A fundamental principle in our Constitution comes from the Preamble which states that securing the blessings of liberty is one of the reasons the Founders established the Constitution. We will explore the definition of liberty as it relates to parental rights in our US Constitution.
Michael Farris, a COS (Convention of States) Senior Advisor, is also a former CEO at Alliance for Defending Freedom, and Co-founder of Convention of States. Michael has the constitutional background to put parental rights into context from the US Constitution.
The text in italics below is a summary from Michael’s appearance on the Crossroads Program with Rita Peters and gets at the root of who has legal rights regarding children.
The US Supreme Court starting in the 1920’s has stated the protection of parental rights is found in the term Liberty from the US Constitution 14th amendment Due Process Clause. No person shall be denied Liberty without due process of law. The Liberties protected are those things that are deeply rooted and grounded in our history, tradition, and law. This includes the rights of parents to direct the upbringing of their children.
Parental rights fall into the category of procedural due process. Procedural due process means that you cannot take something away without proving a set of facts ahead of time. Everyone in the legal arena agrees that you cannot take parental rights completely away without a fair trial. Then the same logic follows for taking away part of parental rights such as directing medical treatment for the child.
Regarding children, they do not have rights, they have needs (education, food, clothing, shelter, medical care, etc.). The question is who supplies those needs. It is the responsibility of the parents to provide for these needs and if not met, that is child abuse or neglect, and is the point where the government can step in.
Currently in the State of WI Legislature, there are two companion bills, one in the Senate (SB 489) and one in the Assembly (AB 510). These bills have the same language and establish a legal standard for state infringement on fundamental rights of parents and guardians. These bills explicitly establish 16 parental and guardian rights as well as create a cause of action for the violation of these rights. You can read SB 489 and AB 510 using the links.
The Convention of States supports AB 510 and SB 489 regarding parental rights. As of Feb 13, 2024, both bills have passed in the Senate and Assembly. The bill is now on Governor Evers desk and he has 6 days to either sign it or veto it.
Please contact Governor Evers by Friday Feb 16 to request that he sign the Parental Rights bills AB 510 and SB 489. You can contact Governor Evers via phone and/or web form as follows:
(608) 266-1212 (9am - 5pm)
You can also support the Convention of States organization. One of our missions in addition to reining in the federal government is to back state legislation relating to Federalism, Freedom, and Fundamental Rights. You can help us by visiting our website and signing our petition.
