Home School Heartbeat Radio Program

Homeschoolers value the freedom they have to direct the education of their children. Yet, even though homeschooling is widely recognized in America, threats to that freedom remain. Join Mike Farris as he explores one of them, today on Home School Heartbeat.

Michael Farris:
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is a threat that longtime homeschoolers know well. If its provisions were binding on the United States, they would severely limit parental freedom to direct the education and upbringing of our children. Former President Bill Clinton signed the treaty in 1995, but he never sent it to the Senate for ratification because it would have met with near-certain defeat.

Yet, for today's homeschooling parents the battle against the Convention on the Rights of the Child is not over. Some federal judges claim that the Convention's provisions should guide American jurisprudence. These claims rely on the judicial doctrine of customary international law, a doctrine which is gaining acceptance in the federal courts.

This week, we'll look at how the modern judiciary's view of customary international law strays from the Founders' intentions. And we'll examine the Convention on the Rights of the Child in more detail to see what consequences it could have if the courts continue to impose its provisions on Americans.

As we have seen in the fight to protect the sanctity of marriage, we can't afford to wait until the last minute to battle for our freedom. Advocates of parental rights must be alert to this threat right now.

I'm Mike Farris.