Anyone following homeschool abuse cases is well aware of a pattern in the most horrific cases: parent is credibly accused of abuse and pulls child out of school to "homeschool," removing child from any contact with mandatory reporters or other safe adults.— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
This is what Sarah and Jennifer Hart did. After a child abuse GUILTY plea and conviction, they pulled their kids away from prying eyes and their children had to beg for help multiple times before a neighbor finally called CPS. https://t.co/glnCalHfCj— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
This is also what happened to Emani Moss. After an intervention for child abuse, her parents removed her from school to "homeschool," and she was not seen again. Her parents starved her to death. https://t.co/6AB07sVQO8— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
After Gregory Jean Jr. reported his own abuse to a school counselor, his parents removed him from school to "homeschool" and then imprisoned, starved, and beat him. https://t.co/7gWfmrFd1X— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
After a concerned teacher called CPS, John Pierre Baker and Betty Jo Miller removed their grandchildren from school to "homeschool" and then starved, psychologically tortured, and beat them. https://t.co/qy9S2aYVbL— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
A teacher called CPS, concerned that a child was being deprived of food. Her parents removed her from school to "homeschool," and then perpetrated what investigators called "the worst case of child abuse they had ever seen.” https://t.co/FuKZoYMEFw— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
CPS investigated the Quate family after multiple tips from teachers. The parents removed their children from school to "homeschool." They killed one child, hid the death, and abused the others. https://t.co/2kLRTYjAen— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
These aren't just individual stories. A 2014 study of child torture found that 47% of the cases with school-aged victims involved homeschooling. https://t.co/E6ks0wRv9x— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
We KNOW that known abusers use homeschooling as a shield. (After all, only two states have measures in place to prevent it from happening.) Homeschool extremists claim this is all just anecdotal evidence -- just isolated cases-- and homeschool law shouldn't change to prevent it.— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
Well, now Connecticut's Child Advocate has some statistics that take this out of the realm of anecdotes and isolated cases and into some very tough facts. https://t.co/mVe7XJGmpK— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
Connecticut examined six school districts where 380 students were withdrawn from school to homeschool. 138 of those children, 36%, were in families reported for suspected child abuse or neglect at least once. https://t.co/mVe7XJGmpK— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
Connecticut is a state that does not require homeschoolers to have any contact with state or local officials. Once a child is homeschooled, that's it-- there's no one checking in again. https://t.co/L0Gdnzav6u— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
All homeschoolers are not abusers, but statistics and stories like these are making it harder and harder for homeschool extremists to claim this is just a few bad apples. Is it really? If 36% of new homeschool families in six districts have been reported for child abuse?— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
With story after story backed by stats like these, it is becoming impossibly to credibly claim that abuse isn't a problem in homeschooling and the laws are fine as is. This is literally a fatal flaw in homeschool law, and laws must change.— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
If you want to think through this issue in detail, I encourage you to read @ResponsibleHS's policy recommendations and model legislation. https://t.co/eWyOiuBgTs And its issue brief on at-risk children: https://t.co/1NB8GMdXfg— Alisa Harris (@alisaharris) April 27, 2018
John, thanks for this great introduction to Alisa's tweets. I follow the organization with which she is associated, but now I am following her as well.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for visiting my blog. My sidebar bio tells you about myself so as you can see I have a great many interests. My visit to your site was something of a happenstance but it was an interesting visit. Perhaps we'll meet again on the web.
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