The front page of The Washington Post has now re-circulated the allegations that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama attended an Islamic school aka "madrassa," when he was living in Indonesia from ages 6 to 10. This supposed fact is then linked to rumors Obama is not a Christian but a "secret Muslim plant." The truth is that Senator Obama is a member of the United Church of Christ on Chicago's South Side and, as The Chicago Tribune has earlier reported, the school Obama attended while living in Indonesia was not a "madrassa".
Even if the school was a Muslim school, it is not unusual for children of Americans living abroad to attend religiously based public or private schools. Not all countries have an American style secular, public school system. Like Senator Obama, when I was six years old, our family went to live in another country.
In March of 1960, my parents left suburban Chicago for Baie D'Urfe´, Quebec, Canada. My dad had been hired by a Montreal company. I was the oldest of three siblings and had almost completed first grade at a Chicago area public school when we moved. When my mother took me to enroll at the local elementary school in Baie D'Urfe´, the school principal asked her what religion our family was. My mom, raised in Chicago with its secular, public school system, told the principal that our family's religion was none of his business. The principal smiled and said, "Alas Madame, it is my business, since you and your daughter are sitting with me in the Protestant public school. We teach in English. The other public school serving children who live in Baie D'Urfe´ is the Catholic public school. They teach in French, and the Catholic public school is in Beaconsfield, the neighboring town."
My mom, being a good Methodist and an English speaker, promptly enrolled me in the Protestant public elementary school. I went on to graduate from the Protestant public high school as well. Although my classes were in English, French instruction was an annual requirement. I never did well in French, since the teachers were upset by my nasal, Chicago accent.
Obviously, my education at Protestant public schools in Quebec, Canada is not controversial, unlike Senator Obama's education in a Muslim-majority country like Indonesia. Of course, I am not running for president and even if I were, the fact that I graduated from two Protestant public schools in Canada would not fuel any scurrilous rumors or front page news stories. I would not be called the "secret Canadian Protestant plant".
But here is the point. Whether it was my parents taking me as a six year old to Canada, Obama's mother taking him as a six year old to Indonesia or, an illegal immigrant bringing his six year old child across the border from Mexico, as Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said in this week's CNN/You Tube debate, we should not blame, attack or punish children whose parents take them across an international border.
In my case, I loved growing up in Canada. It's a wonderful country, as are Indonesia and Mexico. Our American political and civic life would be far better if more Americans would take the time to learn about other countries and appreciate other cultures.