Recently, the House Judiciary Committee passed a bill that would grant asylum to parents who wish for their children to be homeschooled. The same bill would also make it more difficult for those fleeing violence and poverty in their home countries to obtain asylum in the U.S

This is an interesting development considering that in several European countries, Germany being one, homeschooling is illegal. Parents who refuse to have their children be educated in the State’s educational system can face steep fines, even jail time and their children can be placed in foster care.

Republican Congressmen are contending that it is a parent’s right to choose how their child receives their education and those who are deprived of this right through a mandatory school system (regardless of those countries’ education systems being famous for being excellent and free), worthy of asylum.

To give a brief overview, asylum is generally granted to those who are persecuted based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social group and by granting asylum to an individual, we implicitly condemn the actions of this individual’s home country and make a political statement and demonstrate our own values.

In addition to the question of what message such a bill will send to our European allies, when chastising their political decisions as worthy of asylum, critics argue that once homeschooling is brought into the category of asylum, it would ultimately diminish those seeking refuge for more violent and threatening reasons caused by countries’ governments, particularly as the same bill would also make it more difficult for those fleeing violence and poverty in their home countries to obtain asylum in the U.S.