fundamental right to home-educate their children. The hearing is scheduled for April 26, 2013.
****************************
In my opinion: A decision in favor of the U.S. Attorney General's argument is a direct assault on the right of parental ability to raise our children in ways we see best for them and will ultimately affect millions of homeschoolers currently in America; it will also be a direct assault on religious freedom.
*****************************
For more details see:
http://www.hslda.com Seeking Refuge in the Land of Liberty
http://www.thehightide.com/1/category/homeschooling/
or search in the name of Romeikes
A petition on behalf of the Romeikes with over 100,000 signatures can be found on the government's website.
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