Federal Legislation	June 16, 2009

Action Requested:
HSLDA urges you to call or write your U.S. senators and urge them to support S.Res. 519. For more information on how to get involved, please visit ParentalRights.org.

Summary:
This resolution is designed to protect the legal rights of children and parents in the United States from being infringed upon by the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Passage would demonstrate that the U.S. Senate firmly opposes the CRC, and that the UN CRC cannot be passed during this congressional session. S.Res. 519 is a temporary protection until the Parental Rights Amendment is ratified.

Status:

5/10/2010

Introduced and referred to House Committee on the Judiciary.

Sponsor: Senator Jim DeMint (SC)

Bill Summary and Status S.Res. 519

HSLDA’s Position:
Support.

Background:
Parental rights have traditionally been upheld in American history, but never explicitly stated in federal law. Until recent years, these rights have been assumed, but the government has begun taking advantage of these rights. The Supreme Court case of Troxel v. Granville (2000) resulted in a splintered six-way decision that has left ambiguity at the state and federal levels. Since its publication, Troxel has been cited in support of parental rights in California (In Re: Rachel L, 2008) and Nebraska (Farnsworth v. Farnsworth, 2008), but set aside by courts in Massachusetts (Parker v. Hurley, 2007) and elsewhere. Thus, parental rights issues are decided on a state-by-state basis. However, a recent U.S. Supreme Court case Graham v. Florida, cited the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in its decision. HSLDA sees this as a dangerous step towards adopting the CRC as law in the country. S.Res. 519 is needed as a temporary protection against the dangers of the CRC until the Parental Rights Amendment is ratified.