Homeschooling Verboten in Germany

For John, BLUF:  Some fear homeschooling.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Mr Roger Kimball, over at Pajamas Media has this item, on homeschooling in Germany.

Things are different in the Fatherland of Germany, where a judge recently ordered that parents may not have custody of their children because “the family might move to another country and homeschool, posing a ‘concrete endangerment’ to the children.”

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In August, 20 armed police, equipped with a battering ram just in case, arrived at the door of this Darmstadt family and forcibly took four children, ages 7 to 14.

Was there anything wrong with the children?  Nope.  The judge — whose name, by the way, is Marcus Malkmus, in case you have a voodoo doll handy or wish to burn him in effigy — the judge admitted that the children were 1) academically proficient and 2) well adjusted socially.

He just didn’t like homeschooling.

To be fair, it is the German Government that doesn't like home schooling.  It has been that way since at least 1937.♠  The judge's ruling includes the statement of a fear:

“…the children would grow up in a parallel society without having learned to be integrated or to have a dialogue with those who think differently and facing them in the sense of practicing tolerance.”

Please note also that it isn't just about homeschooling, but also the concern that the parents would flee Germany and homeschool their children in another country.  As Americans we are lucky this judge wasn't around in the aftermath of the failed Revolution of 1848.  We might have lost a lot of great future citizens if he had been ruling from the bench.

Hat tip to the Instapundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Yes, that is a sort of dog whistle.