California enacts law to hide gender ideology from parents
California Governor Gavin Newsom on Monday signed into law AB1955, a bill that allows schools to hide information about students’ developmental health from their parents.
Teachers assumed to be better equipped than parents to support children
School employees will no longer be required to tell a child’s parents if he or she identifies as “LGBTQ+,” according to the new law, and schools are forbidden from taking action against an employee who keeps that information from a child’s parents.
The bill claims that “[p]arents and families across California understand that coming out as LGBTQ+ is an extremely personal decision and want to support their children in coming out to them on their own terms.”
“LGBTQ+ pupils have the right to express themselves freely at school without fear, punishment, or retaliation, including that teachers or administrators might “out” them without their permission. Policies that require outing pupils without their consent violate pupils’ rights to privacy and self-determination.”
The legislation also claims that attacks on “LGBTQ+” youth are on the rise, leading to “bullying, harassment, and discrimination.” Nevertheless, California legislators do not view parents as the first line of defense to support their children in the face of such bullying and harassment. Instead, “[t]eachers and school staff can provide crucial support to LGBTQ+ young people.”
Public schools required to teach gender ideology
This is not the first California law designed to erode parental authority.
Last year, Newsom signed a bill granting the state a monopoly on education and requiring schools to integrate gender ideology in their curricula.
Previously, school boards were free to remove material from curricula they deemed objectionable. But with Newsom’s approval of AB1078 in September, boards will now be required to first seek permission from the California School Boards Association (CSBA) before removing any materials.
Those materials are now required to include indoctrination about gender ideology and how those who suffer from gender dysphoria have contributed to society.
“This bill would revise the list of culturally and racially diverse groups to instead include materials that accurately portray the contributions of people of all gender expressions and the role and contributions of LGBTQ+ Americans,” reads the legislation. “The bill would also require that every instructional material adopted by a governing board include proportional and accurate representation of California’s diversity in the categories of race, gender, socioeconomic status, religion, and sexuality.”
