I received an email today from a friend. It was from an organization craftily wording an article that says Homeschooling was NEVER illegal. In truth, this is a carefully worded Ad for the company (NOT HSLDA). The links on this email eventually bring you to the "we are working to keep your rights to home school legal" Ad and call for your dollars, a definite contradiction. Since I WAS homeschooling 20 years ago, and I remember all too well what the climate was like, I thought I would paste my reply to my friend here. TOO MANY Homeschooling pioneers fought for so much of our current homeschooling legislation. And although many companies may want to help you protect your homeschool, in MY experience, Only one (HSLDA) has and continues to do so. ATTY. Mike Smith was instrumental in protecting my RIGHT to Home School. I will always be grateful for them. So here is what I told my friend.....

Nice article, and a great spin on things, but I was a family forced to teach my children underground in DC because I did not have "proper" credentials. I took my seven year old and nine year old to hearings at the Maryland state legislature to "de-regulate" homeschooling in that state, something you enjoy because families said this is wrong 20 years ago. I had social services come to my home and tell me my "religious exemption " in a state that actually had a legal religious exempt built into its state constitution, was not enough and I had to submit to the local Superintendent. My sixth grader and high schooler testified at the state capitol in New Hampshire to help enforce that religious exemption law. My daughter had completed the "REQUIRED, COMPULSORY" State mandated Education finishing all twelve grades at 14 years old. The state would NOT allow her to graduate or attend State College courses because of the Compulsory school age laws. They did say however if she were pregnant, on drugs or a habitual run away, they would have made an exception and let her take the GED, but since she was a moral, Christian, Intelligent young woman, she could not! HSLDA (Home School Legal Defense Association) is constantly helping families fight for what we KNOW to be our inalienable rights but state "regulations" deem otherwise. I am forever grateful for their intervention in protecting the "Rights" of my homeschool in States were "Legislature" continues to attempt to rip them away from parents. In no way should this generation let their guard down and think for a minute their homeschool is safe. I think this article is misleading and potentially dangerous and above all a sneaky way to do business!

Because of Jesus, Bobbie