Yet More Navel Gazing

Very interesting post here about inclusive groups being shut out by fundie groups like HSLDA. And to a certain extent that's true....Michael Ferris and his flying monkeys really try to make homeschooling a RWFNJ (Right-wing, fundie, nut-job) territory...but that's just about 10% of the problem, IMHO.

3 years ago, when I started homeschooling, I started an inclusive homeschool group with a friend. And things imploded multiple times due to 3 main reasons reasons:

1) Inclusive means Christians are going to join. When things came up, like do we call it a Christmas party or a holiday party, one of the RWFNJ blew a gasket over calling it a Holiday party. A whole bunch of ugliness happened...because RWFNJ really had her own agenda and didn't get that not everyone in the group celebrated Christmas. Then a few other of the RWFNJs started spouting "War on Christmas" rhetoric from FOX (or their church). No one wants that kind of conflict at a personal level...especially in groups involving their children. Many of the secular homeschoolers began to feel uncomfortable (unsafe) due to the high level of childish emotions from adults. If anyone is interested, I've kept most of the emails from that debacle...email me if you'd like to see them. I'd give this about 10%.

2) This is the biggie...I'd give it 50% of the problem...secular homeschoolers don't make good soldiers/followers. It's like herding cats! Everyone has their own individual agenda and isn't interested in something bigger. Christians have two things going for them: a belief that sacrifing for today can result in a better tomorrow and a belief that submission is a good thing. Secular homeschoolers tend to want it NOW and exactly their way....and if you have 30 people in a group, not everyone can have their way about every issue.

3) Inclusive groups tend to avoid organization and rules to prevent some of the conflict due to problem 2...and then when things start to escalate, there isn't a procedure in hand to deal with it. Some of the people in the group I helped start needed two things; to be kicked out and on meds. But, the leadership of the group, (and I include myself in this) spent endless hours agonizing about how fair would it be to limit the troublemakers' speech on the list or if they should be removed from the group. A Christian group would have prayed on it and booted out the insubordinate loon...staying on message. Their is something to be said for that kind of control within a group. I'd say this is 30% of the problem.

So, in closing, I'd like to restate my position: The biggest obstacle to inclusive/secular homeschoolers are ourselves. If we want what HSLDA has in terms of recognition then we have to adopt certain of their behaviors (organization, leadership, dedicated followers)