A judge in Brazil has sentenced a mother and father to prison for 50 days because they homeschool their children, accusing them of “intellectual neglect” and failing to teach them “tolerance and diversity.”
Audato and Ieda Denardi began homeschooling their daughters, Alice, 15, and Lorena, 11, in Sao Paulo, Brazil during the pandemic in 2020 after recognizing shortcomings in their public schools’ remote-learning programs.
In doing so, they joined about 75,000 homeschooling families in Brazil. Little did the couple know their choice could cost them their freedom.
The Denardis saw homeschooling as a caring parental choice intended to give their daughters the best education possible, however, Brazilian state prosecutors viewed it as an administrative offense for failing to register the children in a formal, state accredited school.
The judge, despite being advised by the prosecutor in the case to acquit the family, convicted and sentenced them, making the Denardis the first to be criminally prosecuted for homeschooling children.
The judge accused them of “using their daughters as pawns in an ideological struggle … while completely excluding the State’s involvement.”
Alliance Defending Freedom International is helping the Denardis to appeal the ruling.
“The prosecutor examined the witnesses and recommended for acquittal. An independent educational psychologist found no sign of neglect. The girls themselves described rigorous daily education. The judge convicted anyway – because a 15-year-old said she finds some music lyrics morally questionable, and because the curriculum didn’t include state-approved content on gender,” said Julio Pohl, Legal Counsel for Latin America at ADF International.
Although the parents were taken aback by the troubling conviction, Ieda and Audato still have hope that the courts will change their verdict.
“As a mother, I cannot conceive a more dictatorial state than the one that wants me in jail because I chose to exercise my right to direct the education and upbringing of my daughters. My husband and I are hopeful the court will recognize our right to choose the best education for our children and overturn this unjust conviction,” Ieda said.
Brazil has been locked in a tense homeschool legalization dispute for years, prolonged by unclear homeschooling laws and regulations, sparking both national and international awareness that have pressured lawmakers to act.
In 2019, the Brazilian Supreme Court ruled that homeschooling does not violate the Constitution but ordered federal lawmakers to officially codify it. The country’s National Congress has responded to the public outrage as they work to pass Bill No. 1338/2022 which would authorize homeschooling under three conditions:
- At least one parent or guardian must have completed higher education;
- Students must be linked to a public or private school for monitoring;
- The program must follow the National Common Curriculum Base (BNCC) and include periodic learning assessments.
The bill passed in the House of Representatives in 2022, but has since stalled in Brazil’s Senate, leaving homeschooling parents without clear guidelines to educate their children.
Amidst the legal ambiguity and increased consequences, now including imprisonment, homeschooling parents are fighting for educational freedom. Legal organizations like ADF International are providing legal support for prosecuted families like the Denardis.
“A parent has been sentenced to prison not for failing to educate her children, but for educating them according to her own values. This is a grotesque abuse of the criminal law, and we will not let it stand,” Pohl said.
