CA Legislature Sends Bill Requiring Antisemitism in Campus DEI Trainings to Governor’s Desk
Assembly Bill 2925 (Friedman) Requires Campus Anti-Discrimination Trainings to Teach About the Top Five Most Targeted Groups, Ensuring Jewish Inclusion
August 29, 2024
SACRAMENTO, CA — Today, the California State Senate and Assembly approved Assembly Bill 2925, authored by Assemblymembers Laura Friedman (D–Burbank) and Josh Lowenthal (D–Long Beach) and sponsored by JPAC. AB 2925 will mandate that college campuses must include the five most targeted groups in their training to combat and address discrimination. Currently, most campus Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) trainings do not teach about antisemitism at all, or cover it inadequately relative to its prevalence. With the Jewish community consistently among the most targeted groups, this bill would ensure that antisemitism is included in campus antidiscrimination or DEI trainings
Despite opposition from the Council on American-Islamic Relations and Jewish Voice for Peace, AB 2925 passed the Senate on a unanimous 39-0 vote, and the Assembly on a 47-0 vote (more Assemblymembers will add their votes later today). Both votes were bipartisan. The bill now heads to Governor Newsom’s desk and must be signed by September 30th.
The bill points to the California Department of Justice’s annual Hate Crime in California Report to determine the top five most targeted groups ahead of each new school year. Attorney General Rob Bonta released the 2023 report in June. While hate crimes decreased 7.1% overall from 2022 to 2023, the report revealed an increase in hate crimes against Jewish, Muslim, and LGBTQ+ communities.
Despite making up less than 3% of the California population, Jewish individuals were subject to 15% of the state’s hate crimes in 2023, exceeded only by anti-Black incidents. Anti-Jewish bias events rose from 189 in 2022 to 289 in 2023, a 52.9% increase. Anti-LGBTQ+ bias events increased from 81 in 2022 to 151 in 2023 and anti-Muslim bias events rose from 25 in 2022 to 40 in 2023. The Jewish community has consistently been among the top five most targeted groups for the last decade.
“Jews are now victim to the second-most number of hate incidents in California, with antisemitic incidents rising rampantly on campuses, in schools, online, and in society,” said David Bocarsly, JPAC Executive Director. “And yet, we’re not seeing appropriate representation in campus DEI trainings. We’re grateful for Assemblymembers Friedman and Lowenthal for championing this critical legislation. The 42 major Jewish organizations that join JPAC and the Jewish Caucus in support of this bill demonstrate our community’s collective belief that education, understanding, and empathy is indeed the best antidote to hate.”
Another JPAC priority bill is Senate Bill 1287 (Glazer), which would require college campuses to update and enforce provisions in their student codes to prevent instances of intimidation, harassment, and violence. SB 1287 bill would also require each system of higher education to develop training programs to educate students on civil discourse. The bill is also on the Governor’s desk awaiting signature.
About JPAC:
The Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California (JPAC) is the voice of California’s Jewish community to the State Capitol. Composed of California’s leading Jewish community organizations, JPAC advocates in Sacramento on behalf of the Jewish community’s concerns and broadly shared values. JPAC member organizations – including Jewish Federations, Jewish Community Relations Councils, Jewish Family Service agencies, and others – collectively serve hundreds of thousands of Californians of all backgrounds and represent the interests of California’s 1.2 million Jews, making it the largest single-state coalition of Jewish organizations in the nation.
For more information, visit us at http://jpac-cal.org.
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Contact: David Bocarsly, JPAC Executive Director, david@jpac-cal.org