25-02-2025
California bill could change how ethnic studies classes are taught
SACRAMENTO — There is new controversy over the California curriculum, and a new course is required in high school classrooms across the state.
New legislation is proposing what can be taught in ethnic studies classes and what should be left out of the courses, including the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur (D-Los Angeles) is introducing the proposed law.
"This is the only one of the core graduation requirements that has not established standards," Chavez Zbur said. "We don't want biased ideologies entering the classroom."
Chavez Zbur's legislation proposes the standards be crafted by experts in African American Studies, Asian American and Pacific Islander Studies, Native American Studies and Latino Studies.
The bill was sponsored by the Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California. David Bocarsly is the executive director and says the goal of the bill is to prevent antisemitism from entering proposed lesson plans and keep discussions on the war in the Middle East out of the ethnic studies curriculum.
"I would just like to say the Jewish community is feeling a lot of fear and anxiety in this moment," Bocarsly said. "The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a nuanced and fraught conversation that frankly deviates from the core goal of ethnic studies."
Yassar Dabhoer is the president of the Palestinian American League and opposes the new lesson plan guidelines.
"I mean, it's preposterous," Dabhoer said. "If you're talking about ethnic studies, it's talking about diversity. It's all about inclusion, not exclusion."
The California Teachers Association opposed a similar bill last year that died. They said that bill would be too difficult to implement in ethnic studies classes.
