Mar. 5, 2009
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
I am very concerned about the potential ratification of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Although the UNCRC sounds like a wonderful idea for the protection of children, I think it is instead a threat to children’s rights within the United States.
Let’s take just one portion of the UNCRC and think through the ramifications of this treaty on the US, its families and their children.
Article 4 states: “States Parties shall undertake all appropriate legislative, administrative, and other measures for the implementation of the rights recognized in the present Convention. With regard to economic, social and cultural rights, States Parties shall undertake such measures to the maximum extent of their available resources and, where needed, within the framework of international co-operation.”
This is frightening as it gives power to agents of the state (and not necessarily agents from the United States) to determine for a child, for a family, what children’s “rights” are. This article uses the terms “other measures” and “to the maximum extent of their available resources” to ensure that these “rights” are carried out in the lives of children. There is nothing to stop America from becoming a police-state with officials entering homes under their own authority.
According to this article the “States Parties” will determine what the children’s rights are. Will the child petition for those rights or will the state intervene uninvited to determine whether a child’s rights have been violated?
According to this article “States Parties” are given the authority through “all appropriate legislative, administrative, and other measures for the implementation of the rights recognized in the present Convention.” The US has legislation in place and administrators in the 50 states to intervene when a child’s rights are violated. In many cases these administrators, social workers, have misused their authority to gain access to homes without cause and examine children (removing clothing, touching their bodies, violating their rights!) without cause. The UNCRC does not address the violation of rights done by state officials and delegates more authority to them with the terminology “other measures for implementation”.
According to this article economic, social and cultural rights will be addressed. What are a child’s economic rights? Social rights? Cultural rights? Who determines what they are and what changes are made to see that the child’s rights are met? Will a child be removed from a loving family if the parents do not have economic means to provide what many Americans consider a necessity? Does a child have the right to particular social status? Does an adopted child have the right to keep their given name and will the state insist that he or she keep that name regardless of adoption status?
“States Parties shall undertake such measures to the maximum extent of their available resources and, where needed, within the framework of international co-operation.” What action will the state officials take, how will they investigate that every child’s rights are met? What is the maximum extent of their available resources? This could allow international officers access to American homes, violating the 4th amendment!
There are many other aspects of the Convention that could be addressed as reason to oppose the document as a whole.
Although the Convention mentions respecting the rights of parents, who will determine when the rights of the parent overrule the rights of the child? According to the UNCRC, The State will! Who will determine what a child’s rights are with regard to religion, conscience, politics and other matters of belief or opinion? According to the UNCRC, the State will!
If any of you have children, and I know some of you do, you know that at many points in time, the child’s immaturity and lack of understanding prevent him/her from making decisions that are best for them.
What if the parent determines that their child cannot see her drug-addict boyfriend anymore? Is that the child’s right?
What if the parent decides that the child needs to go to bed without supper? Is that neglect?
What about religious and philosophical convictions of parents? Do these interfere with the child’s religious and philosophical convictions? If so, at what point is the state dictating the “correct” religious and philosophical convictions that an individual should have and imposing those convictions upon every child they have access to?
The United States already has laws in place that protect children from abuse, neglect, from slavery, from pedophiles, from child-labor. There are already laws ensuring that children have access to education.
There is NO REASON that the US should sign this treaty!
The UNCRC will remove rights from the Unites States to determine the cultural expectations of its own citizens. The UNCRC will remove rights from the individual States to determine from State to state the appropriate economic, social and cultural rights indigenous to that state. The UNCRC will remove rights from parents to have the authority and privacy in their own homes and determine what is the best for their own children. The UNCRC will remove rights from CHILDREN as it removes the discernment of the loving parent to determine what is best and it delegates their rights to the State.
The State is not a family! The State is not a loving parent who knows their child. The State official, as nice as they may be, is a hired stranger!
So, what can you do?
Call your senator and tell them you are opposed to the ratification of the UNCRC.
Go to: parentalrights.org they propose an amendment to the Constitution and have more information about the impact of the ratification of this treaty in the US.
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