There has been much controversy surrounding a parent’s right to Homeschool in California. It all started with a Southern California couple, Phillip and Mary Long, and their eight homeschooled children. An allegation of physical abuse was brought against the father and the attorney representing the two youngest children asked the court to order the parents to enroll the children in public school for their protection. The problem is that “protection” would expose these children to teaching that is in direct opposition to the family’s Christian beliefs.

Since SB777 was passed and signed into law, California public schools are now required to teach homosexuality and bisexuality, along side traditional heterosexual family images in all of their textbooks, lectures, and assignments. The term “gender” has also been redefined to include a person's gender identity and gender-related appearance and behavior whether or not associated with the person's assigned sex at birth. Students are taught that the God-given sex they are born with means nothing, and can been changed at any time. A boy who dresses and acts like a girl (or vise versa) is perfectly normal and should be treated just as if he were born a girl.

These indoctrinations, along with others such as sexual education that includes condoms and abortion information, etc., are one of the main reasons many families, including the Longs, choose to Homeschool. The court did not find this to be a legitimate reason, however. "We find no reason to strike down the Legislature's evaluation of what constitutes an adequate education scheme sufficient to promote the 'general diffusion of knowledge and intelligence...’ We agree… 'the educational program of the State of California was designed to promote the general welfare of all the people and was not designed to accommodate the personal ideas of any individual in the field of education…' (The Long’s) ‘sincerely held religious beliefs’ are ‘not the quality of evidence that permits us to say that application of California's compulsory public school education law to them violates their First Amendment rights,’" the court said.

Almost immediately there was a public outcry that was reiterated by some of our key elected officials. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger issued the following statement, "Every California child deserves a quality education and parents should have the right to decide what's best for their children. Parents should not be penalized for acting in the best interests of their children's education. This outrageous ruling must be overturned by the courts and if the courts don't protect parents' rights then, as elected officials, we will." State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell came to the defense of Homeschool families. "The California Department of Education policy will not change in any way as a result of this ruling. Parents still have the right to Homeschool in this state," he said. Assemblyman Ted Gaines has co-authored ACR 115 – an Assembly resolution urging the California Supreme Court to overturn the Second District Appellate Court's decision to restrict a parent's right to home-school their children. He states, ''What we have here is another example of judicial activism by unelected, unaccountable partisan judges. This decision to prohibit home-schooling is an attempt to consolidate and assimilate young children into California's dysfunctional education system. It is my firm belief that should parents desire, they have every legal right to home-school their children. My wife and I, over the years, have home-schooled five of our six children with fantastic results.''

As a result, the 2nd District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles granted a rehearing, essentially voiding the previous decision until it rules again. The decision will now allow home-schooling organizations that had blasted the decision to weigh in.

What can you do to get involved? If you desire to support homeschooling in California, you can go to the website of the Home School Legal Defense Association, www.HSLDA.org where you will find a plethora of information and opportunities to join the organization and help the fight. You can also write or call your elected officials. The Campaign for Children and Families has an action center which will allow you to email all the relevant officials at the same time. You can visit their website at www.savecalifornia.com.