When the Progressives, 100 years ago or so, made a push for universal compulsory schooling, and the state marched ahead to crowd out as many private alternatives to public school as possible, it was widely seen as a mechanism for social uplift. What the good rhetoric masked was the sheer totalitarian nature of the combination of state schooling plus compulsory attendance. In effect, it amounted to the nationalization of children. In so doing, the U.S. was following a trend that began in Europe.
What if you object and dare teach your children yourself regardless? What happens then? Is Amnesty International going to help you? Are there institutions that will come to your defense when the child welfare authorities kidnap the children for foster care and drag the parents away to prison?
For one German family, it turns out that the U.S. – despite our own draconian education regulations – has served as a place for asylum. Last week, a judge granted this family this status as a means of protecting their essential human rights. “Homeschoolers are a particular social group that the German government is trying to suppress,” said Immigration Judge Lawrence O, Burman. “This family has a well-founded fear of persecution…therefore, they are eligible for asylum…and the court will grant asylum.”
