A Family Fights for Freedom
Dear Friends,
A very important court case
is scheduled before the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on April 23 -
Romeike v. Holder. This case should give each of us concern since it
deals with government's intrusion upon parental roles. Uwe and Hannelore
Romeike are from Germany and have six beautiful children.
The Romeikes decided to
homeschool their children instead of sending them to a government-run
school; however, this practice was not in accord with German law. When
the Romeikes removed their three oldest children from the government-run
school in 2006, police showed up at their house within 24 hours. If not
for the support of friends and neighbors who organized a protest, the
Romeikes would have been arrested and possibly would have lost custody
of their children. If this threat were not grave enough, the German
government burdened the family with heavy fines. In 2010, a judge
granted the Romeikes permanent asylum in the United States based on a
violation of their human rights; however, in 2012, U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement appealed the asylum decision. The Obama
administration, through Attorney General Eric Holder, is trying to have
the Romeikes deported.
In the age of "the sequester," apparently some things are just too important not to pursue for this administration.
Note that according to the
German Supreme Court its ban on homeschooling was to prevent the
"development of religious and philosophically motivated societies." The
law actually dates back to 1918, and though it was exploited to obvious
effect by Hitler, it has survived the nation's efforts to purge its
totalitarian structures. In other words, the German government wants to
prevent those who might think differently than the government on
religious and philosophical grounds from developing into a contrary
influence in German society.
These are the seeds of totalitarianism.
The U.S. government contends
that parents' ability to educate their children is not a human rights
issue and contests the granting of political asylum based on this
assumption. One argument made by the government is
that the Romeikes failed to clearly show that there was any
discrimination based on religion. Another is that the Romeikes failed to
prove that all homeschoolers were religious and that not all Christians
believed they had to homeschool. In doing so, the administration is
relying on EU law over US Constitutional law, as Robert Knight points out.
Given the assaults on
religious freedom by this administration over the last few years, it is
easy to see the sleight of hand they employ here. The current
administration rejects the idea that religious freedom is a basic human
right. It fails to acknowledge the right of a parent to determine what a
child shall be taught and/or not taught.
In addition to the obvious
continued assault on religious freedom, this troubling story is
important because it reveals the growing trend toward downplaying the
role of parents in the rearing of their children. This trend would
suggest that it is the state's, not the parents', role to rear children,
as was the case in pre-WWII Germany.
It has become customary
across the world for the state to offer public education, and there is
nothing wrong with this in principle. But when government education
becomes an instrument of suppression of freedom and basic human rights,
it is no longer justified. Government-controlled programs that dictate
what children learn and who should be teaching them can be an insidious
tool, especially when the government is increasingly unaccountable to
the governed. The result of such forced compliance is the acceleration
of radical secularism, the marginalization of people of faith, and a
further erosion of the family and parents' rights to be the primary
educators of their children.
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
[A]s those first responsible for the education of their
children, parents have the right to choose a school for them which
corresponds to their own convictions. This right is fundamental. As far
as possible parents have the duty of choosing schools that will best
help them in their task as Christian educators. Public authorities have
the duty of guaranteeing this parental right and of ensuring the
concrete conditions for its exercise. (CCC 2229)
The Romeike's situation
should cause each of grave concern. Imagine the state or one of its
agencies mandating what your children or grandchildren will learn in
school, even if it is against your faith and moral principles. Indeed,
for many this is no longer just a hypothetical concern.
Whether or not
religious motivation was the primary reason the Romeikes were seeking to
homeschool their children, we should take serious note of their
dilemma. The individual rights of parents are being usurped by
governmental intrusion and we should not take these threats lightly.
Father Shenan J. Boquet
President, Human Life International
