A coalition of 27 Congressmen has formed to sign a letter urging the Department of Justice and Attorney General Eric Holder to rescind an order to deport a German family whose only crime was to homeschool their children.
In 2008 German citizen Uwe Romeike, his wife, and five young children fled Germany and took up residence in Tennessee because in their homeland, homeschooling children is a crime. The penalties are so stiff that the Romeikes faced having the government take away their children.
So, the Romeikes moved to Tennessee to escape this oppression and in 2010 were awarded political asylum by a federal judge in the Volunteer State.
But this wasn’t good enough for Barack Obama’s Department of Justice. Eric Holder and his DOJ fought the awarding of political asylum for the Romeikes and took the case back to court.
At the end of April the Romeikes were forced to go back to court to fight Obama’s desire to deport the homeschooling family. Shockingly, by May, the Sixth Court of Appeals upheld Obama’s deportation order.
Now a cadre of Congressmen are weighing in on the Romeike family’s side.
The letter sponsored by Marlin Stutzman (R, Ind) asks Holder to reverse his deportation order by appealing to a stance for freedom.
“A decision to deny the Romeikes the opportunity to educate their children freely is a decision to abandon our commitment to freedom. Doing so would put America alongside those countries that believe children belong to the community or state. A country founded on freedom should stand for the fact that they belong to their parents. As a ‘city on a hill,’ this country has always embraced those who seek freedom. The United States ought to welcome families who suffer persecution for exercising their right to educate their children.”
For Rep. Stutzman, the plight of the Romeike family hits close to home as the Congressman and his wife homeschooled their own children back home in Indiana.
The family will likely have to take their asylum case to the Supreme Court, but Obama could end this all with a word to Eric Holder.
There are also reports that some Congressmen are considering offering legislation on the topic. According to Mike Donnelly, a lawyer with the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA), that could happen soon but he did not have any specific information on who might be offering this legislation and when it might occur.
Joining Congressman Stutzman on his letter to Holder are: Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Vern Buchanan (R-FL), Steve Daines (R-MT), Jeff Duncan (R-SC), Vicky Hartzler (R-MO), Tim Huelskamp (R-KS), Bill Huizenga (R-MI), Randy Hultgren (R-IL), Doug LaMalfa (R-CA), Mark Meadows (R-NC), Luke Messer (R-IN), Jeff Miller (R-FL), Alan Nunnelee (R-MS), Stevan Pearce (R-NM), Joe Pitts (R-PA), Mike Pompeo (R-KS), Bill Posey (R-FL), Phil Roe (R-TN), Todd Rokita (R-IN), Steve Scalise (R-LA), Steve Southerland (R-FL), Chris Stewart (R-UT), Steve Stockman (R-TX), Lee Terry (R-NE), Jackie Walorski (R-IN), and Daniel Webster (R-FL).
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