While the Obama administration does everything it can to legalize millions of illegal aliens in America, he is seeking to deport a homeschooling family from Germany.
The Romeikes are an evangelical Christian homeschooling family who were forced to flee Germany a few years ago after police officers there raided their house and dragged their children off to public schools. The Romeike’s have six children.
Understandably, after such a horrible incident, the Romeikes sought asylum in America where they could have freedom of religion and educate their children at home if they wished. They were originally granted refugee status and allowed to stay but now the Justice Department is attempting to revoke the Romeike’s status and attempting to deport the family. The Justice Department is saying that Germany’s ban on homeschooling doesn’t violate the Romeikes’ human rights.
This is a family that came to America seeking freedom and they’re being deported. They’re being told by the Obama administration that police forcing their children into government-run secular schools is not a violation of their human rights.
The Black Sphere points out that one of the arguments proffered by the government should frighten the heck out of parents everywhere.
In its appeal, the ICE argued that the United States government does in fact have the authority to prohibit homeschooling. While this assertion alone should send chills up the back of every homeschool family, it shouldn’t necessarily surprise us. For years, statists have been trying to loosen the parental grip on children and herd them into the “collective” (channeling MSNBC’s Melissa Harris-Perry).
This is distressing news.
This should not come as a surprise to anyone who has been paying attention to the value that the Obama administration puts on religious freedom. But keep the Romeikes’ in your prayers.
April 26, 2013 at 4:25 am
Unlike Borg assimilation, our distinctiveness will not be added to the collective. They just want such distinctiveness dead and gone. I think I would rather be Borg. At least there would be a few homeschooling voices bouncing around in my head, the last vestiges Western liberal learning.
April 26, 2013 at 6:07 am
….I ask,
….why Obama? why?
….these people, unlike (scandalous) you!,
….are decent!….we "WANT" them here!
….NOT FUTURE JIHADISTS!
….please,…get your head on straight!
….when are you going to stop looking like a complete idiot?
….oops,…..probably never, forgot about your past drug use and your compromised brain cells!
April 26, 2013 at 6:33 am
We just sigh and pray. I am fearful for my children's future, but I find hope and comfort in The One who sustains me.
April 26, 2013 at 2:08 pm
These aren't the kind of people who are welcome here. Obamas America prefers importing radical Islamists and their perfidious nature to redefine this country. Christian homeschoolers with integrity…there's no place for that. W don't want what built this country…apparently, we want what destroys it.
April 26, 2013 at 2:14 pm
Unlawful abduction and detention of minors from custody of their parents. Egregious breach of natural and constitutional right to opinion, conscience, religion, and to freedom of expression. The ECHR has become completely politicised with a progressive agenda regarding interpretation of human rights and national autonomy.
April 26, 2013 at 3:00 pm
It's time for the 'silent majority' to make a big noise!
Why aren't large groups of people protesting this?
KM
April 26, 2013 at 3:38 pm
If having your children roped from your home because you homeschool isn't a violation of human rights, I don't know what is.
April 26, 2013 at 4:51 pm
I find the situation and the rhetoric highly upsetting so i decided to do some more digging. I found this blog post from a homeschooling American who has lived in Germany while her husband was stationed there. It gives some more perspective. http://happy_as_kings.typepad.com/happy_as_kings/2013/03/germany-and-homeschooling-fact-checking-the-romeike-situation.html
Now, I'm no fan of the president. However, I'm thinking that there may be more here, and perhaps more than a few shenanigans on the part of the HSLDA. Why did they bring the family here? Why did the family not simply move to a homeschool-friendly country in the EU, where it would have been much easier fo them to immigrate? I fear the HSDLA may be using them to make a point in the US.
April 26, 2013 at 6:24 pm
I've been following this story for some time. I don't know why the administration wants this particular family out, but it seems clear that in general it doesn't want to open the door to anyone in the world claiming asylum because they are not allowed to homeschool. They do not want, and understandably so, every family from a first-world, European nation like Germany suddenly claiming asylum and being treated like a refugee family fleeing war or genocide.
That said, the government's argument is troubling. They are claiming that there is no fundamental right to homeschool. NOT that being prevented from homeschooling is not in itself enough grounds for asylum, which would be understandable, but that there is no right for parents to refuse to send their children to a public school, no matter what a government decided must be taught there. Now, immigration law is a different thing from regular national law, and sometimes a lawyer just wants to win and will use any argument he can think of. But still, IMHO every parent in America should find that argument worrisome.
Amy: Another good question is, if this family had a church host or whatever, why didn't they try to immigrate the normal way, not claim asylum?
April 26, 2013 at 6:25 pm
Donna M., you abuse punctuation more thoroughly than Catholic priests abuse altar boys.
April 26, 2013 at 8:01 pm
…hey A,
…I'm losing my eyesight and the justify program for type in makes it difficult for me to read the font.
….I need to manipulate and modify the space around the lines and words so I can read my own type in to reduce the typo errors.
….thank you for your concern….;)
April 26, 2013 at 8:06 pm
…….COOL STORY BRO
…DONNA WHY DON'T YOU PRAY FOR BETTER EYESIGHT
….GOD WON'T GIVE IT TO YOU BECAUSE HE THINKS YOU'RE CRAZY
…. END OF MESSAGE FROM ALLAH
April 26, 2013 at 8:38 pm
Pat and Matt, are you able to IP ban these trolls? If not, it may be time to get rid of anonymous comments. I'm becoming tired of their continuing degrading remarks.
April 27, 2013 at 12:13 am
I agree with Nik J. Especially when comments are personal vile attacks.
April 27, 2013 at 8:20 pm
Donna M. With my eyes in poor condition, I work in WORD and then cut and paste. It works for me Good luck. As far as that snarky troll, maybe he will grow up to be human. Can never tell.
May 1, 2013 at 10:25 pm
…Thank You, Mary!
…like "many" here, generous hearted!
…God Bless You!…
…and the snarky troll….;)
May 2, 2013 at 6:58 am
Move to Canada, y'all! Homeschoolers are (still) free here.