bbcovert@juno.com

My original topic for this column was how to survive when you are overwhelmed. My life these past few months has seemed like skydiving with a faulty parachute. Some days I was plummeting, and other days I floated downward a little more gently. However, recent events involving homeschoolers in my community have led me to shelve that idea for a new topic: Us vs. Them. 

Do you believe that it’s homeschoolers against “the world”? Do you suspect every non-homeschooler of being out to get you? Granted, there are individuals and even certain special-interest groups that seem to have us on their radar, but developing paranoia about it won’t serve us well. Let me illustrate with a true story that happened recently. 

For the past five years, a local homeschool support group has had weekly park outings at a particular city park situated next to a police station. Any mother would feel safe letting her children play there. I visited the park once, early in my homeschooling journey. It’s a place where you would never expect trouble. 

Suddenly the group had ‘Trouble’ with a capital T. A man ran yelling into their midst, shoving a woman holding a baby out of his way when she tried to get between him and the teenage boy he was barreling toward. He then shoved the boy to the ground and cuffed him.  

It turned out that the scary man was a plain-clothes officer responding to a nearby public school teacher’s call that someone at the park had a knife. A small hunting knife in a sheath hung from the boy’s belt. Not only was the boy arrested for carrying a concealed weapon (in plain view), but the woman who had tried to protect him was arrested for felony assault on an officer. The incident was reported in the newspaper, on TV, and on the Internet.  

Homeschool forums and e-loops were buzzing with outrage. Was this an assault on the homeschool community by the public schools? Perhaps the law enforcement community had a grudge against home educators? Everyone weighed in with an opinion! 

Those involved in the disturbance were understandably upset. Other homeschool families quickly responded to this outrage. “I’ve got a lot of e-mails from homeschoolers across the country with the idea that this is an attack on homeschoolers, and that is just not so,” the police chief said. He went on to say that the group is welcome at the park and should not be afraid to come back. 

The homeschool group announced that it no longer felt safe in the shadow of the police station; they intend to meet elsewhere. Their children had been traumatized. Someone suggested having someone talk to the kids about what happened – as long as it was not a police officer. It seemed to be said in jest, but we can’t know for sure.  

One week later, the charges against the teen and the homeschool mother were dropped. The officer, who had been on the force in that city for five years, lost his job. In the end, it’s plain to see that the issue was the behavior of a single officer against a citizen. And yet, because homeschoolers got stirred up, and because homeschoolers took up the cause of the arrested ones, and because homeschoolers pushed for action, and because that action occurred, many homeschoolers feel that they scored a personal victory. They view this as an “us vs. them” battle with the homeschoolers as the winners. 

When the homeschool group decided to find a new place to meet and play, they voiced their lack of trust for the entire police department. I understand their emotions, but something needs to be said. They were never harassed by the entire police force. They are taking the actions of one individual and jumping to the conclusion that all the people in his profession will treat them in the same way. I’m embarrassed by this response, and I wonder whether the homeschooling movement inadvertently gave itself a black eye. Did they, perhaps, out-bully the bully? Did we really need a huge “dogpile” on the offending officer to bring about justice? 

One wise homeschool mom reminded everyone that there are plenty of hardworking police officers looking out for everyone. Some of them are even homeschooling families! She said that she knows there are bad cops, “but maybe, just maybe, we as Christians shouldn’t persecute [all officers].” 

We need to remember that there are plenty of people in our communities who are not “out to get us.” We need to be careful not to jump to conclusions and then jump on bandwagons. Sometimes an apple is just an apple, and sometimes a homeschooler is just a person in the way of someone having a bad day. What message are we sending to our neighbors if we turn every incident into a personal affront to home education? If we must err, let’s err on the side of grace. Never forget that God is in control. Ultimately, His will shall be done.

Copyright 2005 by Brenda B. Covert