FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 24, 2025

Below please find statements from David Bocarsly, executive director of JPAC, and Tyler Gregory, CEO of JCRC Bay Area, on the introduction of Assembly Bill 1468 (AB 1468), a new bill introduced today in the Assembly to standardize the teaching of ethnic studies in public high schools. 

David Bocarsly, Executive Director of JPAC: “If done right, ethnic studies is a good thing for all students. We lead a coalition of over 35 major Jewish organizations that believes that a more empathetic and understanding generation will lead to a safer society for everyone — including Jews. Unfortunately, in the absence of proper guidance, we have seen far too many instances of factually inaccurate and antisemitic content entering classrooms, sparking major concern and fear in Jewish communities across the state. We are grateful to Assemblymembers Zbur and Addis, Senator Becker, and the dozens of coauthors for recognizing the need to develop content standards and frameworks to ensure ethnic studies does not harm Jewish students and achieves our shared goals.”

Tyler Gregory, CEO of JCRC: “Mandating ethnic studies in California high schools was intended to expose all students to the histories and cultures of the state’s diverse communities. But without guidelines or standardized curricula, many educators have used this discipline to further their own ideological agendas, including infusing their own biases on Israel and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East into teaching materials. While this has been an ongoing issue for years, the explosion of antisemitism since Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel has turned ethnic studies classrooms into hotbeds of hate directed towards Jews. We are grateful that Assemblymembers Zbur and Addis and Senator Becker are taking long-needed action to protect Jewish students and ensure that the ethnic studies curriculum is inclusive, respectful, and accurate.” 

Additional Context on AB 1468: 

JPAC, JCRC Bay Area and a coalition of over 35 Jewish organizations have lobbied tirelessly for standardization of the ethnic studies curriculum to ensure the safety of our communities. The coalition is the lead sponsor of the bill and has worked closely with the authors to ensure there is a comprehensive, lasting solution to the ongoing issue of antisemitism in California classrooms. 

Examples of Antisemitism and Harmful Rhetoric in Ethnic Studies Classrooms: 

  • San Francisco Unified School District used a resource with an antisemitic trope about Jewish control in its 9th grade ethnic studies class. It also had a resource library that directly quotes Hamas – a terrorist organization – justifying the slaughter of Israelis on October 7.
  • A Sequoia Union High School District teacher used an ethnic studies slide deck almost exclusively about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict which included a puppeteer’s hand controlling strings. This is a common antisemitic trope of Jewish control.
  • Santa Ana Unified School District just settled a lawsuit proving they approved curriculum in violation of the guardrails, without proper process and transparency. The SAUSD Ethnic Studies Steering Committee mused about using Jewish holidays to approve courses, discussed the “Jewish Questions”, and a committee member refused to call Hamas a terrorist organization. 
  • Fort Bragg Unified School District’s 10th grade ethnic studies class included content that was removed from the first draft of the ethnic studies model curriculum. It also uses a map that draws false equivalencies between the colonization of Native American land in the United States with Palestinian “land loss” in the Middle East.
  • Pittsburg Unified School District’s ethnic studies course includes material removed from the first draft of the ethnic studies model curriculum that was rejected by the state, including a biased definition of the boycott, divestment, sanction movement against Israel.

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.

Since 2019, JPAC has successfully advocated for over $465 million dollars from the state budget for a wide range of community projects, including enhancing community security initiatives for institutions at-risk of being hate-crime targets, and expanding Holocaust education institutions. 

For more information, visit us at http://jpac-cal.org.

About JCRC: 

JCRC Bay Area is the largest collective voice of Bay Area Jews, working in pursuit of a more just world where Jewish identity is embraced and all people thrive. By building bridges and working in coalition with diverse ethnic, faith, political, and civic communities, we foster partnerships, provide meaningful educational and engagement opportunities, and build consensus for actionable solutions to real-world challenges. www.jcrc.org.