Last year, Assemblymembers Rick Chavez Zbur and Dawn Addis undemocratically steamrolled AB 715 through the legislature, the bill that censors teaching on Palestine. Because of massive opposition, they promised to “clean up” the problems. However, their cleanup bill this year, AB 2615, does nothing to fix the problems, actually making them worse.
AB 2615 does not address the widely condemned IHRA definition, which conflates anti-Zionism with antisemitism, is still referenced in the state’s education code. What’s more, they even broadened the controversial “factually accurate” language from AB 715 to further intimidate teachers who are attempting to teach about Palestine and Israel.
The enormous coalition of students, parents, social justice organizations, civil rights advocates, and labor unions that came together to fight against AB 715 are now pushing for AB 2159, the CAIR-CA sponsored bill, introduced by Assemblymember Garcia.
AB 2159 actually addresses the serious issues of censorship and intimidation caused by AB 715.
Yet, while the pro-Israel AB 2615 bill passed through the Assembly Education Committee, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas is preventing our sponsored bill from being referred to the committee for a hearing.
Today, we can take an important action to protect AB 2159. Call or email Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas in SUPPORT of AB 2159, asking him to assign the bill to the Assembly Education Committee:
(916) 319-2029 | assemblymember.rivas@assembly.ca.gov
