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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 12, 2006
Contact: Geoffrey Kors, Executive
Director, Equality California
Phone: (323) 217-8875
BILLS SEEKING TO MAKE SCHOOLS SAFER FOR LEARNING, SUPPORT
PRINCIPLES OF EQUALITY MOVE FORWARD
Legislation Promotes a Healthier Learning Environment in California
Schools; the Pete Knight Act, Named for a Foe of Equality, Fails in
Committee Hearing
Sacramento, CA - Two bills that would promote a safer and healthier
environment in California schools advanced in the State Assembly on
Wednesday, demonstrating a commitment by legislators in California
to the principles of equality and fairness.
The Safe Place to Learn Act (Levine, D-Van Nuys), a bill that would
require school districts and the Department of Education to comply
with California's existing laws regarding anti-discrimination in schools,
earned a 7-2 vote in the Assembly Education Committee. Sponsored by
Equality California (EQCA), a statewide advocacy organization, Assembly
Bill 606 puts public school officials in California on notice that
protections against harassment are not surrendered when individuals
step onto school property.
"California has led the nation in passing legislation that prohibits
harassment and discrimination of LGBT students," stated Geoffrey
Kors, EQCA Executive Director. "This bill will ensure and enforce
existing protections so that all students can learn and grow in a
safe environment."
AB 606 provides clarification and guidance to schools districts to
ensure that provisions of an earlier bill, the California Student
Safety and Violence Act of 2000 (AB 537), are fully and properly implemented.
The bill will clarify the minimum steps that a school district must
take to ensure the safety of all students. Current standards require
school districts to establish and publicize a non-discrimination policy
that includes actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity,
among other steps that must be taken. Failure to comply with these
requirements places funding in jeopardy for school districts.
"Many schools are failing to provide a safe place to learn for
our children," said Assemblymember Lloyd E. Levine, author of
AB 606. "Students often suffer silently, without allies, their
trust and security betrayed by peers or even the adults they are taught
to look up to. We simply have to do better."
"I don't feel safe at my school," said Yvonne Neis, a senior
at C.K. McClatchy High School in Sacramento whose locker was defaced
when someone carved the word "FAG" on it. According to Ms.
Neis, no action was taken as a result of this incident. "These
incidents, among many others, have made me uncomfortable, not cared
for and alone, and they have had an effect on my school work. AB 606
would not only provide needed support and protection for sexual minorities,
[it would] make students, staff and parents more aware that the school
environment should be safe for everyone."
According to the 2001-02 California Healthy Kids Survey, each year
more than 200,000 middle school and high school students are harassed
on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation, representing
7.8 percent of the school student population. Students who experience
this type of harassment are three times more likely to miss school
because they feel unsafe, twice as likely to report depression and
suicidal thoughts and plans, and are more likely to have low grades,
be victims of violence or use illegal substances.
A survey conducted by the California Safe Schools Coalition found
the 60 percent of schools districts are not in compliance with state
requirements to establish policies preventing discrimination and harassment
based on gender identity, appearance or behavior. The lack of compliance
with the law leaves "thousands of LGBT students vulnerable to
harassment and discrimination," said Carolyn Laub, Executive
Director of the Gay-Straight Alliance Network in San Francisco. "AB
606 is a critical step in ensuring that all students are safe to learn
at every school in California."
Next week, AB 606 is scheduled to be heard in the Assembly Appropriations
Committee.
AB 1056 (lead author Assemblymember Judy Chu, D-Sacramento), a bill
that would require the State Board of Education to develop a pilot
project integrating intergroup relations and tolerance curriculum
into the English and Social Science framework, also advanced in the
Assembly, receiving a 9-2 vote in the Assembly Education Committee.
AB 1056 would direct the Board of Education to consult with human
relations commissions and individuals and groups that are protected
by California's hate crimes legislation.
A bill titled the William J. "Pete" Knight Memorial Act
(AB 1218, Wyland, R-Vista) failed by a vote of 4-6 to achieve passage
in its hearing before the Assembly Education Committee, marking the
end of the road for this legislation. Named for a state senator who
opposed the key focus of the pledge -- liberty and justice for all
-- this bill was opposed by EQCA unless it had been amended to remove
the reference to Knight. The bill would have required that the Pledge
of Allegiance be recited daily at elementary and secondary schools.
Founded in 1998, Equality California is a nonprofit, nonpartisan,
grassroots-based, statewide advocacy organization whose mission is
to ensure the dignity, safety, equality and civil rights of all lesbian,
gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Californians. Equality California
is one of the largest and fastest growing statewide LGBT organizations
in the country. We can be contacted through our website at www.eqca.org.
California Safe Schools Coalition
Hamm's Building
1550 Bryant Street
Suite 825
San Francisco, CA 94103
ph: (415) 626-1680, fax: (415) 626-1683
info@casafeschools.org
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