Being heard in California State Assembly and Senate Appropriations Committees Today
By Scott Steward
Three of the four bills are unbalanced and likely to increase the punitive environment (and the cost) of our California universities, state universities, and community colleges and send a "shut up or else" message to about 2.5 million mostly young adults, their instructors and administrators.
Unfortunately, Dodd already voted to pass the two Senate bills to the Assembly, which is very sad for our college campuses. Aguiar Curry already voted to pass the assembly bills, which is sad for our high schools. I'll assume that Democratic majorities are all in on these bills. The bills are now being heard by the appropriations committees of the opposite houses today. Floor votes for the AB bills are likely in the Senate and floor votes are likely for the SB bills are likely in the Assembly soon.
That said – I would propose you let Dodd and Aguiar-Curry to recommend
For Aguiar-Curry:
NO on senate bills SB 1277 Pupil instruction: genocide education: the Holocaust.
NO on senate bills SB 1287 Equity in Higher Education Act: prohibition on violence, harassment, intimidation, and discrimination.
For Dodd:
NO on assembly bill AB 2918 Pupil instruction: ethnic studies.
And a "not encouraged by" AB 2925. AB2925 Equity bill was more balanced, but there is concern over the vague nature of who would be implementing anti-discrimination training and what guardrails would be put in place to make sure that anti-discrimination training was developed inclusively – specifically that training included Palestinian voices along with other voices.
It is hard to argue that these bills are not inspired by the desire to withhold information about and silence criticism of Israel’s human rights abuses of Palestinians – particularly by young people. Everyone should feel safe at school (and everywhere else), but these bills equate discomfort with safety and would allow the uncomfortable to put gags on our students and faculty.
I have had several exchanges with people who are certain that Palestinian human rights protestors are calling for the eradication of the State of Israel and Israelis. In deference to their very real feeling, I have been careful to seek out just what the Palestinian groups want, and, in the great majority, I have heard over and over again, justice and peace for all of us on the land called Israel and Palestine.
I believe that our dialogue to bring about a construct of governance that recognizes the human rights and dignity of Palestinians has been severely harmed by our US biases against Muslims and Arabs and these bills would only compound that harm.
While the four bills name preventing harm and increasing safety as their goals, the definitions of harm and safety, in these bills, are incomplete. The bills would likely increase biases in place today and attempt to enforce those biases by withholding and controlling education.
I believe that educating our children about the Holocaust is to teach people about what we don't want ever to happen again. I also believe that we can't use one part of human history to tell the whole story. The first three bills above allow for a biased selection of criteria for campus behavior and/or a curriculum that is acceptable to those who don't want to recognize abuse and oppression in our past or present time. I hope our public and our representatives will come to the same conclusion that the passage of these bills would harm our freedom and our future as a democracy.
The Bills:
SB 1277 – Under an unknown entity called the "California Teachers Collaborative for Holocaust and Genocide Education", would be given permanent status, under the direction of the State Department of Education, to be in charge of public school teachers and developing curricula on genocide education that blatantly omits islamophobia, araba-phobia, and any mention of Palestinians. Senate Appropriations Senate Appropriations Hearing: Aug 15 in 1021 O Street, Room 1100
SB 1287 – Mandates UCs and State Universities that all Community college students Require "each student attending the institution and each new applicant in their application for admission to the institution, to acknowledge their obligation to comply with this section and the institution’s student code of conduct" That student conduct includes being answerable to interpretations of prohibited calls for genocide (based on the "hearers" interpretation). The trustees of our higher educational system must report on campus compliance with all parts of SB1287d. In other words, if you criticize Israel and someone reports you as calling for genocide because that is what they hear, you are suspended, or the campus is liable.
Senate Appropriations Hearing: Aug 15 in 1021 O Street, Room 1100
AB 2918 – Proposes to single out ethnic studies curriculum in grades 9-12 for multiple layers of review before being approved for instruction. The trained instructor of ethnic studies would be scrutinized along with the curriculum. Course approval must be proceeded by posting on the internet website of the school district or charter school, a written notice sent to parents and guardians, and the district superintendent and the governing board of a school district or the governing body of a charter school to submit a signed certification to the State Department of Education that the course is factually and historically accurate and complies with applicable laws and policies. Do you think school board meetings are too politicized now? – just let this bill pass.
Assembly Appropriations Committee Hearing Aug 15 in 1021 O Street, Room 2200.
AB 2925 – There is concern that this bill is a strategy to control anti-discrimination training on campuses and to focus targeted groups based on a law enforcement database. It is the only one of the four post-student protest bills that includes protection against islamophobia and does not apply additional mandated penalties for students or schools who do not comply with the prospective law. The bill adds nationality, or national identity, to define what groups may need an anti-discrimination response on campuses.
Assembly Appropriations Committee Aug 15 in 1021 O Street, Room 2200
Davisite 
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