September, 07 2011, 05:38pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Rebekah Orr, Equality California
PHONE: 415-498-0847 EMAIL: rebekah@eqca.org
Jill Marcellus, Gay-Straight Alliance Network
PHONE: 415-552-4229 EMAIL: jill@gsanetwork.org
Gay-Straight Alliance Network and Equality California Applaud New California Department of Education FAIR Education Act Guidelines
SAN FRANCISCO
Gay-Straight Alliance Network and Equality California, leaders in the effort to protect the Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, and Respectful (FAIR) Education Act, applaud the California Department of Education (CDE) for issuing an informative and clarifying fact sheet on the new law and its implementation in schools.
"GSA Network has heard from teachers, administrators, parents, and students in local schools across California who are eager for guidance from the state in implementing the FAIR Education Act," said Laura Valdez, Interim Executive Director of Gay-Straight Alliance Network. "We are grateful to the CDE for answering that need with an FAQ that will help local school districts move forward with following the new law that goes into effect on January 1, 2012."
"This FAQ should put to rest the lies and misinformation spread by anti-equality extremists working to overturn the FAIR Education Act," said Roland Palencia, Executive Director of Equality California. "The California Department of Education has made the truth clear: the FAIR Education Act requires schools to integrate factual, age-appropriate information about the history, current events and social movements of LGBT people, people with disabilities and people of color into existing social studies lessons. Everything else is hysterical and unnecessary noise."
Signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown last month, the FAIR Education Act ensures the fair and accurate portrayal of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights movement and people with disabilities in history and social studies instruction. Anti-equality advocates, including the Capitol Resource Institute and the Family Research Council, a designated hate group, are circulating petitions for a referendum that asks voters to overturn the FAIR Education Act.
"Frequently Asked Questions: Senate Bill 48" is available on the California Department of Education website at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/cf/senatebill48faq.asp.
Equality California is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, grassroots-based, statewide advocacy organization whose mission is to achieve equality and civil rights for all lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Californians.
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