SF 570

as introduced - 87th Legislature (2011 - 2012) Posted on 03/14/2012 09:25am

A resolution
urging the members of the United States Congress to propose the Parental Rights
Amendment to the Constitution of the United States relating to parental rights.

WHEREAS, the right of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children
is a fundamental right protected by the Constitutions of the United States and the State of
Minnesota; and

WHEREAS, our nation has historically relied first and foremost on parents to meet the
real and constant needs of their children; and

WHEREAS, the interests of children are best served when parents are free to make
child rearing decisions about education, religion, and other areas of a child's life without state
interference; and

WHEREAS, the United States Supreme Court in Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) held that this
primary role of parents in the upbringing of their children is now established beyond debate as an
enduring American tradition; and

WHEREAS, the United States Supreme Court in Troxel v. Granville (2000) produced six
different opinions on the nature and enforceability of parental rights under the United States
Constitution; and

WHEREAS, that decision has created confusion and ambiguity about the fundamental
nature of parental rights in the laws and society of the several states; and

WHEREAS, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, has been proposed
and may soon be considered for ratification by the United States Senate, which would drastically
alter this fundamental right of parents to direct the upbringing of their children; and

WHEREAS, this convention, has been acceded to by 192 nations worldwide, and has
already been cited by United States courts as customary international law; and

WHEREAS, international influence is being exerted on the United States Supreme Court,
as demonstrated in Roper v. Simmons (2005), where the court referred to the laws of other
countries and to the international authorities as instructive for its interpretation of the United
States Constitution; and

WHEREAS, Senator James DeMint of the State of South Carolina and Representative Jeff
Fortenberry of the State of Nebraska have introduced in the United States Congress the following
amendment to the United States Constitution to prevent erosion of the enduring American
tradition of treating parental rights as fundamental rights:

Section 1: The liberty of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children is
a fundamental right.

Section 2: Neither the United States nor any state shall infringe upon this right without
demonstrating that its governmental interest as applied to the person is of the highest order
and not otherwise served.

Section 3: No treaty may be adopted nor shall any source of international law be employed
to supersede, modify, interpret, or apply to the rights guaranteed by this article;

WHEREAS, this amendment will add explicit text to the Constitution of the United States
to forever protect the rights of parents as they are now enjoyed, without substantive change to
current state or federal laws respecting these rights; and

WHEREAS, the enumeration of these rights in the text of the Constitution will preserve
them from being infringed upon by the shifting ideologies and interpretations of the United
States Supreme Court; and

WHEREAS, the enumeration of these rights in the text of the Constitution will preserve
them from being infringed upon by treaty or international law; NOW, THEREFORE,

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Legislature of the State of Minnesota
that it affirms the Parental Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution as presented
to the United States Congress by Senator James DeMint of the State of South Carolina and
Representative Jeff Fortenberry of Nebraska.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that it urges the members of Minnesota's Congressional
delegation to support the proposed Amendment by cosponsoring H.J. Res. 42 in the United States
House of Representatives or S.J. Res. 16 in the United States Senate, as appropriate.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it urges the members of the United States Congress to
propose the Amendment to the Constitution of the United States to the states for ratification.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of State of the State of Minnesota is
directed to prepare copies of this memorial and transmit them to the President and the Secretary of
the United States Senate, the Speaker and the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives,
and Minnesota's Senators and Representatives in Congress.