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| Date: From: Subject: | 1/11/2013 12:01:42 PM Scott Woodruff--HSLDA Virginia--Calls Needed to Help Parental Rights Bill |
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====================================================================== From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ====================================================================== Virginia--Calls Needed to Help Parental Rights Bill Dear HSLDA Members and Friends: In a world where your right to parent your child is under fire from many directions, Virginia has an opportunity on Monday to help move protection of those rights to a whole new level. We need your help right away! On Monday at 8 a.m. the Virginia Senate's Courts of Justice Committee will hold a hearing on SB 908, a bill that will create a state law declaring that parental rights are fundamental, and providing the maximum protection against infringement by the state. Without this law, a court might decide that your parental rights are not fundamental and that the government can push aside your decisions about how to raise your kids if the government has nothing more than a "rational" reason. SB 908 will make it crystal clear that your right to make decisions about your kids gets the same protection as our other most precious rights. ACTION REQUESTED Please call your senator, if he or she is on the committee, and ask him to support the bill. Your message can be as simple as: "Please vote YES on SB 908. The right of parents to make decisions about their children should be protected the same as our other most precious rights." Contact information for senators on the committee is listed below. Use our Legislative Toolbox http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=16807 to find out the name of your Virginia state senator. Please come to the hearing on Monday morning. It will be in Senate Room B in the General Assembly Building at 910 Capitol St., Richmond. Give yourself plenty of time to find parking, and remember that you will pass through a metal detector before entering the building. Well-behaved children are welcome. CONTACT INFORMATION Senator Thomas K. Norment, Jr. (Chairman) (804) 698-7503 email: district03@senate.virginia.gov Senator Richard L. Saslaw (804) 698-7535 email: district35@senate.virginia.gov Senator Henry L. Marsh III (804) 698-7516 email: district16@senate.virginia.gov Senator Janet D. Howell (804) 698-7532 email: district32@senate.virginia.gov Senator L. Louise Lucas (804) 698-7518 email: district18@senate.virginia.gov Senator John S. Edwards (804) 698-7521 email: district21@senate.virginia.gov Senator Linda T. Puller (804) 698-7536 email: district36@senate.virginia.gov Senator Mark D. Obenshain (804) 698-7526 email: district26@senate.virginia.gov Senator Ryan T. McDougle (804) 698-7504 email: district04@senate.virginia.gov Senator A. Donald McEachin (804) 698-7509 email: district09@senate.virginia.gov Senator Richard H. Stuart (804) 698-7528 email: district28@senate.virginia.gov Senator Jill Holtzman Vogel (804) 698-7527 email: district27@senate.virginia.gov Senator William M. Stanley (804) 698-7520 email: district20@senate.virginia.gov Senator Thomas A. Garrett (804) 698-7522 email: district22@senate.virginia.gov BACKGROUND When people go to court to ask for protection of their rights against government intrusion, courts first decide whether the right is fundamental, or not fundamental. If the judge decides it's not fundamental, then the judge will allow the government to infringe on the right as long as it has a "rational" reason. But if the judge decides the right is fundamental, it gets much better protection. The government is allowed to infringe on it only if there is a truly compelling reason, and there is no other way for the government to accomplish a very high priority. As of today, there is nothing in Virginia statutes or our state constitution saying whether parental rights are in the category of fundamental rights. It's left up to the whim of the judge. This is the problem SB 908 solves. SB 908 does not give any new rights. It does not even say what rights you have right now as parents. That must be determined by looking other places--state and federal statutes, the state and federal constitution, etc. SB 908 simply gives much better protection to your rights that already exist. Opponents of parental rights bills sometimes claim it would give parents a right to abuse their kids. This is incorrect. SB 908 does not give any parent ANY new right at all! You don't have a right to abuse your kids right now, and you won't have a right to abuse your kids after the bill becomes law. But your rights that are already there will get much better protection against government infringement. While SB 908 is on the committee's agenda for Monday, there is no guarantee the committee will actually take it up, though we certainly hope it will. About 20 other bills are on its agenda as well. I will be there and ready to testify on Monday. I hope to see you there! Thank you for standing with us for freedom! Sincerely, Scott Woodruff HSLDA Senior Counsel ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -> Can you call your attorney at 2 a.m. on Sunday morning? Our members can get in touch with their attorney even after business hours, when they have a legal emergency. Wouldn't you like this level of service? More reasons to join HSLDA... http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=1100 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ====================================================================== The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of: Home School Legal Defense Association P.O. 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Thank you for your cooperation. ====================================================================== | |
