« Cancel culture has gone too far in Temecula: Radicalized zealots on the school board rejected a textbook used by hundreds of thousands of students, and now kids will start the school year without the tools they need to learn “Newsom said in a statement.
A school district spokesperson could not be reached immediately for comment on Thursday.
Privately, Newsom’s assistants worked with State Superintendent Tony Thurmond to pass legislation that was recently amended to target the school district. Assembly Bill 1078 it would fine districts for failing to provide textbooks or educational materials in line with state rules, including requirements that curricula include « inclusive and diverse perspectives. »
The bill also requires the state to purchase textbooks for districts that fail to comply with school fees and would make it more difficult for school boards to remove books and other content.
The administration hopes to charge the district for the books after it gets the bill through the Legislature — an emergency measure would go into effect immediately upon signing.
« If the school board doesn’t do its job by the next board meeting to ensure children start the school year with basic materials, the state will deliver the book into the hands of the children and their parents — and we will send the district billing and fining them for violating state law,” the governor said.
The bill has already met with opposition from the California School Boards Association, which disputes financial penalties, its alleged violation of local school governance and other provisions. But the path to passage became clearer on Thursday when State Senate Speaker Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) and Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D-Hollister) came out in support.
« The antics of the Temecula Valley Unified School District are intolerable and damage its students’ opportunities for growth, prosperity and success, » Rivas said.
The district council has yet to approve replacement textbooks after rejecting the curriculum because the optional supplemental materials for a fourth-grade history book included a half-page biography of Harvey Milk, a San Francisco supervisor and children’s rights activist. gay man murdered in 1978.
Two of the majority council members — who came to power with the backing of a local evangelical pastor and the backing of Republican officials — called Milk a « pedophile » before voting. Their repetition of the disputed claim has galvanized state Democrats and continues to attract state scrutiny.
