The foundation of the Child Welfare Laws was introduced into our society to protect those individuals who are vulnerable and unable to protect themselves. The concept was good, and would enable the government to protect children who were being neglected by those who were responsible to provide for and protect these children, but these laws have fallen short. Spurred on by acts committed against children, the child welfare laws have become more complex, not to mention more invasive to the American Family over the years.
The conception of these laws was good, but how much is too much of a good thing? Over the years the power and protection of the Child Welfare Agencies has grown until they are essentially an unstoppable force on the legal system of the United States. Today it is common place for an individual’s Constitution Rights to be routinely hindered by the Child Welfare Agencies.
The Child Welfare Agencies and the laws backing them have virtually grown into an entity separate and immune by constitutional law. Laws have been enacted that dictate nearly ever aspect of how you care for and raise your children. No longer do American Families have a say in how they will discipline their children; in addition, they no longer have control over their health care and education.
There is virtually no form of punishment that is considered legal by many state laws. This does not limit itself to physical punishment by any means. You cannot put your child in the corner for longer than one minute for each year of their age without committing a criminal offense. Any parent who has taken care of a child knows this is nearly a worthless form of discipline, especially for a child younger than four, or older than eight. If you ground your child or take away their toys, you are committing abuse in one form or another.
Discipline is not the only area of family life where Child Welfare has intruded. They also dictate your child’s health care and their education. If your doctor recommends giving your child fluoride and you are against it because of newly discovered health concerns, you are in the wrong. If your child’s teacher suggests putting your child on medication to modify their behavior and you refuse, as many parents should, you are committing the child neglect.
If your child’s school recommends that your child be in special education, but you do not agree and refuse to give them permission to educate your child a certain way, you are committing child neglect.
Again, the root of these laws were put into place for good reasons, but the entity of Child Welfare has grown to monstrous proportions that now use these laws to govern the lives of every family that has minor children.
Until recently, it was legal for a child welfare worker to search your home without a search warrant and to take custody of your children without due process which is guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. It is still legal for Child Welfare to go to your child’s school and question them, as well as take custody of them without you ever being aware of it. One day they will just not come home and you will have no idea what happened to them.
You are not permitted to have a legal representative present when Child Welfare questions your child, and the representatives of these agencies are well known for coercing a child during interviews. Unfortunately it is difficult to prove without a legal representative present during the interview. Another tactic is to take what you say and turn it around or outright lie to the judge to get the orders that they are seeking. It is advisable to have a tape recorder and witnesses present whenever you are interviewed by a Child Welfare Worker.
In many states you do not have the constitutional right to trial by jury when it involves a child welfare case. This is under the guise of protecting the child so the fate of you and your family rests solely on the judge, who often is just another arm of the system.
How did all this get so out of hand and slip by the notice of the American Public? First and foremost, it began as a problem that only the low income had to deal with, but has grown to the point where today this could happen to anyone who has a child. The incentive to State Welfare Agencies to continue in this way and take custody of children – is the massive amounts of federal money they receive each year. The more children taken out of the home and placed in foster care, the more money they receive, and the amount far outweighs what a foster family receives from the state to care for children.
Slowly these problems are coming to the attention of congress and state law makers but there is still much that needs to be done to balance the protection of children with parental rights.
