Posted on 03/05/2008 4:16:01 PM PST by wagglebee
LOS ANGELES, March 5, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Thousands of homeschoolers in California are left in legal limbo by an appeals court ruling that homeschooling is not a legal option in the state and that a family who has homeschooled all their children for years must enrol their two youngest in state or private schools. Justice H. Walter Croskey in a written opinion said, "California courts have held that under provisions in the Education Code, parents do not have a constitutional right to homeschool their children."
The sweeping February 29th ruling says that California law requires "persons between the ages of six and eighteen" to be in "public full-time day school," or a "private full-time day school" or "instructed by a tutor who holds a valid state teaching credential for the grade being taught".
The two youngest of Phillip and Mary Long's eight children must be enrolled in a state approved school. Phillip Long told WorldNetDaily, "We just don't want them teaching our children. They teach things that are totally contrary to what we believe. They put questions in our children's minds we don't feel they're ready for."
Mr. Long cited the state curriculum's inclusion of sex education, including its promotion of homosexuality as a normal lifestyle. "When they are much more mature, they can deal with these issues, alternative lifestyles, and such, or whether they came from primordial slop. At the present time it's my job to teach them the correct way of thinking," he said.
The Los Angeles-area family was targeted by Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services after one of the children reported "physical and emotional mistreatment by the children's father," according to documents submitted to the court.
The 2nd Appellate Court in Los Angeles agreed with the trial court decision that had found, "keeping the children at home deprived them of situations where they could interact with people outside the family".
"There are people who could provide help if something is amiss in the children's lives, and they could develop emotionally in a broader world than the parents' 'cloistered' setting," the ruling said.
Michael Smith, president of the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA), said in a March 3 statement that the organization "strongly disputes this interpretation of California law" and is studying the decision.
The group called the ruling "a very bad decision" saying, "the opinion holds that homeschooling is not a legal option in California."
"If the opinion is followed, then California will have the most regressive law in the nation and homeschooling will be effectively banned, because the only legal way to homeschool will be for the parent to hold a teaching certificate. Parents should not have to attend a four-year college education program just to teach their own children."
Smith added, "California is now on the path to being the only state to deny the vast majority of homeschooling parents their fundamental right to teach their own children at home."
Read related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Back to School: Organization Gives Reasons to Consider Homeschooling
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/aug/06082407.html
Home Schoolers Concerned Over New Ontario Compulsory Attendance Law
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/feb/06020301.html
Three More Families Appeal for Help as Germany Continues Crackdown on Homeschooling Families
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/apr/07041609.html
Good. Thinking about it, that reduces the population of California, which after the census reduces the electoral college votes and congressional seats. Meanwhile it makes the other states people move to more conservative and more populated (more congressional seats and more electoral college votes). The insane left policies will then hurt California's economy further causing more out migration etc. . . .
We need freedom of association directly and explicitely in the Constitution. Need to take a serious look at adding to the Bill of Rights.
Ex-military, Presbyterian Elder. Not the judge I would have expected to right this opinion.
Second child was homeschooled from 1995-2001. Much easier then, especially using the umbrella concept.
Some parents in our umbrella group filed their affidavits anyway, even though technically they didn't have to. And some of these families did get some contacts from the school district. But everyone belonged to the HSLDA, and that seemed to stop the harassment.
More power to you. Something you should feel good about — winning the good fight.
The state of Texas tried to regulate home schools back in 1986.
Thousands of parents stormed the state capital in what was called the “Austin TEA Party”!
Read: A Home School History Lesson
http://www.thsc.org/about_us/hs_history_lesson.asp
(Public schools should be made illegal!)
That said, the real problem is not public education, but the access public education gives government into the family. This is exactly like what Orwell envisioned in 1984 where children would be indoctrinated and spy on their parents for "crimes against the state"--but this is turned up a notch because the Left believes their vision of government is religious, so it becomes an Inquisition.
Thanks for the ping. This ruling makes me ill.
It's for real.
For the time being, the decision affects four counties in the Los Angeles metro area. Sunland Christian School, says the Pacific Justice Institute, has been in full compliance with the requirements of California law for more than 20 years.
Take it to SCOTUS...
Oh really? Then I should start seeing stories about kids being forcibly taken to public schools...when exactly?
This is bullsh!t.
btt
All the homeschool parents who file R-4 affidavits, on the advice of CHN and HSLDA and whoever else, do so yearly because they are continuously told it’s the only “legal” way to homeschool in California.
Now that this court has said this bunch of dreck, I feel for those parents who need to wake up. I hope and pray that this is an eye-opener for as many as possible.
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They won't. No matter how much of a threat the government school indoctrination is to freedom's survival, these 2 will likely **not** cover this important story.
Most of their audience is completely and totally addicted to government school babysitting. They are not going to offend their listeners.
Hannity’s kids go to private schools. Rush has no kids and likely isn't interested in school stuff or doesn't feel competent to comment.
These two will definitely not cover SB 777. Hey! They were the people who shilled for Schwarzenegger's election! Also, they don't want the homosexual activists attacking them. I'm certain these two are well aware of what happened to Dr. Laura.
My guess is that depends upon a whole range of factors: how adventurous are the local bureaucrats, whether the State Supremes put a stay on the ruling pending a hearing, or even a a statement on the ruling from the State Superintendent of Public Instruction. In other words, that's up in the air. It is clear that our options as home educators have been infringed.
What you apparently don't know is the many fronts on which such actions have suddenly appeared. For example: VERY few public schools are now willing to allow their phone numbers to be released by the College Board so that home educators can arrange for proctoring of the AP tests. The action was both sudden and coordinated. Both College Board and those offering the test are expressing surprise to me.
I have two kids under sixteen ready for AP Calculus BC who have been posting college level work since they were 12. The battle is on.
Government schools are a First Amendment abomination! They have been from their inception! They must be abolished because their fundamental foundation and premise is flawed. It is for this reason they can never be reformed.
The government threatens children and parents with armed police, court, and foster care action and forces children into a prison-like setting for 180 days of the year. These children have committed no crime, yet are treated like prisoners.
They are told to shut up for most of the day. (violation of free speech.)
They can not publish or distribute their written beliefs freely. ( Violation of free press)
The government strictly determines with whom the children will associate. ( Violation of free assembly)
The child is forbidden from speaking freely about, or practicing freely his religion. ( violation of free exercise of religion)
And,,,Finally, the education of children is **NEVER** religiously neutral. It is impossible to have a religiously neutral education! No matter what the government decides, the government WILL **establish** the religious worldview of some and utterly trash the most precious religious traditions of others. ( violation of the establishment clause).
In some ways prisoners who have been convicted of real crime are treated better than children ( who have not committed any crime). Prisoners are not segregated by age, and their communities are more economically and culturally diverse. Also, prisoners ( unlike children in government indoctrination centers) are not subjected to non-stop proselytizing in the government established religion of atheistic Secular Humanism.
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I am not at all surprised! What a whimp!!!
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