As we celebrate the nation's semiquincentennial, let us remember that homeschool freedom is among the broader liberties upon which the country was founded and for which it still stands.
Indeed, the majority of American children through much of our history - going back to Jamestown and Plymouth and proceeding through the colonial period and all the way to the turn of the 20th century - were actually homeschooled in one way or another (i.e., directly by their parents or via private tutors hired to work in family homes). In fact, even the proverbial one-room schoolhouses to which some were sent operated much more like homeschool co-ops than anything resembling the factory schools that took root starting in the late 19th century. And, while we might refer to the first half of the 20th century as the "silent period" for homeschooling - when it was not necessarily illegal but went out of vogue - there always remained a "faithful remnant" holding fast to the homeschool lifestyle.
More and more parents considered homeschooling again beginning in the 1960's and '70's, when both faith-based and secular "hippies" as well as more conventional Christians started to question the content and methods used in government schools. Then, starting in the early 1980's, new homeschool laws - including Wisconsin's on May 10, 1984 - were codified, and, by 1993, parents in every state had a legally-protected right to educate their children at home. After that, the movement steadily grew, to about 20,000 homeschooled kids in Wisconsin and roughly 1.5 million throughout the country, until exploding in 2020 in response to the covid pandemic; Wisconsin currently has about 30,000 homeschooled children, with more than 3.5 million nationwide.
As with any liberty, we must, of course, never forget that freedom is not free. Particularly in regard to homeschooling's resurgence in the latter half of the 20th century, remember that thousands of parents fought hard to gain the legal protections we now enjoy. If we take that freedom for granted, we risk losing it.
As Ronald Reagan wisely pointed out in his 1981 inaugural address: "Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. The only way they can inherit the freedom we have known is if we fight for it, protect it, defend it, and then hand it to them with the well fought lessons of how they in their lifetime must do the same."
To that end, please purpose to always remain vigilant. While we in Wisconsin do not currently face any imminent threats to our homeschool freedom, our compatriots in several other states have had to fight hard again in recent years - and our friends in Connecticut suffered a major blow earlier this year. We must choose to watch for any proverbial "British troops" ready to land on our shores. And we must be ready to act in defense of our freedom - for ourselves, our children, and future generations - if necessary.
Have fun celebrating our country's (imperfect but) rich history and broad liberties. But, again, never forget the nation's abiding principle, applicable to every facet of life: freedom is not free.