Proponents of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) have set a target date by which they would like to see it ratified in the United States: November 20,2012. That date is the anniversary of its adoption by the UN General Assembly back in 1989.

Last month the Child Rights Campaign began pushing online petitions calling on the President to move for CRC ratification. Tuesday, Time ran an online opinion piece by Lawrence Cohen and Anthony Debenedet calling for the United States to ratify by November 20. In the piece, they name our organization and then provide some misinformation to convince readers we are wrong.

Clearly, our opponents have no intention of letting up. They are pressing to make ratification happen before Obama – and their best opportunity – are gone.

That is why we must continue to stand against them. And we need your help.

The CRC purports to protect children, but would replace fit parents with government bureaucrats and judges as the first line of defense for our kids. In addition, it would take family law authority away from our states and make it an international treaty obligation at the federal level.

This is because under Article VI of the U.S. Constitution, any ratified treaty becomes the supreme law of the land, and the judges in every state are bound by it, regardless of conflicts with federal law or state laws or constitutions.

Cohen and Debenedet cite Reid v. Covert to contend that our concern is false because “no international treaty has the power to override the U.S. Constitution.” But this ignores the fact that parental rights do not appear in the Constitution; they are implied rights found in the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court in Reid v. Covert addressed rights not expressly in the Constitution, such as parental rights, thus: “To the extent that the United States can validly make treaties, the people and the States have delegated their authority to the National Government, and the Tenth Amendment is no barrier” 354 U.S. 1 (1957).

Sadly, the CRC is supported by international organizations with billions of dollars in assets (and with access to outlets like Time magazine), while we must depend entirely on the support of individual donors – people just like you who understand the dangers of letting the government decide whether fit parents are making the best decisions for their children.

We must continue to fight for free families and free U.S. courts, no matter how deep the pockets of those who oppose us. As they are turning up the heat, we need your help to meet strength with strength.

First, please make as generous a donation as you can right now. We must make certain this treaty is not passed. To give, simply visit parentalrights.org/donate or call us at 540-751-1200 (8:30 - 5:00 EST).

Then, pass this on to everyone you know. The freedom of parents to raise children according to their own convictions, and the authority of U.S. states to pass family law without dictates from the federal government or an overseas committee, hang in the balance. Preserve America’s future by supporting the Parental Rights Amendment today.

Sincerely,

Michael Farris
President

Getting Busy in State Legislatures

In the last few weeks state legislatures across the country have convened and taken up lots of activity involving parental rights. So although many of you did not receive any email from us last week, we actually sent out several – to a few particular states. What’s more, we expect this kind of localized activity to continue, so please be on the alert for action emails to come your way as thinks get moving in your state.

Though the Amendment’s introduction in the national Congress is still delayed, there are so many ways to stay involved in the parental rights movement. Consider last week:

• In Washington state supporters communicated opposition to HR 2193, a third party visitation bill that would allow a judge to overrule the decision of fit parents as to who can visit with their child. (Though the bill passed the committee, it did so with amendments. Watch for an update soon.)
• In New Hampshire we encouraged supporters to speak in favor of HB 1382, a bill that will improve respect for parental rights by allowing parents to approve alternative learning plans for their students ages 16-17, and by requiring a truant officer to get a warrant or parental consent before taking custody of an allegedly truant child. A hearing for the measure was originally scheduled for last Friday, before being moved to February 2.
• In Georgia we urged support for HR 738, a resolution calling on Congress to propose to the States for ratification the Parental Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. A hearing on this resolution in the House Children and Youth Committee is scheduled for Today at 2:00 p.m.
• In Missouri and Illinois we alerted readers to an opportunity to hear from ParentalRights.org Vice President and Constitutional Law professor William Wagner at an upcoming conference in St. Louis.

Resolutions have already been introduced (some carried over from 2011) in Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Minnesota (as well as Georgia, mentioned above), with others being prepared for introduction in other states as well. If you live in a state that takes up a resolution this year, expect to hear from us at key moments to call and support the measure in a House committee, a Senate committee, or even in a floor vote. Often the difference between adopting a resolution and seeing it fail is in the willingness of supporters in the state to take a moment and call or email a handful of committee members at a pivotal moment.
[Note: You can keep track of all of the action at parentalrights.org/resolution.]

Action Item

So please be ready to act when called upon, and until then, please help grow our list of supporters in order to multiply our voices at the appropriate time. To do so, simply ask your friends to sign up at parentalrights.org/petition, or invite them to visit OverruledMovie.com. If you are able, would you also please give to support these efforts at parentalrights.org/donate?

Thank you for standing with us to preserve parental rights in the federal Constitution, in the national Congress, and even in your particular state!

Sincerely,

Michael Ramey
Director of Communications & Research

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