URGENT! AB2159 - ~~ MEANS PROTECTING OUR MEMBERS! When AB715 was signed into law in October of 2025, we knew two things: 1.) would lead to an erosion of academic freedom and would stifle the right of teachers to teach and students to learn about the Palestinian struggle. Educators would quickly find themselves targeted and it would have 2.) dire consequences because it bypasses local districts complaint systems and makes complaints directly to the state, erroding due process. But.... we were promised by the Governor, clean up language that would protect us. AB2159 is exactly that. It will remove the IHRA definition as the legal basis for identifying antisemitism, require that the Antisemitism Coordinator be hired through a merit-based civil service process, and eliminates the vague language that enables politically motivated discrimination complaints. We can do two things to ensure its passage.. Email your state assembly member to urge they support AB2159: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc7nQmhlPUyaeSZmD69NiugnmQWohu_sRLnrIF-FEsFXejF1Q/viewform?usp=preview Email UTLA Members to urge them to expedite support of AB2159: https://tinyurl.com/ab2159

URGENT ACTION NEEDED:

Yall we need your help to spread the word on #a
AB2159 which is the bill to clean up the language of #AB715 Please spread this to your networks, we need to overwhelm the cta leadership and CA assembly into action. Takes three min […]

[Original post on mastodon.social]

California’s AB 715 claims to combat antisemitism but is a direct attack on free speech regarding Palestine Proponents claim that California’s AB 715 aims to combat antisemitism by strengthening anti-discrimination laws in public schools, but a closer look reveals it directly targets free speech on Palestin...

'Teachers, students, and administrators are left with the impression that criticizing #Israel and #Zionism could land them before a disciplinary board.' #AB715
mondoweiss.net/2025/12/cali...

Honored to receive a 100% Legislative Scorecard from #JPAC, which worked tirelessly to help pass #AB715 — a bill I proudly authored with @dawnaddis.bsky.social.

Standing up to antisemitism & protecting Jewish students will always be part of my work. Grateful for JPAC’s partnership & leadership.

@scottwiener.bsky.social Antisemitsm is wrong but so is Anti Palestinian Racism. You support Israel no matter what & that’s NOT OK so you will not get my support. You were pro #AB715 which is a #1A violation & stifles support for Palestine. Criticizing Israel is NOT Antisemitism.

ADC Files Federal Suit Challenging California’s AB 715 for Chilling Classroom Speech - ADC FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 3, 2025 media@adc.org Washington, D.C. | The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for th...

The ADC is suing to block #AB715. Its hearing will take place this month, before the law takes effect January 1, 2026.

This law is so ambiguous that it would limit vibrant discussions of The Conflict, make teachers uncertain what they can teach & likely would backfire.

adc.org/adc-files-fe...
4/4

A Growing Coalition Fights Censorship in California’s Public Schools

 https://f.mtr.cool/ufyejmulwv

Critics warn that Assembly Bill 715 only emboldens right-wing groups and their attacks on students and teachers. Marianne Dhenin #ab715

That is why #AB715, my bill to combat antisemitism in schools, is so important.

TY @dawnaddis.bsky.social for co-authoring. (2/2)

#GavinNewsom has signed #AB715 into law: in liberal blue #California, it is now a crime to criticize #ApartheidIsrael & its #GazaGenocide: trampling on the #FirstAmendment to the Constitution is the path to the White House~!

www.juancole.com/2025/11/cali...

Lawsuit Charges That California Law Illegally Muzzles Students and Teachers on Palestine The new law conflates criticism of Zionism with antisemitism and punishes educators for teaching truthful information.

Lawsuit: @scottwiener.bsky.social -coauthored #AB715 “violates the First Amendment rights of teachers by being overbroad and viewpoint-discriminatory because it suggests that criticism of Israel and Zionism constitutes antisemitic discrimination”

PARCEO Training RSVP PARCEO Workshop on Antisemitism

Seminar on #AB715 Noon pst
#Newsom having signed AB 715 this week, it's not about #antisemitism in #schools, it's about keeping #students from what what #Palestinians are saying about #genocide in #gaza and #westbank, going on. Its blantaly anti #democratic docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

@governor.ca.gov Ashamed to be part of a state who is actively attempting to silence free speech. You signed AB 715 into CA law and lost my vote. I side with the California Teachers Association, the ACLU, and numerous civil liberties organizations. #AB715 #FreeAmericaFromAIPAC #NewsomIsAmerica2nd

Will California Zionize K-12 Education?

https://f.mtr.cool/pnprleuufr

The intent of AB715 is clear: to restrict information about an important region of the world and to punish educators who present the anti-zionist perspective. @ricksterling99 #ab715

In addition to vetoing the #LGBTQ rights bill, he also caved to RWers on this bill by signing it: This bill was ginned-up by Pro-Netanyahu folks to force CA public schools to omit Middle-East history / cultural info from Ethnic Studies and World History courses. #AB715

I am so proud that #California Governor @gavinnewsom.bsky.social signed #AB715 into law, groundbreaking legislation that works to counter #antisemitism in California’s K-12 public schools.
My home state is stepping up to combat #Jew hatred. Bravo!

@candylovely.bsky.social
#Elijah
#AB715
#JewishKids
Pass it on.👇

Stop Censorship in Classrooms — Tell Governor Newsom to Veto AB 715!

CA bill AB 715 authored by dem lawmakers @asmrickzbur.bsky.social @scottwiener.bsky.social @asmmikefong.bsky.social and others would require costly replacement of textbooks which erase FACTS about palestine and israel. tell @governor.ca.gov to veto #AB715
bit.ly/newsomvetoab715

In general I think it is unhealthy that California governors regularly veto bills with strong support from their own party and that the Legislature never overrides the veto even if the bill passed with 2/3s

I do want Newsom to veto #AB715 though. Censoring human rights convos in education = bad

Bill targeting antisemitism in classrooms presents test for Newsom The measure puts Newsom in the awkward position of potentially cracking down on classroom speech as President Donald Trump accuses California schools of antisemitism.

Few people realize SF's @scottwiener.bsky.social coauthored a bill that "would clearly increase California’s authority to take action against school employees for actions judged to be antisemitic—using a standard that encompasses...some criticism of Israel’s government." #AB715

no, we’re not. there are bills at every level of government to censor education and social media based on the belief that antisemitism (the bills equate criticism of israel with antisemitism) is the biggest problem the world is facing. like #AB715 and #SB711 in CA.

He's a full hypocrite if he signs #AB715 into law to police and censor educators and school boards from teaching the truth of Palestinian history and Israel's settler colonial genocide project.

Opinion Guest Essay/California Democrats are Fighting Trump's Battle for Him/August 15, 2025 5:01 a.m. ET

The irony is that many Democrats pushing this bill - such as Assemblymen Rick Chavez Zbur and Jesse Gabriel and State Senator Scott Weiner - have been vocal opponents of Mr. Trump, Mr. DeSantis and Mr. Abbot because of their attacks on free speech and protest. Yet here they are, advancing legislation that comes straight from the same political playbook. They should know better. California should reject this bill, and Democrats across the country should take note.

I was the only Jewish appointee to resign from the Biden administration over the U.S. government's continued support for Israel's war in Gaza. I did it because I believe dissent is a democratic duty, not a liability. But in my home state of California, Democratic leaders are pushing a bill that would make dissent harder, riskier and in some cases punishable. Assembly Bill 715 is framed as a measure to combat an "antisemitic learning environment." In reality, it imports one of the most troubling censorship tactics from the Trump era into a deep-blue state. Democrats are the ones leading the charge. What constitutes antisemitism? A.B. 715 would require California's K-12 public schools to adopt a definition that largely falls in line with the one developed by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. On its face, this might seem like a common sense measure to fight prejudice. But the alliance's definition goes far beyond identifying antisemitic tropes or hate crimes. It includes political speech critical of Israel -- such as calling it an apartheid state or advocating Palestinian rights -- as potential examples of antisemitism, too.

A.B. 715 endangers those students' rights, along with those of their school's teachers, administrators and staff. Under its provisions, a history teacher who touches on Palestinian perspectives could be accused of promoting antisemitism. A student who calls Israel an apartheid state -- a position shared by many mainstream human rights groups including Amnesty International -- could be reported for discriminatory behavior. Even Jewish students who speak out against the war could be targeted by people eager to call any criticism of Israel an act of hate.

"California Democrats are Fighting Trump's Battle for Him"
Lily Greenberg Call (@LGreenbergCall), the first known Jewish appointee to publicly resign over Biden’s support for Israel during its ongoing war on Gaza. OpEd on #AB715 CA's Censorship bill backed by the Democratic Party Supermajority

Bill targeting antisemitism in classrooms presents test for Newsom The measure puts Newsom in the awkward position of potentially cracking down on classroom speech as President Donald Trump accuses California schools of antisemitism.

You co-authored #AB715 that if signed by the governor will penalize and remove educators for criticizing the Israeli state like Khalil did. You're playing both sides, rhetorically supporting free speech on social media while working against it in the Capitol.

Meanwhile @scottwiener.bsky.social has authored #AB715 which will censor speech in K-12 schools in California.

leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billCo...

CA, led by the Supermajority Democratic Party, advance consolidation of fascism with #AB715, codifying the IHRA definition of anti-semitism as any critique of Israel and to establish a Zionist Czar office to police educators and school district boards.

www.laprogressive.com/education-re...

California Legislature Passes Bill to Combat Antisemitism in Schools - Davis Vanguard California lawmakers have passed Assembly Bill 715, which aims to combat antisemitism in K-12 schools by establishing an Antisemitism Prevention Coordinator and strengthening protections for Jewish st...

“Antisemitism is rising at alarming levels, and California schools are not immune. This bill is about affirming safe and supportive learning environments .... the classroom must be a welcoming environment that contributes to the child’s academic well-being.” #AB715

davisvanguard.org/2025/09/cali...

#California has passed #AB715, the first-in-the-nation law to create an Office for Civil Rights to monitor #antisemitism in K-12.
#Jew hatred may be ⬆️ on the far left, but the passage of this bill in CA, with a Democratic supermajority, shows mainstream #Democrats support ✡️🇺🇸.

Palestine Censored

Urge #California Governor #Newsom to Veto Classroom #Censorship Bill #AB715
#USpol #FreePalestine #FreeSpeech
https://win.newmode.net/caircalifornia/newsomveto

After #AB715 I’m leaving this party:

“When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another… a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they must tell Democrats in name only to STFU!”

this bill, #AB715 criminalizing criticism of Israel in California public schools has now passed. you won’t see its proponents crowing about it too much, because they know their voters don’t support it anymore, and they expect kids & teachers caught in the dragnet to disappear. don’t prove them right