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Social Worker Union Cites Homeschooling as Contributing to Child Abuse at Congressional Hearing
Home School Legal Defense Association ^ | HSLDA

Posted on 11/13/2003 10:53:23 AM PST by hsmomx3

On Thursday, November 6, 2003, the Human Resources Subcommittee of the United States House of Representatives' Ways and Means Committee, held a hearing to examine "a recent failure to protect child safety". The hearing was to investigate an alleged child abuse case in New Jersey involving the starvation of a family's adopted children and the subsequent dismissal of social workers who had been investigating the family but missed the alleged abuse. Accountability was the Committee's focus since in 2002, federal taxpayers provided the states $3.1 billion to support children in adoptive and foster settings, and an additional $2.8 billion in administrative funding to help vulnerable children.

Prior to this hearing, HSLDA contacted the Chairman of the Committee, Rep. Wally Herger of California, to inform him that the family at issue was reported to be a homeschooling family, that certain legislators in New Jersey had cited this case as highlighting a need to pursue new regulations on homeschooling (see http://www.hslda.org/elert/archive/2003/10/20031029171258.asp), and why this call for new regulations was in error. Our efforts were not in vain.

Carla Katz, the president of the Communications Workers of America, a union representing social workers in New Jersey testified at the hearing. In her remarks, President Katz stated the following: "Home schooling creates gaps. Nearly 20% of all abuse cases are reported by schools. When children are outside the school system, extra protections are critical. There are no home schooling regulations that would require homeschooled children to see anyone from the public education system. There is no cross-referencing with the Department of Education to look for children who are in the 'system' but have not been seen by anyone."

Fortunately, the hearing did not turn in the direction of whether homeschooling is in need of further regulation. Chairman Herger kept the Committee on its principal task of investigating the use of taxpayer funds and did not develop the homeschooling issue.

At the core of the union's position is that homeschoolers should have greater involvement with the public school system in order to catch child abuse. But this is not the function of the public schools. It has long been held that the government's legitimate constitutional interest in education is literacy and self-sufficiency, not to detect child abuse. Wisconsin v. Yoder 406 U.S. 205 (1972). Moreover, it has been long understood that the government may not require all students to be required to be a part of the public school system, as children are not "mere creatures of the state". Pierce v. Society of Sisters 268 U.S. 510 (1925). Even though some parents might abuse children, it is still a presumption in America that parents act in the best interests of children. Parham v. J.R., 442 U.S. 584 (1979).

As the recent CBS series on homeschooling demonstrated (http://www.hslda.org/docs/news/hslda/200310/200310230.asp), there is a growing trend to link homeschooling with child abuse. This trend poses a significant threat to homeschool freedom. Should it be accepted, it will pave the way for significant homeschool regulations. HSLDA will be working with Congress to make sure that the truth is presented in the final record of this hearing. Thank you for standing with us for homeschool freedom.


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: antifamily; cps; governmentschools; homeschooling; hslda; marxist; publicschools; socialist; socialworkerunion; tyranny; wardofthestate
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1 posted on 11/13/2003 10:53:23 AM PST by hsmomx3
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To: hsmomx3
Should it be accepted, it will pave the way for significant homeschool regulations.

This will defintely happen unless homeschoolers unite, organize and fight

2 posted on 11/13/2003 10:56:57 AM PST by apackof2 (Watch and pray till you see Him coming, no one knows the hour or the day)
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To: hsmomx3
How low can they go?

Actually I don't wanna know.

I think that if I have childen, I will enroll them in a nice conservative private school. But now I think I just might homeschool them just to annoy the libs.
3 posted on 11/13/2003 10:58:22 AM PST by Killborn (Half Thai, Half American, 95% Conservative, 100% Insane)
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To: hsmomx3
Social workers contribute to child abuse.
4 posted on 11/13/2003 10:58:42 AM PST by Dr. Eckleburg (There are very few shades of gray.)
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To: hsmomx3
"At the core of the union's position is that homeschoolers should have greater involvement with the public school system in order to catch child abuse."

Homeschoolers don't want greater involvement in the public school system in order to avoid child abuse.

5 posted on 11/13/2003 11:01:37 AM PST by anniegetyourgun
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To: apackof2
This will defintely happen unless homeschoolers unite, organize and fight

You'd better consider putting together some kind of organization to lobby on behalf of your interests on the state and federal level. If you guys think you're not going to end up tarred and feathered like divorced fathers have been, you need to wake up, get organized and put some money into some legislators.

6 posted on 11/13/2003 11:04:21 AM PST by Orangedog (Soccer-Moms are the biggest threat to your freedoms and the republic !)
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To: hsmomx3
In the NJ case, social workers were at the home 38 times in two years. Why didn't they ask about the children's home schooling? I also read that one of the boys stole students' lunches and vomited constantly. I wonder if the school authorities suggested to the parents that they should "homeschool"? I would love to know that.

It would not have mattered if those kids were in public school or not. The results, as far as checking up on them, would have been the same.
7 posted on 11/13/2003 11:06:01 AM PST by ladylib
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To: Orangedog
There is a lobby/organization: HSLDA (home school legal defense association) It is pretty solid.

Gum

8 posted on 11/13/2003 11:07:09 AM PST by ChewedGum (http://king-of-fools.com)
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To: hsmomx3
There are no home schooling regulations that would require homeschooled children to see anyone from the public education system. There is no cross-referencing with the Department of Education to look for children who are in the 'system' but have not been seen by anyone."

Isn't the whole point of homeschooling, to keep your kids out of the government's clutches?

I'm getting pretty fed up with the school system in my town. Maybe I should look into homeschooling. Better than dealing with Nazis...

9 posted on 11/13/2003 11:07:53 AM PST by TheSpottedOwl (I held my nose and voted for Arnold)
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To: hsmomx3
One of the world's biggest lies: We're from the government and we only want to help you.
10 posted on 11/13/2003 11:09:12 AM PST by Blood of Tyrants (Even if the government took all your earnings, you wouldn’t be, in its eyes, a slave.)
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To: hsmomx3
What nonsense!

Incidentally, yesterday and today The Washington Times reported about a student in Montgomery County, Maryland. She received a grade card, with two As, one in a tough honors-level geometry course. The problems is that she never went to class, was never even enrolled at Sherwood High. Only her physics teacher noted that she hadn't been to class and gave her a NC.

11 posted on 11/13/2003 11:32:06 AM PST by Dante3
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To: hsmomx3
INTREP - LIBERAL WHINING ALERT!
12 posted on 11/13/2003 12:07:20 PM PST by LiteKeeper
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To: hsmomx3
"homeschooling contributes to child abuse?" funny the nuns beating the hell-out-of-us were never called "child abusers" just "disciplinarians" LOL and if we complained to our parents they would just send us back to school to tell the nuns to beat us some more LOL...yea, homeschooling contributes to child abuse like living contributes to dying...the longer you live, the sooner you will die...
13 posted on 11/13/2003 12:12:36 PM PST by kellynla ("C" 1/5 1st Mar Div. Viet Nam 69 &70 Semper Fi!)
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To: Orangedog
The head of HSLDA met with President Bush recently:

http://hslda.org/docs/news/hslda/200311/200311100.asp

Homeschool Legal Defense is not only interested in homeschooling rights but in any type of legislation that would impact negatively on the family or usurp parental authority.
14 posted on 11/13/2003 12:14:33 PM PST by ladylib
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To: hsmomx3; scripter
BTTT

read later...
15 posted on 11/13/2003 12:17:38 PM PST by EdReform (Support Free Republic - Become a Monthly Donor)
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To: hsmomx3
They need to be 'freeped'
Spread the word to your homeschooling groups!

Here's the main addy and #'s:

Communications Workers of America
501 3rd St., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20001-2797
202/434-1100, fax: 202/434-1279

Here's for the District in NJ:

District 1
(CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, RI, VT)
80 Pine St., 37th Floor
New York, NY 10005
212/344-2515, fax: 212/425-2947
Larry Mancino, Vice President

Here is the url with e-mail contacts:
http://www.cwa-union.org/about/contact.asp


16 posted on 11/13/2003 12:30:13 PM PST by Born in a Rage
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To: Dante3
I wish someone would walk into one of these meetings armed with the articles about kids in public schools. They would certainly outweigh any reports of "abuse" by homeschooling parents.
17 posted on 11/13/2003 1:15:19 PM PST by hsmomx3 (Want higher taxes? Don't move to Arizona.)
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To: EdReform; latina4dubya
Thanks for the ping and another ping (gotta ping the wife to this one).
18 posted on 11/13/2003 4:00:58 PM PST by scripter (Thousands have left the homosexual lifestyle)
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To: hsmomx3
The hearing was to investigate an alleged child abuse case in New Jersey involving the starvation of a family's adopted children and the subsequent dismissal of social workers who had been investigating the family but missed the alleged abuse

That's right.....the GOVERNMENT had been investigating this family and somehow didn't clue in on the abuse, and the solution is to go after homeschooling.

19 posted on 11/13/2003 4:14:19 PM PST by Lizavetta
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To: hsmomx3
NY Times editorial on making homeschooling safe for children:

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/15/opinion/15SAT4.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd%2fEditorials

Editorial mentions that concerned teachers would certainly called DYFS. Conveniently fails to mention that social workers were in the Jackson home 38 times in two years.
20 posted on 11/15/2003 3:37:43 PM PST by ladylib
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