Equity & Diversity

Calif. May Mandate Inclusion of Gay History in Curricula

By Erik W. Robelen — April 22, 2011 3 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Public schools in California would be required to incorporate the history of homosexuals into social studies classes if the state Assembly and Gov. Jerry Brown embrace a plan approved by the Senate.

Some advocates say they are optimistic it will become law this year, though a spokesman for Gov. Brown, a Democrat, said the state’s leader does not take a stance on legislation before it reaches his desk.

“We are censoring the history and contributions of LGBT Americans from our school curricula,” said state Sen. Mark Leno, a Democrat and lead sponsor of the measure, approved April 14 on a party-line vote of 23-14. “The oppositional arguments are nearly identical to ones we heard a few decades ago when the idea of black studies and women’s studies was first raised, that this would end civilization as we know it.”

In addition, Sen. Leno argues that promoting awareness would curb anti-gay stereotypes and thereby reduce bullying of and violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students.

The bill would add such Americans—as well as persons with disabilities—to the list of groups whose roles and contributions must be “accurately portrayed” in social-science instruction and instructional materials. In addition, it would prohibit the state or school districts from adopting textbooks or other instructional materials that “reflect adversely” on a person’s sexual orientation.

In contrast with the California proposal, a Tennessee Senate committee last week advanced a measure to bar discussion of homosexuality in K-8 classrooms.

California Sen. Doug La Malfa, a Republican who was among those voting no on his state’s bill, argued that it would crowd out other content students need to know.

“This, to me, is the final frontier of advancing this [gay-rights] agenda into schools,” he said during the Senate floor debate. “What are we going to take out of the curriculum to get this type of curriculum in? Are we going to take Winston Churchill out?”

Christopher T. Cross, an education consultant and a senior U.S. Department of Education official under President George H.W. Bush, said that leaving aside questions of the content, he worries any time a state expands mandates for what content should be covered.

“When you get these additional requirements, it may fly in the face of how you’re going to have a coherent, structured set of standards,” he said, “no matter what the issue.”

Teaching Harvey Milk

The Senate bill is backed by the California Teachers Association, as well as at least two school districts: the systems in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

“We feel it is inherently unethical to exclude a segment of our school population from our curriculum,” Virginia Strom-Martin, a legislative advocate for the 678,000-student Los Angeles district, wrote in an email. “Inclusive curriculum supports all students. It helps families feel acknowledged, and it promotes cultural fluency.”

Since 2007, she said, the district has included the study of issues related to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals in health classes to address “facts and misconceptions about sexual orientation.”

Sen. Leno said the new legislation would lead districts, for example, to include slain San Francisco councilman and gay-rights activist Harvey Milk in classroom lessons on civil rights.

“The state education code in California for the past 35 years has required the inclusion of the role and contributions of women, African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Mexican-Americans, Native Americans, European Americans, but we are conspicuous in denying students the history of LGBT Americans, and the civil rights struggle” [they’ve been part of],’ he said.

The measure has generated intense opposition from some quarters. For example, the Traditional Values Coalition issued a call to fight the bill and disputed the argument about bullying, suggesting it was simply an effort to “cloud the debate and the real objectives” of the bill’s proponents.

“They will not rest until the state forcibly institutes widespread acceptance of the homosexual, bisexual, and transgender lifestyles,” the coalition declared on its website.

But Carolyn Laub, who leads the San Francisco-based Gay-Straight Alliance Network, said the bill, if enacted, would make schools safer for gay students.

“Largely, what students report is that LGBT individuals are invisible and they’re ignored [in the curriculum],” she said. “In that absence, their peers are only learning stereotypes, and that’s fueling the climate of bullying and harassment and intimidation and physical assaults.”

Related Tags:

The Associated Press contributed to this article.
A version of this article appeared in the April 27, 2011 edition of Education Week as Calif. May Mandate Inclusion of Gay History in Curricula

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Student Achievement Webinar
Student Success Strategies: Flexibility, Recovery & More
Join us for Student Success Strategies to explore flexibility, credit recovery & more. Learn how districts keep students on track.
Content provided by Pearson
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Artificial Intelligence Webinar
Shaping the Future of AI in Education: A Panel for K-12 Leaders
Join K-12 leaders to explore AI’s impact on education today, future opportunities, and how to responsibly implement it in your school.
Content provided by Otus
Student Achievement K-12 Essentials Forum Learning Interventions That Work
Join this free virtual event to explore best practices in academic interventions and how to know whether they are making a difference.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Equity & Diversity Q&A How One School Leader Uses Music and More to Celebrate Black History
As Black History Month ends, a school leader in Norwalk, Conn., reflects on her varied approach to celebrating the month—and the significance of studying and learning from Black history.
4 min read
A poster hangs on the walls of Brien McMahon High School during Black History Month in Norwalk, Conn.
A poster hangs on the walls of Brien McMahon High School during Black History Month in Norwalk, Conn.
Courtesy of LaShante James
Equity & Diversity Opinion Culturally Responsive Teaching Is Misunderstood. How to Correct That
Nearly 30 years have passed since scholars identified this instructional approach, yet educators still struggle to execute it.
11 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Equity & Diversity Leader To Learn From Meet the DEI Leader Using Data—and Heart—to Foster Student Belonging
A district's DEI director uses data and an approachable style to do his work despite a challenging political environment.
9 min read
Ty Harris, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Virginia Beach City Public Schools, delivers closing remarks and applauds students for their work during the Power of We event at the Virginia Beach Higher Education Center at Old Dominion University in Virginia Beach, Va., on Dec. 18, 2024.
Ty Harris, director of diversity, equity and inclusion for Virginia Beach City Public Schools, applauds students at an event at the Virginia Beach Higher Education Center at Old Dominion University in Virginia Beach, Va., on Dec. 18, 2024.
Parker Michels-Boyce for Education Week
Equity & Diversity Q&A Keeping DEI Work Alive in a Hostile Political Climate
Diversity, equity, and inclusion remains a target for criticism and elimination. A DEI director is navigating his way through it.
5 min read
Ty Harris, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Virginia Beach City Public Schools, pictured at Bayside High School in Virginia Beach, Va., on Dec. 18, 2024.
Ty Harris, the director of diversity, equity and inclusion for the Virginia Beach school district, visits Bayside High School in Virginia Beach, Va., on Dec. 18, 2024.
Parker Michels-Boyce for Education Week