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Religious freedom is apparently not on the top of the Obama administration’s priority list. One legal immigrant family from Germany fled to the United States so they could raise and educate their children in a manner consistent with their Christian beliefs. Following the immigration rules was a long and tedious process, but the family jumped through all the government hoops and were finally able to buy a little bit of farmland in Tennessee.
The thankful family thought all the hurdles to their battle for religious freedom was over, and then the Obama administration waved the mighty pen and their woes began all over again. The Romeike family was granted asylum because returning to Germany meant they could face the removal of their children, jail time, or both due to their decision to homeschool their children.
In 1938 Adolf Hitler made it illegal for German children to be educated anywhere other than a public school. The decades old law has never been repealed. The law had not been vigorously enforced until a German Supreme Court ruling in 2007.
The German high court ruled that allowing children to be homeschooled could foster the creation of parallel societies. The justices also noted in the homeschool ruling that forcing all German children to attend public school was a necessary mandate. If students were allowed to be taught at home by their parents, or via online instruction, the potential philosophical and religious development could increase the chances for the feared parallel societal changes.
The Homeschool Legal Defense Association aided the Romeike family in their fight to legally immigrate to America. In 2010, a Memphis immigration court granted asylum for the German homeschooling family. The judge rules that the Romeike family would be persecuted over their religious beliefs if they were sent back to Germany.
For three years the family enjoyed the same rights as all Americans, a lifestyle they greatly appreciated and respected. The Romeike family became productive members of the community, homeschooled their children, and worked hard to make a decent living. Little did they know that Eric Holder’s Justice Department was preparing to shatter their very existence.
The Obama administration appealed the asylum decision and initiated the process to deport the Christian family back to Germany. Hundreds of illegal immigrants who had committed at least two crimes were recently let out of detention centers. The illegal immigrants committed their first offense by entering the United States illegally. Each one of the men and women who were released from their cells had also been charged with doing at least one other crime while on American soil. Since the administration wanted to demonstrate the dire fiscal straits the nation supposedly faced due to sequester cuts, the illegal aliens were released and told to reappear for their court hearings.
Eric Holder’s deportation battle against the Romeike family is based on the theory that homeschooling is not a fundamental right. Once again, a liberal totally misunderstood the Constitution. While homeschooling may not be a right guaranteed by the Constitution, religious freedom most certainly is a protected right. Holder is also arguing that a human rights violation did not occur because all Germans are prohibited from homeschooling, not just Christians.
The Obama administration thinks it is fine to release illegal immigrants onto our city streets, but allowing a Christian family who followed the letter of the law when moving to America is just too much of a burden on society.
If the sequester cuts are so burdensome, why initiate a court case that will cost both time and staff to battle?
