In a sudden about-face, the right-wing majority Temecula school board approved a textbook and accompanying teaching materials that contain a reference to the late gay politician Harvey Milk. The dramatic turn of events took place during an emergency school board meeting Friday, two days after Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state would fine the Temecula Valley Unified School District $1.5 million for refusing to carry the updated textbook and teaching materials. Photo: Temecula Valley Unified School District YouTube page
In a sudden about-face, the right-wing majority Temecula school board approved a textbook and accompanying teaching materials that contain a reference to the late gay politician Harvey Milk, who two board members accused of being a “pedophile,” that it rejected two months ago.
The dramatic turn of events took place during an emergency school board meeting Friday, two days after Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state would fine the Temecula Valley Unified School District $1.5 million for refusing to carry the updated textbook and teaching materials.
In May, the Temecula school board initially rejected an updated, state mandated curriculum.
Newsom also said on Wednesday that the state would supply Temecula school district students with the necessary materials if the board failed to approve them. The state didn’t make a purchase order with the publisher.
California schools teach LGBTQ history thanks to FAIR Education Act
Friday’s emergency school board meeting lasted more than three hours, ending close to 10:45 p.m.
The board approved the updated elementary social science curriculum in a 4-0 vote. Board members Joseph Komrosky, Jennifer Wiersma, Allison Barclay, and Steven Schwartz were in attendance. Board member Danny Gonzalez was absent.
Komrosky, Gonzalez, and Wiersma are the three right-wing, anti-gay extremists who were elected in November.
Newsom’s office released a statement at 11: 36 p.m.
“Fortunately, now students will receive the basic materials needed to learn,” Newsom said in the statement.
“But this vote lays bare the true motives of those who opposed this curriculum. This has never been about parents’ rights. It’s not even about Harvey Milk – who appears nowhere in the textbook students receive. This is about extremists’ desire to control information and censor the materials used to teach our children.
“Demagogues who whitewash history, censor books, and perpetuate prejudice never succeed. Hate doesn’t belong in our classrooms and because of the board majority’s antics, Temecula has a civil rights investigation to answer for.”
On June 7, Attorney General Rob Bonta and Newsom announced an inquiry into the district by the California Department of Justice related to civil rights violations.
Curriculum that deals with LGBTQ+ history is mandated under California’s FAIR Education Act, which was signed into law on July 14, 2011, and went into effect on Jan. 1, 2012.
It amends the California Education Code to include the Fair, Accurate, Inclusive and Respectful reference to contributions by people with disabilities and members of the LGBTQ+ community in history and social studies curriculum.
With Friday’s board vote, the state is closely monitoring the school district for compliance with the law. Under the law, the state would only institute a funding penalty for school districts that do not provide standards-aligned instructional materials to all of its students.
During Friday’s lengthy meeting, Komrosky and Wiersma tried to save face for their rapid about-face in approving the updated curriculum. They pontificated about fighting Newsom and listening to the community’s interests.
