"Muslim converts 'Not Islamic enough' for their adopted son to have a brother"

[Volokh, Eugene]

That's a headline from the Times (London),
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article4965528.ece.  Any
thoughts of how this should play out under U.S. law?  I assume that such
U.S. government decisionmaking would be unconstitutional, but given
people's willingness on past threads to relax standard First Amendment
law when it comes to family law (at least in "best interests of the
child" disputes among parents), I wonder what people would think about
this.  Here's an excerpt from the Times:
 
 
When Robert and Jo Garofalo decided they wanted to adopt a child in
Morocco they knew it would not be easy. Although the law in the Muslim
state had been changed to allow foreign adoptions, the couple were
required to convert to Islam first[, which they did]. ...

So when, earlier this year, they approached Surrey [U.K.] social
services for approval to adopt again from the same Moroccan orphanage,
they were surprised to discover that they would have to go through the
whole process again. The couple were particularly concerned that, in
order to assess Samuel's "attachment" to them, he would have to be
monitored and even filmed while playing. 

Equally disconcerting was that even though social workers indicated in
an initial report that they would be prepared to support the second
application, the couple were left with the impression that they were
being asked to do more to show they were living a Muslim lifestyle. 

"The Moroccan orphanage felt it would be good for Samuel to have a
brother and were very positive and encouraging. They were happy with the
way we dealt with Samuel's cultural and religious needs," Mrs Garofalo,
a 40-year-old actress, said. But this was not enough for Surrey, who
made clear that an assessment would go ahead only if the couple proved
that they were making enough effort to live a Muslim lifestyle. 

In their report, social workers noted that although the couple had
stated their religion was Islam "there is no outward sign that this is a
Muslim family . . . Joanne and Robert are aware that the socio-religious
element is an aspect of Samuel's identity and heritage which this agency
takes very seriously." It recommended that "particular attention be
given to sharing techniques and strategies with Joanne and Robert that
will enhance their children's sense of identity and legacy, particularly
in view of their very public statement they made deciding to convert to
Islam in order to adopt". ...

Surrey County Council said that children's services were under a legal
duty to conduct an assessment on how the couple's son was doing, and
their efforts to promote his Muslim faith, before exploring a second
adoption. 

"The couple approached us with a view to adopting the second child and
we told them that by law we had to do an assessment to find out how well
the adopted Muslim child from Morocco had settled with them in this
country, the security of his attachments and the likely impact on him of
having a sibling with complex needs in the household. We also told them
the assessment would look at their efforts to promote the adopted
child's religion and culture. After finding out these legal
requirements, they decided not to continue the process." ...

 

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