Opponents of California’s gay history law are pushing ballot initiatives that would strip the “gays and lesbians” language from the part of the law that mandates schools include classes about prominent minorities in their curriculum.
An opponent of the FAIR Education Act filed two initiatives with the state Attorney General that would cut out part of the current law, which requires classrooms in California to include lessons about the historical contributions of a number of minorities, including gays and lesbians.
The Committee to Repeal SB48’s initiative would eliminate the part of the law that mandates lessons about the contributions of “lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans,” because, as the filing says, “the public school system is responsible to educate our children in the basic education of reading, writing, and math and not to promote political and sociology dogma to students as young as five.”
The one submitted by the Committee for Parental Rights for Education would allow parents to write a note that excuses their kid from lessons if it conflicts with “religious training and beliefs.”
Both initiatives were filed by Richard Rios, one for the Committee to Repeal SB48 and one for the Committee for Parental Rights for Education (both of which appear to be run by Rios, and neither of which appear to have websites). TPM’s call to Rios was not immediately returned.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Rios is an active member of the Republican party in Orange County, and is the chairman of the Christian Coalition organization in California.
The latest initiative is separate from the push by the group Stop SB 48 to get enough signatures to force a ballot referendum that would overturn the law. The group needed to get around 505,000 signatures to qualify for the November 2012 ballot, but fell short in October.
If the measures are approved, Rios will have 150 days to gather around 505,000 for each to make it onto the ballot.
Jillian Rayfield
Jillian Rayfield is a Reporter/Blogger for TPM, and started as a News Intern in May 2009. She graduated from Cornell University in May 2008 with a degree in Film, and worked as a Research Assistant for a market research firm in London in between.
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