Support Parental Rights

Overruled

2011-11-18T05:37:00.000-08:00

The Overruled Docudrama is here! Please view this and pass it on to your friends, family and everyone you can! Be sure to click "Like" on the actual Youtube site if you agree and get this going viral on the internet! Here are other ways ParentalRights.org suggests you do to help spread the word.

Docudrama Coming Thursday!
Our new docudrama, Overruled: Government Invasion of Your Parental Rights, is scheduled for release this Thursday, November 17, and I am excited to announce that we are right on schedule!

Last week we sent you a condensed list of things you can do to prepare; you can see the fully detailed version here.

In addition, we have available a flyer you can post on local bulletin boards, and a half-page hand-out or bulletin insert for your local congregation. Both of these papers point readers to OverruledMovie.com, where they can view the entire film online without cost. (You can donate to help cover the cost here.)

Prior to the release, let me encourage you to print out as many of each as you can use to promote the film; alternatively, you might want to save the file, take it to your local printer, and have the flyers or inserts professionally printed. Then, when the film is released, we will send you an email letting you know it’s here and you will be ready to post the flyers or deliver the handouts right away.

You might also want to copy some possible tweets from this page to post to your Facebook, Twitter, or other social network page after the film is released.

Please keep in mind that in order to help Overruled go viral, we need to promote it as much as possible in the first several days. The faster its popularity grows this weekend, the easier it becomes for it to continue to grow until all of America is aware of the threats to parental rights.

Thank you for standing with us to protect parental rights, and thank you for your patience this year. Lots of action is just around the corner – and it starts with the release of Overruled in just two days!

Sincerely,

Michael Ramey
Dir. of Communications & Research

ParentalRights.org Promotional Video

2011-07-12T06:59:00.000-07:00

Below is a new promotional video for the Parental Rights Amendment. Please forward the link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0L6xEBkMnTE - to as many people as you can, any way you can. Post it to Facebook, tweet it on Twitter, blog about it, leave a comment on a blog you frequent and include the link, or simply email it to all of your friends. But please help us spread the word.

San Francisco Wants to Ban Circumcision

2011-05-26T10:37:00.000-07:00

Well, citizens of San Francisco got enough signatures to get an initiative on the ballot next November that will ban circumcision on males under the age of 18. This is both an attack on religious freedom as well as parental rights. Michael Farris put out the following statement in regard to this. Please visit Parentalrights.org and join the fight.

Sign the Petition Donate Volunteer Learn More View Online

San Francisco's Circumcision Ban and Parental Rights

The City of San Francisco is contemplating a law that will ban male circumcision for infants and children. There are no religious exemptions in the proposed law and it is an obvious attempt to override the parents’ ability to make decisions for their own children on this medical issue.

I want to encourage you to look at this article by Eugene Volokh. Professor Volokh is a highly respected professor of Constitutional Law at UCLA Law School. He is a well-known conservative and a former Supreme Court law clerk.

His analysis of this particular issue is interesting and important. But the real reason I want to encourage you to read it is because he undertakes a serious analysis of the current state of the law regarding the constitutional rights of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children.

Some who criticize the PRA claim that the current law for parental rights is well-settled and places our rights at a very high and protected level. This article by Professor Volokh clearly demonstrates that the current state of the law is muddled and unsettled—and he also shows that the reason for the lack of clarity is that there is no constitutional text protecting parental rights.

If we want the government taking over more and more of our ability as parents to make decisions for our children, then doing nothing under the delusion that everything is hunky-dory is the right path to take. But if we want parents and not government raising children, then the time to act is now.

Sincerely,

Michael Farris
President

Planned Parenthood openly oppose PRA in Montana

2011-02-22T08:30:00.000-08:00

In an email from ParentalRights.org I learned that Planned Parenthood along with the ACLU and a gay rights organization called the Human Rights Campaign all spoke out against the Parental Rights Amendment. This goes to show you that they realize that the groups they represent do interfere with the rights of parenting. They do not want parents to have the right to keep a child from getting an abortion or birth control without their consent. They do not want parents to be able to teach their child that homosexuality is a sin and therefore not an acceptable lifestyle. Thankfully they were not successful in stopping the advancement of the PRA in Montana. Knowing that such powerful and influential groups oppose parental rights, we must stay vigilant in protecting them. The letter below explains what is happening and what we can do to help. Please visit parentalrights.org today to help protect these essential rights.

~February 10, 2011
Planned Parenthood Attacks the Parental Rights Amendment
No doubt you’ve heard about Planned Parenthood in the news lately. They’ve been criticized for covering up the sex trafficking of minors, and they’ve come under media investigation. Their dishonorable techniques have once again been exposed by Live Action’s president Lila Rose. They have counseled an investigator posing as a pimp on how to avoid detection and yet get abortions and other related services for girls as young as 14 and 15. Of course, Planned Parenthood is utterly committed to the proposition that parents have no right to knowledge or consent of the activities of their teenaged daughters when they walk in the door of these deadly clinics. Even if the girls are being held as sex slaves, Planned Parenthood wants to keep both parents and government out of their grisly business.

And, of course, one of the most stalwart and effective defenders of the rights of Planned Parenthood to secretly perform abortions on underaged girls is the American Civil Liberties Union.

Lila Rose, a young woman raised by a fine homeschooling family in California, has taken on the giant of Planned Parenthood and she is winning. She is the example of the kind of young person that is sent forth to help America become a better place when parents are free to train their children in truth and uprightness.

I was at a meeting this week with the Speaker of the House and other top leaders in Congress and the pinnacle of the talk was on Lila Rose’s activities, as well as a movement in Congress to defund Planned Parenthood – they received $363 million in government (tax payer) funds last year.^[1]

I pointed out that Lila Rose had been homeschooled and that we needed to be sure that the Parental Rights Amendment is passed to ensure that all parents have the ability to be involved in the crucial decisions for their children’s future.

There was a good reason that Planned Parenthood and the ACLU were on my mind during this meeting with the Speaker of the House.

Last week, when Montana’s Senate Judicial Committee considered a resolution urging Congress to adopt the Parental Rights Amendment (PRA) and send it to the States for ratification, Planned Parenthood of Montana, the ACLU, and the Human Rights Campaign (a “gay rights” organization) spoke against it.

For all their troubles now, Planned Parenthood remains a heavy hitter with an annual budget of $1.117 billion – and they have taken aim at the PRA. Not that they succeeded in this case – the resolution passed out of committee by a vote of 7-5 on Friday, and will now proceed to the Montana Senate floor.

But Planned Parenthood will not stop there. Like a cornered beast, they will lash out wherever they can, and right now that seems to mean our resolutions and Amendment.

We cannot hope to counter the misinformation campaign of Planned Parenthood unless we all recommit ourselves to a deeper involvement in this issue. Remember, Planned Parenthood received $363 million from the federal government last year; we didn’t receive a dime. We are dependent on concerned partners like you if we are to keep spreading the truth. Please consider helping us in the following ways:

1) Please donate today. Advertising isn’t free. Our website isn’t free. Our staff is very lean and we need to be able to meet our obligations to them and their family. Our giving this year is down and we simply cannot lead this effort to victory without your support. We need your support in this crucial hour. If you can give on an ongoing, monthly basis, please check the appropriate box on the Donate form. But whatever you can give, please do it now.
2) Track the status of the resolution in your state and be ready to speak in its favor. Please email Michael Ramey if you can speak to a committee to support a resolution in your state. If you live in Montana, call your state senator now and urge him (her) to support SJ 9 in favor of a federal Parental Rights Amendment. You can identify your senator and find contact information here.

3) Get ready to fight in Congress. We have been working behind the scenes in the House to put together a new leadership coalition to lead our efforts to pass the PRA. Our former champion, Pete Hoekstra, retired from the House to run for Governor of Michigan. We have assurances from the GOP leadership in the House that they will help us push the PRA. I fully expect that we will have hearings, committee votes, and then floor action in the House this year.

This is our time to push the PRA through the House of Representatives. We need your help now more than ever. Being attacked by the likes of the ACLU and Planned Parenthood is a good sign that we are on the right track and that we are getting close to victory.

Blessings,

Michael Farris
President, ParentalRights.org

The Child

2010-12-15T06:43:00.000-08:00

The Child Documentary

Here is a way to share the importance of the Parental Rights Amendment with your community. Visit Parentalrights.org to see how to get a copy of the DVD and host a viewing today.

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Poll Shows Overwhelming Support for Parental Rights

2010-09-21T05:54:00.000-07:00

Farris: Poll Shows Overwhelming Support for Parental Rights

Dear Parental Rights Champion,

The highly acclaimed Zogby Poll has just released the results of the first in-depth analysis of our efforts to protect the right of American parents to raise their children free from improper governmental interference. I am thrilled to be able to present to you a summary of the findings from this brand new Zogby Poll.

First, here are some of the highlights from this poll:

The American public stands strongly behind parental rights. America does not want governmental or UN interference in the American family. The public supports a constitutional amendment to protect the rights of all parents.

Those are the headlines. And these findings are true—in varying degrees, of course—for Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. Support for parental rights comes from all regions of the country, all racial and religious groups, and at every level of income.

Here are the survey questions, in the order they were asked:

Poll Question 1

Do you agree or disagree with parents having the legal option to give their child a modest spanking?

The government elites are adamant in their opposition to traditional parenting practices. Chief on their list is the elimination of even modest spanking. The UN wishes to ban spanking through the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

But the American public thinks otherwise. On Question 1:

58.7% strongly agree
26.4% somewhat agree
6.0% somewhat disagree
6.9% strongly disagree
2.0% not sure

These are political landslide kinds of numbers.

Various subgroups view this parental right slightly differently (see the in-depth breakdown online), but a large majority of all groups agree. Americans are solidly united in support of parental rights to traditional, modest discipline.

Question 2

In general, parents have the constitutional right to make decisions for their children without governmental interference unless there is proof of abuse or neglect. Do you agree or disagree with this view of parental rights?

All American voters

73.6% strongly agree
20.0% somewhat agree
2.6% somewhat disagree
1.6% strongly disagree
2.2% not sure

The goal of the Parental Rights Amendment is to protect this historic understanding of parental rights. This question reveals that America is nearly unanimous in agreeing with this goal – 93.6% in overall agreement, and 4.2% in disagreement.

The sub-groups are available online, but let me include this one sample:

Conservative 98.4% agree 0.9% disagree
Moderate 91.4% agree 4.8% disagree
Liberal 91.6% agree 7.1% disagree

When 98.4% of conservatives and 91.6% of liberals agree on an issue, you know that America is truly united.

Question 3

Would you support or oppose a constitutional amendment to permanently protect parental rights, allowing them to make decisions for their children without government interference, so long as there is no proof of abuse or neglect?

All American voters

45.9% strongly support
17.1% somewhat support
8.5% somewhat oppose
18.3% strongly oppose
10.2% not sure

It is important to note that this question does not make any argument as to why the Amendment is needed. If people were told that the Supreme Court had begun to move away from the traditional standard, the support would almost certainly be much higher. As it is, 63.0% of Americans support the Parental Rights Amendment with 26.8% opposed. Keeping in mind that well over 90% support the goal of the PRA, the opportunity to increase this number above 63% is very strong.

The sub-group views on this question are online here.

Again, a political election that is decided 63% to 26.8% is a called a landslide. America supports the PRA by numbers that represent a landslide even without an explanation of why it is needed.

Question 4

A United Nations treaty on children’s rights is currently being considered by the United States government. If this treaty made international law, it would trump some existing state laws on parents and children. Do you support or oppose this treaty?

All American voters

3.4% strongly support
8.2% somewhat support
9.9% somewhat oppose
44.5% strongly oppose
34.1% not sure

This question reveals a great amount of uncertainty, but for those that had an opinion, 5 Americans oppose the UNCRC for every 1 American that supports it. The question may have been confusing, because the next question clarifies the treaty just a bit and the results are very clear indeed.

Question 5

If you knew that the United Nations treaty on children’s rights would give government broad discretion to overrule parents and decide what it thinks is best for a child, would you support or oppose this treaty, or does it make no difference to your opinion?

1.5% strongly support
4.9% somewhat support
11.6% somewhat oppose
66.7% strongly oppose
4.5% no difference
10.9% not sure

With a single explanation of the effect of the CRC, the opinion of the vast majority of Americans becomes very clear. 78.3% oppose this treaty, and only 6.4% support it.

Opposition to the CRC is found in every political faction. Republicans oppose it 90.1% to 3.9%, Independents 78.5% to 5.2%, Democrats 67.0% to 9.5%. Even liberals opposed the CRC 56.3% to 15.7% - again, a landslide.

Analysis

The vast majority of the American electorate is on our side in this issue of parental rights. The level of support varies a bit from the “landslide” level on the low end up to “nearly unanimous” on the high end.

We have all known that our issue is right—legally and morally. These polls tell us that our issue is winnable.

The challenge we have is to get our message to the American public. If we can reach the public, we will win. It is that simple.

To reach the public we need resources. We need ads, we need earned media (which requires hard work from our staff to make it happen), and we need to use the internet more aggressively and more effectively.

All of these take a great deal of money. And our budgets are very modest. (By the way, I take no salary or expenses from Parentalrights.org.)

We believe that we have a very realistic shot at stopping the Convention on the Rights of the Child in this session of Congress. Right after the last election, Barbara Boxer promised that it would be ratified in this session.

I also believe that we have a realistic chance of passing the Parental Rights Amendment in the House early in the next term of Congress.

The public stands with us. If we can reach them with our message, the vast majority in Congress will listen to the voices of the voters.

Will you please help us with the very best gift you can so that we may reach the American public with our message and protect the rights of all parents for generations to come?

Thank you for helping us make history.

Warmest regards,

Michael Farris

Parents of 50 Million U.S. Children Soon to Lose Parental Rights

2010-08-26T13:26:00.000-07:00

Parents of 50 Million U.S. Children Soon to Lose Parental Rights

If your children attend public school, you are among those parents whose rights will end the moment your child enters the school. That’s because in 2005 the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found in Fields v. Palmdale School District “that the Meyer-Pierce right [of parents to direct the upbringing of their children] does not exist beyond the threshold of the school door.”

You read that right. Parental Rights “[do] not exist beyond the threshold of the school door.”

“We conclude that the parents are possessed of no constitutional right to prevent the public schools from providing information on the subject [of sexuality] to their students in any forum or manner they select” (emphasis added).

Of course, most parents contend they don’t have a choice in where their children are schooled. Either economic constraints or personal circumstances leave them with no practical alternative to the local public school. And that leaves no parental rights at all.

Please act to reverse this assault by big government courts against parental rights. Sign the petition and get more information at ParentalRights.org.

Then, please pass this on. Every parent of a public school student needs to know the extent to which the courts have robbed them of their rights. Add this message to your Facebook account, or it on virtually any other social network.

Looking Ahead

This is the first of several court cases we plan to review for you in the coming weeks. The courts’ disregard for the traditional formative role of parents in a child’s life needs to be brought to light. And while the Parental Rights Amendment will not give parents any greater power to control the school’s choice of curriculum, it will protect their right to pull their individual child out of any program of an outrageous or offensive nature, like the program in the Palmdale case. (To read more from this case, click here.)

Sincerely,

Michael Ramey
Communications Director

UN's Latest Efforts to Attack Moral Foundations of Families

2010-08-18T09:07:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share this Email from Michael Farris

Dear Supporter of Parental Rights,

Last week, I asked for your participation in building our network of parental rights supporters so that we can make a push to pass the Parental Rights Amendment in the next Congress. If you meant to pass on last week’s information, but forgot to do it, it is not too late. We really need your help.

But, it is very obvious that a great number of you did participate with great success because we had our all time record for new petition signers in one week. Over 10,000 new people signed up to support the parental rights cause because of your efforts last week.

And like we promised last week, we are going to continue to supply you with good information that you can use to help promote our mutual cause within your circle of influence.

During the last week, a well-respected leader in the pro-family movement, Terrence McKeegan, Vice President and Senior Counsel for C-FAM, shared with me his research about the UN’s latest efforts to attack the moral foundation of families and children. In the last week a major youth conference was held in Mexico which was aimed at creating a new declaration for youth to be enacted by the UN General Assembly in connection with the “International Year for Youth.”

One of the things called for in the proposed resolution is full access for all youth to “universal access to reproductive health.” These words are loaded with hidden meanings. However, McKeegan has unmasked these hidden meanings by gathering copies of UN brochures that it distributed at its youth conference in March, 2010. Click here to look at the actual sections from these brochures. The content of this material is shocking. It is not pornographic, but the behavior that it is encouraging is lewdness and immorality personified. I would strongly suggest that only parents look at this material. Here are just a few examples:

· Young people living with HIV have the right to sexual pleasure
· Some people have sex when they have been drinking alcohol or using drugs. This is your choice.
· There is no right or wrong way to have sex. Just have fun, explore and be yourself.
· Sexual and reproductive rights are recognized around the world as human rights.

Now you know the kinds of ideas that are offered when the UN calls for “safe sex education and awareness-raising activities among adolescents” (UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, 2006, Concluding Observations, Lebanon).

There is already a political movement in the United States to offer these egregious forms of sex education without parental knowledge or review. But, if the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is adopted in the US, then the debate is over—we would be required to implement the kind of adolescent “health” education dictated by the UN.

We must preserve our families. We must preserve common sense and morality. We must preserve American self-government.

If you have already joined our efforts to stop the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child thanks so much. Would you continue to share this information with your friends as we build toward the next session of Congress? If you have not joined with us, Click here and do so today.

Thanks so much.

Michael Farris, J.D.
President
Parentalrights.org

Elena Kagan's Description of Christian Homeschooling Family Causes Concern

2010-07-28T05:20:00.000-07:00

This is from the Homeschool Legal Defense Association's Website:

Full Senate to Vote on Supreme Court Nominee Elena Kagan

William A. Estrada, Esq.
Director of Federal Relations

July 26, 2010

On Tuesday, July 20, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to send Elena Kagan’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court to the full Senate for approval. The committee vote was 13–6. It is expected that the full Senate will vote on Ms. Kagan’s nomination sometime this week or next week.

HSLDA has previously voiced our concerns about Ms. Kagan’s nomination due to her support of international law. These concerns grew after Senator Chuck Grassley (IA) asked her pointed questions about her reliance on international law.

We have now found out additional information that may reflect Ms. Kagan’s views on homeschooling. In the 1980s, Ms. Kagan—fresh out of law school—clerked for Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. At that time, HSLDA was battling in state courts for homeschool freedom. One particular case we handled in Ohio was State v. Schmidt, 505 N.E.2d. 627 (1987). In that case, a homeschool family was convicted of failing to send their child to school, and the conviction was upheld by the Ohio Supreme Court. HSLDA petitioned for a writ of certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court, but it was denied.

Ms. Kagan reviewed the case for Supreme Court Justice Marshall. You can view a copy of her memo below. She recommended against the Supreme Court taking this case, saying:

[The Schmidts] are self-described born-again Christians who adhere to a literal interpretation of the Bible and have little sympathy with the secular world. When their child reached school-age, they decided to educate her at home. They did not seek the permission of the school superintendent; they simply did not enroll her in school.

Ms. Kagan went on to imply that the family’s expression of religion had not been infringed upon by the school district because the family was not being compelled to attend public school. She said that asking permission to homeschool was reasonable. The Schmidt family objected to asking for permission to homeschool because of their religious beliefs.

During Ms. Kagan’s confirmation hearings, Senator Jeff Sessions asked Ms. Kagan what she meant in her memo. Kagan didn’t back away from her memo. Read the full text of Senator Sessions’ questions and her answers online. Question 17 deals with the Schmidt case.

The full Senate will vote on Ms. Kagan’s nomination sometime before the August recess. We encourage you to call your two U.S. senators and share with their staff your thoughts about Ms. Kagan’s confirmation.

You can reach your two U.S. senators by calling the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121, or toll-free at 866-220-0044. You can find your U.S. senators by using HSLDA’s Legislative Toolbox.

Other Resources

Read Elena Kagan’s law clerk notes concerning Schmidt v. Ohio (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader).

We Need SR 519 NOW!

2010-07-20T06:02:00.001-07:00

We Need SR 519 NOW!

…and here’s why.

With November elections coming up, timing is everything. If we can focus on the Parental Rights Amendment during the August recess and beyond, we can add more cosponsors between now and November, as candidates looking to win their seats begin to feel the popularity of our cause. August through Election Day is a crucial opportunity for the Amendment. But we can’t take advantage of that if we have to spend August (or worse, September and October) finishing up with Senate Resolution 519 (SR 519).

And we don’t dare save SR 519 until after the elections. The current leadership have made clear that they will use any chance to push their agenda, which is unwanted by the majority of Americans. Historically, a lame duck Congress such as we are likely to have for November and December is just such an opportunity. Voters have “won the election” and let their guard down, and BOOM – lawmakers on the way out leave behind one final mess. This year, that mess could very well include ratifying the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the Child.

But not if SR 519 reaches 34 cosponsors before then.

And that’s why we need to get just 9 more senators on board this month!

Action Items

1. Call your Senators and urge them to support U.S. sovereignty and American families. Urge them to cosponsor SR 519 to end the threat of ratifying the CRC. (Get talking points here.) For your senators’ status and phone number, visit parentalrights.org/Status.

2. Give generously to our Declaration Campaign to fund ads decrying the CRC, and making your senator’s position on it public knowledge. Ads will run August 2, so time is running out!

3. Pass it on. Time is pressing, and more calls will mean faster success. Please forward this email to family and friends, post it on bulletin boards, add it to Facebook, Twitter, and so forth.

Together we will win to secure America’s future!

Gratefully Yours,

Michael Ramey
Communications Director

Supreme Court Nominee Favors Use of International Law

2010-07-13T07:14:00.000-07:00

This article was on the Homeschool Legal Defense Association's Website and I wanted to pass it on. It shares with us how Elena Kagan could be a threat to our parental rights because she favors using international law when deciding cases that come before the bench. This is not a new trend, but it is a dangerous one. Our country should be ruled by it's own citizens and it's own laws. Because of this concern the HSLDA is recommending we call our Senators to try and stop this nomination. For more review of Elena's history with her preference for International law read their other article “Will Elena Kagan use International Law as Supreme Court Justice?”.

Elena Kagan Confirms Her Support for International Law

William A. Estrada, Esq.
Director of Federal Relations

Melanie Palazzo
Congressional Action Program Director

July 12, 2010

HSLDA urges our members and homeschoolers nationwide to call their two U.S. senators and express their opinions on the nomination of Elena Kagan for Supreme Court.

Elana Kagan was recently nominated by President Obama to replace Justice John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court. Ms. Kagan underwent a four-day confirmation hearing held by the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee ending July 1.

HSLDA has been concerned about Ms. Kagan’s nomination because of her support of international law over the U.S. Constitution while she was Dean of Harvard School of Law. Our concerns were not alleviated, but only grew with Kagan’s answers during her hearing.

For instance, Senator Chuck Grassley (IA) asked Ms. Kagan on the second day of the hearings, “Should judges look to foreign law for ‘good ideas.’ ”

Ms. Kagan responded, “I am in favor of good ideas wherever we can get them.”

Senator Grassley later asked, “If you were confirmed, would you rely on or cite international foreign law when deciding cases?”

Ms. Kagan’s response: “It depends. There are some cases in which the citation of foreign law or international law might be appropriate.” (Watch the hearings in their entirety online.)

We are concerned about Kagan citing foreign or international law as a Supreme Court justice because of the danger that could ensue if she ever cited the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) as precedent in a Supreme Court opinion. This treaty could severely limit parental rights. To learn more about why Kagan citing the CRC as a Supreme Court Justice would be dangerous please read “Will Elena Kagan use International Law as Supreme Court Justice?”

We encourage you to call your two U.S. senators and share with their staff your thoughts about Ms. Kagan’s confirmation. We expect that the full Senate will vote on Ms. Kagan's nomination in the next couple of weeks.
You can reach your two U.S. Senators by calling the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121, or toll-free at 866-220-0044. You can find your U.S. senators by using HSLDA’s Legislative Toolbox.

S. Res. 519 Introduced to Stop Ratification of CRC

2010-06-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

S.Res.519 is a resolution to stop the Senate from ratifying the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This treaty would ultimately give a foreign body and a foreign document precedence over even our own constitution and undermines traditional US law regarding parents and children. Please take a moment to read the resolution and then visit ParentalRights.org to see if your Senator has already co-sponsored this legislation. If they have not please urge them to become one so that we may protect the sovereignty of our nation and to be governed by our own laws and our own citizens. That was the very principle that made us a nation, let us not lose sight of it now.

Children's Day for Parental Rights in Washington DC (Nov 20)

2009-11-19T06:40:00.000-08:00

Parental rights supporters will hold a rally in Washington tomorrow, November 20, 2009. Since the United Nations has declared November 20th as "Universal Children's Day" they figured this would be the best day to send our message that we want to protect children by empowering their parents.

The rally will begin at 11:00am and will be held on the U.S. Capitol grounds (House side on the East Lawn, in front of the Library of Congress and on the Independence side of Cannon HOB.) Speakers include U.S. Representative Peter Hoekstra (MI), J. Michael Smith, President, Home School Legal Defense Association, Steven Groves, Bernard and Barbara Lomas Fellow, The Heritage Foundation among many others.

To learn more visit the Parentalrights.org Facebook Family Day Event page.

Mike Farris and Chuck Norris on Huckabee

2009-11-10T13:47:00.000-08:00

Michael Farris and Chuck Norris talk to Huckabee about how parental rights are under attack. From the current health care bill in the Congress to cases before the Supreme Court, we need to be aware of how these rights are under attack.

Mike Farris to appear on Huckabee Sat November 7 at 8pm EST

2009-11-06T09:02:00.000-08:00

I have been alerted that Mike Farris of parentalrights.org will appear tomorrow, Saturday November 7 at 8:00pm on the Huckabee Show which airs on the Fox News Channel. He will be discussing two cases that are currently before the Supreme Court in which briefs have been submitted by Amnesty International and other organizations that urge the court to apply the UNCRC to these cases even though this treaty has not yet been ratified in this country. The way the court rules in this case could greatly impact the parental rights we hold so dear. Please tune into Huckabee this weekend to see what Mike Farris has to say on the issue. If you miss it on Saturday I believe it re-airs sometime on Sunday. Check the Fox News channel listing in your area for more details.

To learn more about the impending case read the article below:

Supreme Court to Bind Florida to International Law?

Just two days prior to the U.S. Supreme Court hearings on life sentences for youth, Michael Farris, J.D., will appear on Fox News Channel’s Huckabee’s Opinion to discuss the issue.
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Parental Rights Amendment - Video Contest Winners

2009-10-21T06:29:00.000-07:00

Here are the winners from the Parentalrights.org video contest. You can find the entire list of winners and runner ups at the Parental Rights Proclaim Video Contest Winners page. Feel free to use these videos on your own blog to help support and promote the parental rights amendment. Also, do not forget to leave me a comment if you have a blog that you would like us to list here as a parental rights supporter.

Category Adults:
1st Place Winner

Category Youth:
1st Place Winner

Category Commercial:
1st Place Winner

Supreme Court Urged To Impose UNCRC Treaty

2009-09-30T06:45:00.000-07:00

I read this press release today and it is quite frightening! Amnesty International is in our own court system trying to apply to our country a treaty that we have never ratified. It is my hope that the courts will keep our sovereignty in tact, but if they do not we are all in big trouble. As we can see, the time to protect those rights is now! We need to Parental Rights Amendment to make sure that no one can take our rights away! Visit the link below to read the entire article.

SUPREME COURT URGED TO IMPOSE UNRATIFIED TREATY

Press Contact: Rebekah Pizana National Coalition Director ParentalRights.org 540.645.9475 Rebekah@parentalrights.org

by Jim Bentley Tuesday, September 29, 2009
The Supreme Court this term has agreed to hear on appeal two cases which question the authority of a state to sentence juvenile violent offenders to life without parole. Amnesty International and other global organizations have filed briefs urging the Court to apply the U.N.’s controversial Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) to Florida law as a matter of binding “Customary International Law”. On Monday, sixteen members of the U.S. House of Representatives filed an opposing brief which argues that this use of international law is contrary to both the facts and the law.

[More]

Support the Parental Rights Amendment: A Right Under Threat

2009-09-18T07:51:00.001-07:00

Another entry in the ParentalRights.org Video Contest.

Self Evident

2009-09-16T11:35:00.000-07:00

Another video in the contest that does a great job explaining the threat to parental rights and what we can do about it.

Self-Evident from D Knight on Vimeo.

From the Very Beginning, Mom and Dad

2009-09-15T10:53:00.000-07:00

Here is one entry in the ParentalRights.org video contest titled From the Very Beginning, Mom and Dad which demonstrates that even kids instinctively know that their parents have their best interests at heart. Visit ParentalRights.org each day to see some of the other submissions. A new video will be posted there daily September 14 - 18.

Pete Hoekstra: Obama Lesson Plan Leaves Out Parents

2009-09-03T19:53:00.000-07:00

Pete Hoekstra, the sponsor of the Parental Rights Amendment shares his view on Obama's speech to students and the prospective teaching plan laid out by the department of education as it relates to parental issues.

Pete's Perspective: Obama Lesson Plan Leaves Out Parents

Next Tuesday, President Obama will address K-12 students in America on the importance of education. It is not unusual for Presidents to engage children, but President Obama has circumvented superintendents and school boards across the country by sending lesson plans to principals and teachers to accompany his address.

While some may see this as harmless, the Administration has once again revealed its fundamentally flawed philosophy on government’s role in education - and our lives generally. The desire to influence and preempt local control of schools is evident in the classroom activities the Administration has put together for the President’s address. He not only establishes the content, but how it should be taught in the classroom by teachers. Rather than use his platform to promote parental involvement and collaboration in children’s educations, the President presumes the same Washington-knows-best philosophy that has plagued our education system for far too long.

I have continuously advocated for a school system based upon parental and local control. Parents do not need the White House and Department of Education to come between the values they have taught their children at home. Parents are not only responsible for educating but also imparting the values they believe their children will need to be successful students and citizens.

I am opposed to the federal government further entering our schools. Congress needs to restore local control of education to parents and local education officials.

CLICK HERE for more Pete's Perspectives

PROClaim Video Contest

2009-08-18T13:35:00.000-07:00

Action 1: PROclaim Video Contest

ParentalRights.org will give away more than $1000 in prizes in our PROclaim video contest. First place is $250 in each of 4 categories, with additional 2nd and 3rd place prizes. Categories include (1) Parental Rights Amendment Commercials, and What Is the Parental Rights Amendment in (2) Youth, (3) Adults, and (4) Family divisions.

So charge up your camera, get your creative juices flowing, and get started today! Click here for additional information.

PROclaim 2009 from parentalrights.org on Vimeo.

The United Nation Convention on the Rights of the Child Treaty

2009-07-31T13:35:00.001-07:00

Let's Get Congress Moving - Call Today!

2009-07-21T07:12:00.000-07:00

We now have 107 Congressional Sponsors to the Parental Rights Amendment as H.J. Res. 42. Be sure to click on the link of sponsors and see if your Congressman has jumped on board or not. If not, why not call them today and ask them to do so? If they have, give them a call to say thank you!

The Amendment has also now been introduced to the Senate as S. J. Res 16 by Senator Jim DeMint. Since we currently only have 2 sponsors, this would be a great time to contact your Senator and try to encourage them to sign on too. Let's call our Senators and get them to stand up for parental rights.

Below is the Amendment we are seeking to draft. It's simple and yet profound as it will protect our rights as parents to direct the upbringing of our children.

Parental Rights Amendment

Parental Rights Amendment - A Way You Can Help

2009-07-12T07:46:00.000-07:00

Here is a video of Michael Farris explaining the Parental Rights Amendment 10-and-2 Program. It is a way that supporters can help grow the movement. Each of us just needs to get 10 people to support the amendment and 2 more people to recruit another 10 supporters and 2 activists. If we all do this it will not take long to have the numbers we need to get this amendment passed and stop the threat of the UNCRC once and for all. To learn more visit parentalrights.org and join the fight.

105 Co-sponsors!

2009-07-06T06:27:00.000-07:00

Here is a video of Pete Hoekstra speaking as we hit the 100 mark of co-sponsors to the parental rights amendment. We are actually at 105 today. To see if your representative has signed on visit the co-sponsor page at parentalrights.org.

Call NOW To Stop UN Children's Treaty

2009-06-24T10:56:00.000-07:00

I received this email from the HSLDA, it's important that those of us who are opposed to this treaty act now.

Call Now to Stop
UN Children’s Treaty

Dear HSLDA Members and Friends,

Monday in a Harlem middle school, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice told a group of 120 students that administration officials are actively discussing “when and how it might be possible to join” (that is, ratify) the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). As before, she also communicated what a disgrace it is that the U.S. would stand with only Somalia against such a widely accepted treaty.

This is the first direct public statement by the Obama administration that it will seek ratification of the UN CRC.

In my 30 years of political involvement, I have learned to recognize this as what is called a “trial balloon.” Like in World War I trench warfare, our opponents have “sent up a balloon” to see if it will draw fire. If things remain quiet, they will proceed with their plans to push for ratification of the CRC in the U.S. Senate. To discourage them from doing so, we need to make sure that our voices are heard with unmistakable clarity. We must let the Obama administration know that we oppose this anti-family, anti-American treaty.

Action

Here’s what we need you all to do:

1. Call the White House comments line at 202-456-1111. Tell them you heard the administration wants to ratify the CRC, and you strongly oppose this giving away of U.S. sovereignty to the UN. Also, keep in mind that this treaty gives the government jurisdiction to override any decision made by any parent if the government thinks that a better decision can be made—even if there is no proof of any harm.

2. Call the Ambassador Susan Rice’s office at the United Nations. Tell her that you want her to represent the United States to the world rather than trying to get the United States to go along with international law initiated by the UN. Her office number is 212-415-4000.

3. Contact your senators and urge them to oppose ratification of this treaty. (Find your senators’ contact information by using HSLDA’s Legislative Toolbox.) Ask them also to defeat it once and for all by cosponsoring SJRes 16—the Parental Rights Amendment.

It is very important that we speak up right now. Please call before you close this email!

Michael Farris
HSLDA Chairman

Three Major Developments Threatening Parental Rights

2009-06-23T15:27:00.000-07:00

In their article Civil Rights Forces Mobilize, Parentalrights.org reports that in just the last few weeks there have been major developments that put parental rights at risk.

Three major developments—all of them ominous—have occurred in the last several days.
1. On June 1 and 2, Georgetown University Law School hosted a two-day symposium entitled “The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC): Why It Is Time to Ratify.”
This well-funded conference was held to organize a new coalition effort by American internationalists to seek ratification of the UN child’s rights treaty.
2. In the second week of June, a major study was released by the British education ministry calling for dramatically dangerous increases in the regulation of homeschoolers in that nation.
This study concludes that the UN CRC requires that the government enter every homeschooling home and privately interview each homeschooling child to determine “the child’s wishes” regarding his or her education.
3. On June 17, at the UN headquarters in Geneva, the UN’s Human Rights Committee—which oversees all human rights treaties—announced that it was forming a committee to draft a new “protocol” for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Under this new addition to the CRC, individual children would be able to file a formal legal complaint if they believe that their rights had been violated. It would give this new international tribunal the right to determine if the child’s treaty rights had been violated by any person.

It is obvious from the recent symposium at Georgetown that supporters of the UNCRC are beginning to organize and push for the US to ratify this treaty. The recent study in Britain confirms that the UNCRC is unfavorable to homeschooling and would require the government, not parents, to determine what is in the best interest of the child's education. And since the UN Human Rights committee is seeking new protocols for the UNCRC that would give children the power to sue their parents we can see that the threats against parental rights are very real. In America, parents, not judges, need to be the decision makers in the lives of their own children. These latest developments are a reminder as to why we need to take action now to protect parental rights. The only way to stop all threats against parental rights is to pass the The Parental Rights Amendment. To learn more about the proposed amendment or to find ways you can help protect parental rights, visit parentalrights.org.

Parental Rights Amendment Introduced in the Senate

2009-06-19T07:01:00.001-07:00

Parentalrights.org Reports that the Parental Rights Amendment has now been introduced into the Senate!

The Parental Rights Amendment as proposed by Rep. Pete Hoekstra in House Joint Resolution 42 has now been introduced in the U.S. Senate as well. The companion bill, Senate Joint Resolution 16, was introduced by Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina in May. Currently, Senator DeMint is the only sponsor.
Our efforts in the House have been quite successful, securing 93 sponsors to date. So now is the time to contact your senators and urge them to sign on as cosponsors to S.J.Res. 16, the Parental Rights Amendment, in the U.S. Senate. To find their contact information, enter your zip code in the box at Congress.org.

Visit ParentalRights.org to learn more.

Call To Action

2009-06-08T08:18:00.000-07:00

I received this email from Parentalrights.org. I am sure this will be useful for any state.

***************************************

Dear ParentalRights.org Kansas Supporters,

We are launching a new nationwide effort to lobby Congressional support this summer and hope you will join us! Please forward this information to family, friends, and organizational contacts and encourage them to join this important effort! As of today, the Parental Rights Amendment has 93 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives. While we are excited to see such significant support for this issue, we must continue presenting this issue to more Congressmen and Senators.

Here's what you can do to be pro-active in your Congressional district this summer:

1) Find 20 people to help you gather 1,000 petition signatures, urging their Congressmen or Senators to sponsor the Parental Rights Amendment. (If your Congressman is already a co-sponsor, focus on your Senators.) You can find a printable version of the petition form on our website (http://tr.im/ncyq). I have also attached a document with the contact information for the Congressmen and Senators in your state.

2) It might be easier to gather this many signatures if each person collects 50. Or, hold a petition drive in your town, at your church or local grocery store, etc.

3) If you cannot find 20 people in your district, gather support from other districts and present the petition to multiple Congressmen AND your Senators.

4) Call your representative's local office and set up an appointment to meet with him or her to discuss the Amendment. If you are unable to set up an appointment over the phone, or if they are unresponsive, look up the next townhall or public meeting and have all 20 members of your group attend.

5) Once you are face-to-face with your Congressman or Senator, hand them the petition of 1,000 signatures.

6) Also, mail us a copy of the signatures to:

ParentalRights.org

PO Box 1090

Purcellville, VA 20132

Federal HIPAA Law Oversteps Parental Rights

2009-06-03T07:18:00.000-07:00

The UNCRC is not the only threat against Parental Rights. In their article Federal HIPAA Law Oversteps Parental Rights, Parentalrights.org points out how Federal HIPAA laws currently in place are already being used to circumvent a parent's right to information about their own child's health.

They site a case in a which a father took his 13 year old son to the hospital because of a reaction he was having to his perscription medication. The doctor asked the father for permission to test for illegal drug use and the father gave his consent. However, after the tests were completed the doctor would not give the father the results citing the child's right to medical privacy.

While it makes sense that the parent must give consent for all testing for a minor child it makes absolutely no sense that the parent should not then have access to the results of the test. They are the parent and have a right to know everything about the condition of their child, not the mention they are person legally responsible for paying for the test in the first place!

The article then goes on to explain how HIPAA actually gives doctors the power to decide what information they will share with parents. It basically boils down to giving doctors authority that parents should have.

...our federal government has invaded parents rights through the HIPAA regulations—yes, those same regulations that waste millions of pieces of paper every year by requiring that doctors give us pages of tiny print legalese that most Americans have the good sense to simply ignore.
The federal government maintains a website, giving official answers to questions about the implementation of HIPAA. This is what that site says about parental rights:
What right does a minor have under HIPAA to claim his or her own privilege to deny access to records under HIPAA? If the minor does not want parents or others to have access to his or her records, can the provider refuse to provide the records to the parents?
The short answer to this question is that if the health care provider or facility concurs with the minor that the parents should not have access to his or her treatment records, the minor has a good chance of precluding parents from access to the records or granting access to others.
What is the authority for this “short answer”? The official regulations (45 CFR 164.502(g)(3)(ii)(C)—this is the number of the rule for those keeping score at home) say that unless state law requires a doctor to disclose the medical information to the parent, the doctor may unilaterally refuse to give the information to the parent if the doctor’s decision is “in the exercise of professional judgment.” This section is not limited to cases of suspected abuse or neglect. In fact, there is a separate section of the federal regulations which covers such cases.
It is important to see the role that the wishes of the child play in this situation. The question asks whether a child may keep his medical records a secret. But the regulation gives the doctor unilateral control to withhold information from parents. No request from the child is required to trigger the doctor’s power to keep parents in the dark. It is the doctor’s judgment alone that allows him to withhold medical results from parents.

Be sure to read the entire atricle at Parentalrights.org. We must stay vigilant in protecting parental rights before they are taken away. As this article shows the threat from within the US is just as great as the threat from international law. Amending the constitution is the best way to assure that parental rights remain fundamental.

To learn more about what you can do to help protect parental rights visit:

92 Congressional Co-Sponsors !

2009-05-24T09:23:00.000-07:00

Supporters of the Parental Rights Amendment are still encouraging their representatives to become co-sponsors of the bill. Be sure to visit the Congressional Co-Sponsors List and see if your congressman or congresswoman is among them. If they are, be sure to send them a letter of thanks. If they are not, encourage them to do so.

For more information be sure to visit:

Oklahoma Passes Resolution Opposing the UNCRC...Tennesseee to Follow

2009-05-18T11:33:00.000-07:00

ParentalRights.org has recently reported that the Oklahoma legislature adopted a resolution (HCR 1033) that states their opposition to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and urges the Senate to reject its ratification. The resolution passed with bipartisan support and had wide margin of victory with a vote of 61 to 28 in the House. Other states are considering similar resolutions with Tennessee being the next to take action by introducing HJR 0369 on May 1st. I hope that many other states will follow suit and start sending a message to the United States Senate that parents are serious about protecting their rights.

Excerpts from Oklahoma’s resolution include:

WHEREAS the right of the parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children is a fundamental right protected by the Constitutions of the United States and the state of Oklahoma; and …

WHEREAS, by virtue of the federal Supremacy Clause all Oklahoma law regarding children would be overridden if there is a conflict with this treaty if ratified; and…

WHEREAS, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child at periodic intervals publishes “general Comments” which are substantive additions to the obligations of state parties already under the Convention, and…

WHEREAS, this represents a wholesale abandonment of the ultimate sovereignty of the United States on matters within the scope of the treaty…

…BE IT RESOLVED…that the State of Oklahoma hereby condemns the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and urges the United States Senate to reject its ratification.

To read more about what these states are doing and how you can encourage your state to take similar action visit parentalrights.org and view their recent article, State Legislatures Oppose UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Megyn Kelly on the UNCRC

2009-05-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

Here is another video explaining some of the dangers of the UNCRC. Remember, unlike England that will have the luxury of going to the panel and deciding whether or not they want to change their laws to be in compliance, our supremacy clause means that upon signing it our laws have already been changed. Parents can therefore be sued by social workers and other representatives on behalf of your child for not abiding by the treaty. In a court of law the 16 member panel's opinion will be the deciding factor as to whether or not the parent is in compliance or not.

Parental Rights Amendment Will Protect Gun Owners Too

2009-05-13T10:23:00.000-07:00

I received this email from the HSLDA which explains how the UNCRC could even threaten the rights we hold dear under the 2nd Amendment!

Parental Rights Amendment to Protect Gun Owners’ Rights

May 12, 2009

ParentalRights.org today released The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child: The Impact on Private Gun-Ownership in America, a carefully considered legal analysis of the impact this United Nations treaty will have on Americans’ Second Amendment Rights. In it, author Michael Farris, J.D., establishes that ratification of the UNCRC poses a significant threat to the right of the American people to keep and bear arms:

The U.N. believes all children have a right to grow up in a community without guns.
The U.N. holds that the UNCRC is applicable to this issue.
They also hold that the idea that guns are beneficial is itself harmful to children.
The UN believes guns should never be accessible to children.

Visit parentalrights.org to read the full article.

20 Things you need to know about the UNCRC

2009-05-11T10:29:00.000-07:00

When we heard Michael Farris speak last month, he handed out papers that explained 10 things you need to know about the structure of the CRC and 10 things you need to know about the substance of the CRC. He said that we could copy that information up to about 100,000 times (or some large number like that) without asking his permission. In other words, he wanted this information to be passed around. So I am copying this from the ParentalRights.org website. Be sure to see the their full article 20 Things you Need to Know About the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to learn more.

10 Things you need to know about the structure of the CRC.

It is a treaty which creates binding rules of law. It is no mere statement of altruism.
Its effect would be binding on American families, courts, and policy-makers.
Children of other nations would not be impacted in any direct way by our ratification.
The CRC would automatically override almost all American laws on children and families because of our Supremacy Clause.
The CRC has some elements that are self-executing, while others would require implementing legislation. Federal courts would have the power to determine which provisions were self-executing.
The Courts would have the power to directly enforce the provisions that are self-executing.
Congress would have the power to directly legislate on all subjects necessary to comply with the treaty. This would constitute the most massive shift of power from the states to the federal government in American history.
A committee of 18 experts from other nations, sitting in Geneva, has the authority to issue official interpretations of the treaty which are entitled to binding weight in American courts and legislatures. This effectively transfers ultimate authority for all policies in this area to this foreign committee.
Under international law, the treaty overrides even our Constitution.
Reservations, declarations, or understandings intended to modify our duty to comply with this treaty will be void if they are determined to be inconsistent with the object and purpose of the treaty.

10 Things you need to know about the substance of the CRC.

Parents would no longer be able to administer reasonable spankings to their children.
A murderer aged 17 years, 11 months and 29 days at the time of his crime could no longer be sentenced to life in prison.
Children would have the ability to choose their own religion while parents would only have the authority to give their children advice about religion.
The best interest of the child principle would give the government the ability to override every decision made by every parent if a government worker disagreed with the parent’s decision.
A child’s “right to be heard” would allow him (or her) to seek governmental review of every parental decision with which the child disagreed.
According to existing interpretation, it would be illegal for a nation to spend more on national defense than it does on children’s welfare.
Children would acquire a legally enforceable right to leisure.
Christian schools that refuse to teach "alternative worldviews" and teach that Christianity is the only true religion "fly in the face of article 29" of the treaty.
Allowing parents to opt their children out of sex education has been held to be out of compliance with the CRC.
Children would have the right to reproductive health information and services, including abortions, without parental knowledge or consent.

For more information visit:

Mother's Day is under attack

2009-05-07T12:36:00.000-07:00

Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser.

Saving Motherhood

This Sunday we celebrate Mother’s Day in the United States. If you are a mother, we thank you and salute you for the invaluable work you do in fulfilling that vital role in the life of your children, and the heritage of our nation!

Sadly, the United Nations would hold such a sentiment to be discriminatory against women. In 2000, the United Nations CEDAW Committee (named for the Convention to End All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, or CEDAW) criticized the nation of Belarus for “the reintroduction of such [sex-role stereotype] symbols as a Mother’s Day and a Mothers’ Award, which it sees as encouraging women’s traditional roles.” [See paragraph 361 on page 37 of the UN document here.]

For our part, ParentalRights.org is proud to encourage women in the role of mother, as we are proud of loving fathers for the part they play. The fact is, the role of parents in directing the upbringing and education of their children is a precious and fundamental right. It should not be looked down on, nor stolen, by international governing bodies such as the CEDAW Committee, nor the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), like CEDAW, is an international treaty attempting to dictate domestic policy. Like CEDAW, it has set up a panel of UN “experts” to “advise” nations who are not in compliance with the treaty, setting international law policy which activist judges then incorporate into national law.

Unlike CEDAW, however, the UNCRC does not oppose Mother’s Day. Rather, it constitutes an attack on Motherhood itself, replacing fundamental parental rights with bureaucratic oversight at a federal and international level. Perhaps if we ratified both treaties we could just replace Mother’s Day with Social Worker’s Day, and the UN would be pleased.

The only permanent solution to prevent U.S. ratification of the UNCRC is the Parental Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which includes the provision that “No treaty may be adopted nor shall any source of international law be employed to supersede, modify, interpret, or apply to [fundamental parental rights].” This would finally end the threat of UNCRC ratification in the United States. While that alone may not preserve Mother’s Day, it can at least save Motherhood from international interference.

Please, as you value your own parents and your rights as parents to raise your own children, take a moment to forward this email to every mother you know – or even everyone who has a mother – and be sure to wish them “Happy Mother’s Day!” To sign the petition or to learn more about the dangers of the UNCRC or the need for the Parental Rights Amendment, visit us on the web at parentalrights.org.

Michael Farris Responds to AP

2009-05-06T07:11:00.000-07:00

Michael Farris has written an article titled Children's Rights Legally Binding and Absurd at Townhall.com. In this article Farris is responding to the recent AP article mentioned earlier in this blog. He points out the fallacy of the statements made by supporters of the treaty and specifically refers to some statements made by Jonathan Todres, a professor at Georgia State. Farris brings out some excellent points and I highly recommend that you read the entire article. He not only explains how signing the treaty makes it legally binding on the US because of the supremacy clause that exists in our constitution by stating this:

It is not difficult to discern the legal impact of a ratified treaty on our domestic law. It’s spelled out plainly in the text of the U.S. Constitution. Article VI states that, along with the U.S. Constitution and federal law, ratified treaties “shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.” Treaties trump state law.

He also makes an excellent point about what kind of statement it makes the rest of the world when supporters of the treaty suggest that we should sign it because our signature does not make it binding or obligate us to follow it if we do.

Ratify the treaty, they say. It’s not legally binding. We can choose what to obey and what not to.
This argument is not only patently hypocritical, it is legally wrong.
The most important principle of international law is: pacta sunt servanda (agreements must be kept). In other words, keep your promises.
Make no mistake, whenever the United States ratifies a treaty it enters into a binding legal obligation to comply with its terms. Arguing that a treaty is a mere philosophical statement of intent with no binding legal consequences is blatant error. Besides, what message does this send to the international community the Obama administration seems desperate to please?
Arguing that America can enter into treaties and then comply on piecemeal basis undermines our international reputation. Worse, it suggests that America cannot be trusted to keep its promises.

He is correct, this entire series of arguments for ratification makes absolutely no sense. Why fight so hard for something you have no intention of keeping. The truth is the people that make such claims know that this treaty will be binding, they simply do not want the average American to know it. They want a law that not only trumps state law but also grants to them the authority to approve of how we all raise our children. As Farris correctly concludes in the article:

Under this treaty, every decision made about children —whether by government or parents— is subject to governmental review. Armed with the CRC, any social worker can second-guess any parent based on an opinion that the parents’ choice was not in the “best interest” of the child. Under this subjective standard, no family is safe from governmental intrusion.

You will want to read his response in its entirety at Townhall.com for it he shares information that every American needs to know about this treaty including how some judges are already applying it to their decisions before it has even been ratified. The decisions they make based upon their assumption that this treaty is binding reveals just how much power this will have if it ever is ratified. Parents will lose their right to train their children according to their own convictions and instead will begin to fear what the government will do or say about every decision they make. This is not the direction our country needs to go. Visit Parentalrights.org to find out more about the proposed amendment that will guarantee that treaties will never take away our rights to raise our children and find out what you can do to help.

Video: Michael Farris On Huckabee

2009-05-05T10:29:00.000-07:00

Here is the video of the appearance of Michael Farris on the Huckabee show in which Michael shares a little about the UNCRC and how it will affect parental rights. He also encourages people to support the Parental Rights Amendment by going to Parentalrights.org.

Blogs Promoting Parental Rights

2009-05-04T07:51:00.001-07:00

If you have a blog or know of a blog that is promoting the Parental Rights Amendment please comment here and leave me the URL so I can share those blogs with others. In order to be considered promoting Parental Rights they must either link to ParentalRights.org, Parentsrights.us, or this Support Parental Rights Blog. They may link to these sites by using icons, graphics or even plain text. The link can be on a side bar of the blog or in an actual blog about the issue. No matter how they are promoting Parental Rights we want to know so that we can place them among those listed as supporters on this blog.

If you would like to promote the Parental Rights Amendment ParentalRights.org has some great resources for you to use.

Print Materials
Blog Graphics
Video
Audio and Radio

Let us do all that we can to spread the word and protect the right of parents to raise their children according to their own beliefs and values.

MSNBC Reports on UNCRC and Parental Rights

2009-04-30T09:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday MSNBC ran an article titled Clash brewing over global Rights of Child pact. In the article they report how ratifying the UNCRC is up for debate again and how "both sides agree that its chances of ratification — while still uncertain — are better under the Obama administration than at any point in the past."

I am certainly glad to see this issue getting media attention and I was pleased with the article. However, there still seems to be no coverage on the impact the supremacy clause in our constitution would have if we ratified this treaty. (See my blog about Hoekstra on O'Reilly to learn more about that.) With that in mind I would like to comment on a few statements made within the article.

"The reality is that no country that is a party to the convention has seen parental rights encroached," said Jonathan Todres, a law professor at Georgia State University who has worked with Gardinier's coalition.

There are two things wrong with this statement, one is that it is not true. Michael Farris gives an instance in which the UNCRC was used to violate a parent's right in Wales.

The Committee on the Rights of the Child is the official UN tribunal granted the authority to interpret and enforce the Children's Convention, which sets forth an exhaustive index of children's rights, many at odds with the rights of parents. The tribunal has held, for instance, that the United Kingdom violated children's rights in Wales by allowing parents to withdraw their children from public school programs without first considering the child's wishes. (Elitism Threatens Parental Rights)

As we can see, in other countries parents have seen this right encroached upon and the UNCRC was specifically used to take that right away.

The other error is, of course, his failure to recognize the supremacy clause in our constitution. I have mentioned it before, and I suppose I will have to keep mentioning it until it gets properly reported. What Jonathan Todres fails to mention is that no other country that has ratified the treaty has a constitutional clause that automatically makes the UNCRC the supreme law of their land. As a law professor, I have to assume he knows that the supremacy clause exists, and therefore knows that his own argument is flawed. I am saddened that he attempts to fool Americans by making such a statement. He has to realize the supremacy clause means ratification would impact our country like no other.

Todres goes on to say:

The treaty "has the potential to be a great tool for parents," Todres said. "It's something the parents could use to say, 'My child has the right to freedom of religion and the state cannot encroach on that. My child has education rights, health care rights, and the state cannot ignore that.'"

We already have a great tool for parents to use in America and it is called our Constitution. I do not need a UN treaty to fight for my child's right. You should note that he mentions certain rights here that are not specifically guaranteed in our constitution. If Todres wants Americans to have a tool that says health care is a "right" then he needs to work on amending our current constitution or passing laws within our own country that will grant his wishes. That is how laws that govern civil life in this country should be made. They should be made by the legislators we elect to represent us, not a board of international delegates who do not live or reside in the country they rule. That is the kind of tyranny we fought against in the Revolutionary war. We should not look to the UN to write and in some cases over-write our laws for us, we have our own methods for protecting children in this country.

One of the biggest arguments against the Parental Rights Amendment is that most people do not like to amend our constitution. It is such a great document that people are leary to mess with it. I certainly agree. What they fail to understand is that if we ratify the UNCRC we are pretty much doing the same thing, only we are doing so without the tough approval process amendments require. The only way to stop this threat is to amend our constitution to say that no treaty will supersede our fundamental rights.

I am very encouraged that the issue is getting media attention. Please read the full article
Clash brewing over global Rights of Child pact at MSNBC. To learn more about the proposed Parental Rights Amendment and help protect us from the threat of the UNCRC visit parentalrights.org or parentsrights.us.

California Father Bicycling For Parental Rights

2009-04-29T06:52:00.001-07:00

It seems a father in California has found a creative way to spread the word about the Parental Rights Amendment. On May 2nd he will begin his journey by holding a rally in front of his US Representative's office. From there he will peddle his bicycle 420 miles across the state of California, gathering signatures for the Parental Rights Amendment and 5 days later he will end his journey at the steps of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s office.

Read full article at ImpactWire.com and see how passionate this man is about the Parental Rights Amendment and find ways you can help.

Michael Farris to Appear on Huckabee Show This Weekend

2009-04-23T13:43:00.000-07:00

I just received this update from HSLDA. Michael Farris will be on the Huckabee show on the Fox News Network this weekend. Be sure to watch and tell others about it so they can learn more about protecting parental rights!

The show will air Saturday evening (4/25) at 8 P.M. ET, and on Sunday (4/26) at 2 A.M., 8 P.M., 11 P.M. on the Fox News Channel

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Please pray for Dr. Michael Farris, HSLDA chairman and co-founder, who
has been rescheduled to appear on the Huckabee show April 25-26. The
Fox News Channel interview by former Gov. Mike Huckabee will address
Dr. Farris' efforts to shelter the American family from the imposition
of international law through the Parental Rights Amendment, recently
introduced in Congress. The interview takes place Saturday at 2:30
P.M. in New York City and airs Saturday evening (4/25) at 8 P.M. ET,
and on Sunday (4/26) at 2 A.M., 8 P.M., 11 P.M.

With yet another opportunity for Mike to stand up for truth, and for
American families, on a national stage, we thank God and ask you to
please tune in and pray that this vital issue gets the fair, accurate,
and far-reaching coverage it warrants.

Washington Times: Treaty Abolishes Rights of Parents

2009-04-22T07:06:00.000-07:00

The Washington Times posted an editorial on the UNCRC (UN Convention on the Rights of the Child) titled Rosemond: Treaty Abolishes Rights of Parents. In the article Rosemond explains how we should not just be worried about the nationalization of banks, but how ratifying this treaty would nationalize child rearing turning parenting into "governmenting." I think he nails the risks of this treaty pretty accurately when he said, "The language, often recklessly vague, clearly establishes the state as the final authority where raising children is concerned. As such, the document could more accurately be called the United Nations Convention on the Abolition of Parents' Rights."

He like many others urges you to go to parentalrights.org to find out more about the UNCRC, and to sign the petition calling for the Parental Rights Amendment. I encourage you to read the entire article which can be found at the link below.

http://washingtontimes.com/news/2009/apr/19/rosemond-treaty-abolishes-rights-of-parents/

Hoekstra, Farris Encouraged by Grassroots Support for Constitutional Amendment

2009-04-21T12:04:00.000-07:00

Christian Newswire.com reports that Hoekstra, Farris Encouraged by Grassroots Support for Constitutional Amendment and shares a joint statement recently released by both Farris and Hoekstra. In the article they talk about how the grassroots movement is growing and how encouraged they have been that congressional involvement is double what they had originally hoped for. As they say, "with continued support there is really no telling how fast we can drive this initiative."

Visit http://christiannewswire.com/news/6408810116.html to read the article from Christian Newswire.com

Further information on the Parents' Rights Amendment go to http://www.parentalrights.org.

Hoekstra on America's Newsroom with Megyn Kelly

2009-04-18T16:24:00.000-07:00

Here is another interview of Representative Hoekstra by Megyn Kelly on America's Newsroom April 15, 2009. He makes great points about the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and why we should not sign that treaty. He reminds us what treaties were originally designed to do and how there is no need or benefit to us by signing this treaty. It's only purpose would be to give other people the power to define what is in the best interest of YOUR children.

http://www.blogcatalog.com/directory/politics

Hoekstra on O'Reilly and What He Didn't Say

2009-04-18T16:21:00.000-07:00

Here is Hoekstra on the O'Reilly factor. He talks a little bit about the Parental Rights Amendment but I feel he missed a huge opportunity to explain why this is so essential. Yes, 193 countries have signed on to the UN Treaty on the Rights of the Child, but there is a big difference between those 193 countries and the United States of America. When those countries sign treaties they do not become binding on those countries until they enact laws that make it the law of their land. For the most part their signature is simply a gesture that expresses their agreement with the goals of the amendment, but it does not hand over their sovereignty to the UN.

In the case of the United States it would be totally different because article six of the US Constitution has what is referred to as the supremacy clause and states that any treaty we sign becomes the supreme law of the land. It reads as follows (bold and italics are mine):

"This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding."

So, if the Unites States signs this treaty it would get the same status as the constitution itself and it would take precedent over any law in our land that did not meet the standards set by an international board of directors! That is why the United States has failed to ratify this treaty and it is why we never should.

There are good parts to this treaty but US law already addresses those issues with our current laws. We do not allow people to trade children, enslave them or abuse them. We do not NEED this treaty to help us protect the children of this country. The United States is far better at treating children than most of the countries who have signed this treaty but refuse to actually follow it. Again, they have the capacity to ignore the treaty because in their system of government treaties do not become the supreme law of their land.

While there are some good aspects to the treaty there are parts of it that are not necessarily looking out for the best interest of children. After all, it is adults who are on the panel in the UN that get to decide what they believe is in the best interest of children. The goal of some of the articles in this document is to control what children are allowed to be taught and how children are to be raised and disciplined. It is NOT the job of an international board OR the United States government to determine what is and is best for MY child, or your child or any child. Parents, not the government, should be making decisions regarding the way their children are raised. If we give that up to the US government, to the UN, or to anyone else then we have given up our freedom, and I am not ready or willing to do that. The Parental Rights Amendment will guarantee that international law will NEVER supersede the rights of law abiding Americans to raise their children.

Parental Rights Amendment Introduced

2009-04-18T16:15:00.000-07:00

I received this in email from parentalrights.org. I wanted to pass it on to all of you!

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The introduction of the Parental Rights Amendment in the U.S. Congress (H.J. Res. 42) was announced at a press conference yesterday afternoon. Below is the body of parentalrights.org president Michael Farris's powerful speech from that event. If your Congressman or Senator is not already onboard, we urge you to copy and paste that message into an email or letter to send to them, along with your own personal message. (Check the sponsors list; find contact info.) This message clearly articulates the need for the Amendment; it is imperative that we get it into the hands of all of America's lawmakers.

Statement of Michael Farris
President of ParentalRights.org
March 31, 2009

On behalf of ParentalRights.org and the rapidly growing number of allied organizations, I want to thank Senator Jim DeMint, Congressman Pete Hoekstra, and my own Congressman Frank Wolf for their leadership on this important issue.

There are two basic reasons that the Constitution has been amended throughout our history. Sometimes the need is to preserve our law and traditions from potential threats and erosion of our rights. The Bill of Rights serves as the chief example of amendments designed to preserve the existing rights of the people.

At other times, it is absolutely necessary to change the existing law. The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments were clearly necessary to end the evils of slavery and establish the principle of equal protection for all Americans.

The Parental Rights Amendment follows the pattern of the Bill of Rights—the goal of this Amendment is to preserve our existing law and traditions against judicial erosion and the ever-growing threat of international law.

Sections 1 and 2 of this Amendment do nothing more than restate the time-honored doctrines of the Supreme Court on parental rights. We are simply changing parental rights from an implied right based on judicial opinions to an express right based upon actual constitutional text.

Section 1 faithfully employs the words and phrasing of the Supreme Court’s decision of Pierce v. Society of Sisters, 268 U.S. 510 (1925), to declare that the liberty of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children is a fundamental right.

Section 2 carefully follows the words of the Court in Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205 (1972), to declare that parental rights, while very important, have limits. The government may intervene when the interest is of the highest order and not otherwise served. This section is a correct statement of current law. Today, when the government has proper evidence of child abuse or neglect, it may and should prosecute a parent who is responsible for such behavior.

Section 2 ensures that this principle remains intact. Parental rights are fundamental, but they are not absolute.

Section 3 preserves the current principle that only American laws govern the relationship between parents and children in this country. The use of international law is a rapidly growing trend in our judicial system. One federal district judge in New York has on two separate occasions ruled that the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child already binds the United States under the doctrine of customary international law. An Ohio court ruled on an obviously flawed premise that this treaty had already been ratified by the Senate, and therefore ordered parents to stop smoking because it harmed the health of their children.

Section 3 makes it clear that the only law which can be used in American courts regarding American families is the law made in America by our legislatures or the people themselves. The use of international law for domestic purposes is utterly contrary to the idea that this nation is a self-governing Republic.

This section is necessary especially in the context of international law. Under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, international legal obligations are of superior rank to national law—even if that law is from the national constitution. However, there is an exception. Article 46 of the VCLT says that when the national constitution makes an exception concerning the power to enter treaties, then the national law still triumphs even in the face of an inconsistent treaty obligation.

Section 3 makes it unconstitutional for this nation to enter into a treaty that gives away our sovereignty on the subject of American parents and American children.

This should be a bi-partisan issue. President Obama recently declared, “In the end, there is no program or policy that can substitute for a mother or father.” Every member of Congress who agrees with the President on this principle should be in favor of this Amendment.

Every member of Congress who believes that Pierce v. Society of Sisters, 268 U.S. 510 (1925), was correctly decided should be in favor of Section 1.

Every member of Congress who believes that Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205 (1972), was correctly decided should be in favor of Section 2.

And every member of Congress who believes that only American legislators should make public policy for American families should be in favor of Section 3.

On this last point, a post-election Zogby poll (sponsored by WorldNetDaily) makes it clear that virtually every sector of the American public agrees with this last proposition.
When asked if they wanted American judges to use American law alone or to also consider international law in making decisions, by an overwhelming margin, the American public rejected the idea of using international law for these purposes.

The majority of Republican voters reject international law.

So do the majority of Democratic voters.

Those who voted for McCain reject international law.

A majority of those who voted for Obama reject it as well.

Union members reject international law.

NRA members reject international law.

Every region of the nation rejects international law.

Every age group rejects international law.

Every racial group rejects international law.

This is a bipartisan issue in America among voters, and I truly hope and believe that it will become a bipartisan issue on the Hill. The gap between the values of Capitol Hill and the values of the American people has grown too large on too many issues. This is the very best place to show the American public that we all can work together for shared values.
Both political parties say they are for family values. And this will demonstrate meaningful support for the family.

This Amendment preserves two essential values: the value that good families, not government, have the right to make decisions for children; and that America, not the UN or any other nation, gets to make our public policy to govern the critical relationship between parents and children.