Fighting for Free Speech During “Underdog Day At The Capitol”! Rational Arguments from Educators Run Into The Wall Of Silicon Valley Senator Becker’s "Feelings"
What Happened When A Multi-Faith, Multi-Racial Group of Californians Joined Forces to Lobby Against Anti-Free Speech and Anti-Teacher Bills In Sacramento?
On the trip up to Sacramento on August 6, one of the young schoolteachers, normally energetic and confident, admitted that she felt conflicted about the effort. She didn’t really believe going to Sacramento to talk to legislators about four toxic bills was going to make a difference, no matter the merits of the teachers’ arguments against the proposed legislation.
“But you’re going, anyway,” I pointed out.
“Yes!” she said, laughing at the absurdity of the situation, “I have to try!”
The four bills that distressed the teachers, along with free speech activists and various civil rights organizations, included two from the State Senate (SB 1277 and SB 1287), and two from the State Assembly (AB 2925 and AB 2918). All four proposed bills are backed by powerful, pro-Israel interests with the rather obvious (if unstated) intent of silencing discussion of Palestinian rights in schools and on college campuses.
If passed, the bills would have a chilling effect on free speech beyond Palestinian issues, so much so that an American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) division had already stated its opposition to at least one of the bills.
Like many of the others who made the trip to Sacramento that Tuesday, I wasn’t necessarily convinced of anyone’s ability to sway legislators who were more enamored of lobbyists’ money than of regular people. But if nothing else, it was an opportunity for teachers, workers, and activists who had been silenced for talking about Palestine to help build some sort of support network.
Get On The JPAC Bus! (Unless you have any criticism of Israel)
I had already spent the previous day at the Capitol, during which time the Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California (JPAC) and the San Francisco Jewish Community Relations Council (SF JCRC) had brought approximately 80 people (by one observer, many of them staffers or related nonprofit workers) to speak in favor of the restrictive bills at the hearing and in meetings with legislators.
JPAC and the SF JCRC had begun organizing for their lobbying effort early, and had even organized free transportation (“Jump On Our Bus!”) for those who wished to voice support for the bills. (During an earlier hearing, at least one Jewish schoolteacher who dared to speak in opposition to the bills was harassed by some in favor; I wasn't about to try to board the JPAC bus.)
Of course, there was no private, air-conditioned bus for the opposing side, no well-funded and powerful nonprofits like the SF JCRC to chauffeur the teachers and activists who opposed the bills.
For them, there was only the obligation to stand up for all their students, not just those with powerful advocates.
Underdogs Unite!
On Tuesday, the teachers and activists entered the legislative office building and found the lead organizers on the 4th floor. The principal organizer, Seth Morrison, of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), greeted us as we arrived, and Omar Altamimi of the Council of American Islamic Relations (CAIR) brought in a box of freshly printed handouts. The room started filling up; unlike the nearly all-white group that had spoken in support of the bills the previous day, this group of approximately 40 people was diverse, both in terms of age, and in terms of racial and religious identity: Black, white, Jewish, Muslim, Latino, Palestinian, and Asian American.
Morrison and Altamimi are a visual study in contrasts: the former a grandfatherly retiree in casual clothing and sneakers, the latter a trim young advocate crisply dressed in a suit. But both were warm and welcoming as they prepped the assembled group on how best to communicate with staff. A longtime Sacramento organizer and attorney, David Mandel, active in Jewish Voice for Peace and the Sacramento Democratic Party, offered additional instructions. People then organized into their assigned groups and began excitedly prepping for the first round of meetings with legislative offices.
The group I tagged along with went first to State Senator Josh Becker’s office to meet with Becker’s Press Secretary, Charles Lawlor, who introduced himself to the group as Charlie. This first meeting was the most intense of all the meetings I sat in on that day, largely because Charlie didn’t simply sit there and nod, but occasionally answered questions and was direct about Becker’s position and why he took it.
The Senator From Silicon Valley
Originally from Pennsylvania, Senator Becker has a JD-MBA from Stanford, and made his fortune in venture capital and biotech. Becker represents Silicon Valley Senate District 13, a district that is only 47.57% white (although Becker himself lives in Menlo Park, which is 61.9% white.) Becker’s first-ever election appears to have been in 2020, and he went straight into a State Senate seat; he had previously been appointed to at least two powerful boards by former Governor Jerry Brown.
Becker’s press secretary, Charlie, is an affable youngish man, dark of hair and beard. One by one, the teachers and activists took their seats in the office, introduced themselves, and raised their concerns about the four bills, starting with AB 2918, titled “Pupil Instruction, Ethnic Studies” introduced by Dawn Addis and Rick Zbur.
AB 2918: The Harass Your Local Ethnic Studies Teacher Bill
Carla, a retired East Bay teacher (and JVP member) originally from New York, explained to Charlie that AB 2918 impeded ethnic studies classes by giving non-expert, private actors unprecedentedly broad powers over curriculum. Carla hit at a fundamental problem with the bill’s premise: “I was a math teacher,” Carla told Charlie, “why should outside groups be able restrict how math is taught?” The same logic, Carla reasoned, should follow for other subjects, including ethnic studies.
For two other teachers in the room, one Black and one white, AB 2918 seemed to open the door to more of the type of harassment they and too many others had already been subject to simply for introducing the most basic concepts about Palestinian history to their students. The white teacher had been targeted in a federal complaint registered by the powerful and deeply corrupt Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and the Black teacher had simply made the decision to leave her teaching position before the harassment reached that level.
A Bay Area parent whose child attended one of the schools where teachers had been targeted chimed in, testifying to the impacts on staff. It was not hard to recall that many of the most infamous hearings of the House Un-American Activities Committee (1938-1969) had been held in California, well within the lifetime of many in the room.
A Palestinian American’s Question:
A Palestinian American participant asked Charlie about the timing of AB 2918. “Why do you think it is such a big deal right now?” he asked. The question stunned me for its frankness.
My notes indicate that in response, Charlie said that the whole matter had become “politicized”, and there was a great deal of “concern and passion.” He added that they had not expected the reaction they were receiving.
“But why,” asked the Palestinian American wearily, “is it so political now?” The question seemed to point to the origin dates of the bills; all of the bills had been proposed after October 7.
There was a pause; Charlie had no answer for this.
The Palestinian American speaker offered a possible explanation: Since October 7, many Americans have daily witnessed on their smartphones the effects of Israel’s mass bombing. So now Americans are asking questions. Especially younger Americans in high schools.
The remarkable restraint of the speaker did not mask the horror of what so many around the world had seen on their screens for the last ten months.
“The rush with these bills is meant to censor any discussion of Palestine and any criticism of Israel.” It was designed, he pointed out patiently, to preserve the prevailing narrative cultivated over the years to ensure unconditional support, politically and economically, to Israel.
And then the slightest bit of exasperation emerged: “This is the goal of these bills,” he emphasized.
Charlie listened respectfully.
“Look,” demurred the Palestinian American speaker, “I understand this is an emotional subject.”
SB 1287: “Equity in Higher Education Act”
There was a pause while we all digested what had just been said so succinctly, and the topic shifted to SB 1287, the erroneously named “Equity in Higher Education Act”, put forth by Senator Glazer, another (longtime) friend and political strategist for former Governor Jerry Brown. (Glazer’s district is approaching a minority white population, 54.65% white, but Glazer himself, who is white, lives in Orinda, which is 82.4% white.)
SB 1287 is particularly virulent in that, in purportedly setting restrictions on “campus protests”, it is specifically designed to target Palestinian and pro-Palestinian students on public university and college campuses. The genesis of the bill is allegedly the “scary” protests last year on college campuses, even though the actual victims of harassment and violence were those peacefully protesting in defense of Palestinian rights, whom the police allowed to be attacked by violent, pro-Israel counter-protesters.
The list of registered opposition to SB 1287 is too lengthy to list, I attach a photo of the cheat sheet below, including the Democratic Party of Sacramento County, various UAW locals, UC Student Association, California Faculty Association, and at least two Asian American advocacy groups.
A young Jewish teacher, Maya Steinhart, pleaded with particular urgency against SB 1287. Steinhart reported that she had been at the encampments at Sacramento State wearing her Star of David, that she had led a Shabbat service at the encampment, and was welcomed by Muslim and Palestinian students. She did not feel unsafe or afraid, nor did she feel intimidated or threatened by the pro-Palestinian protests.
Steinhart further explained that if the confines of AB 1287 had been in place during the 1960s, then there would have been no Vietnam or Civil Rights protests. (It seemed possible to me that this was likely the entire point of the bill, a kind of “never again” but for protests.) Steinhart mentioned Jewish commitment to civil rights, and that civil rights are for all people, not just the Jewish community. “We’re failing that history,” Steinhardt said solemnly.
Carla spoke up: “This sets a dangerous precedent in restricting free speech,” Carla said, and then asked Charlie what Becker’s concerns were that had led him to support such legislation.
In response, Charlie mentioned that Becker had issues with the term “genocide” being used by on-campus protesters to describe what was happening to the Palestinian people. But the ICJ had already deemed Israel’s slaughter of Palestinian civilians to be “a plausible case of genocide”, and Becker, as an attorney, could not possibly be unaware of that.
A Black teacher calmly but urgently stressed the likelihood of lawsuits stemming from the legislation, pointing out that the proposed bill was in error “purely on fiscal grounds” due to the liability. This seemed an inarguable point, and Charlie did not counter it.
SB 1277: Pupil Instruction Genocide Education The Holocaust
There was only brief discussion of this particular bill, which would allow genocide education to be largely directed by something called the California Teachers Collaborative, which is tightly linked to the ever-controversial ADL.
(Only recently did I learn that an earlier amount of money I reported being funneled into the California Teachers Collaborative program was an undercount. It appears that another $3 million has been awarded to this program. Because this program is so tightly linked to the Marin County Office of Education, I am going to hold off on this particular item until I can get a clearer picture of whether the additional $3 million will also move through the MCOE to the CTC.)
AB 2925, The Title of Which Sounds Confusingly Like SB 1287
The conversation then turned to AB 2925, the erroneously and awkwardly titled “Equity in Higher Education Act: Prohibition on Discrimination: training” introduced by Assemblymember Laura Friedman. The language surrounding this bill seems intentionally obfuscatory, but the opposition from teachers and civil rights advocates is based on the bill’s outright refusal to include Muslims in any of the top categories of targeted groups. And no surprise — no Muslim organizations or leaders were consulted in the drafting of this bill.
The rationale for the bill is based on inflated numbers of antisemitic incidents provided by the ADL, which, as Ha’aretz has reported, has been deemed by Wikipedia editors to be “unreliable on the topic of antisemitism, its core focus” because of their reliance on the controversial definition maintained by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA). This definition falsely equates criticism of Israel or Zionism with antisemitism.
(Opposition from the teachers to AB 2925 is perhaps best summed up in comments made the prior day by Maya Steinhart during the Senate Appropriation hearings, video below:)
AB 2918 Redux: “Would Senator Becker have supported a similar bill if it was a rightwing Christian group that promoted it?”
The teachers were still so concerned about AB 2918, the first bill discussed, that they circled back to it. And this is where Charlie brought in Becker’s personal feelings. As described earlier, AB 2918 opens school districts to extremist influence (a reality we have already seen organized against ethnic studies in Marin, Santa Clara, and other counties by JCRC-linked parents.) What, exactly, was the genesis of the bill? asked the teachers.
A Palestinian American participant asked, “Would Senator Becker have supported a similar bill if it was a rightwing Christian group that promoted it?”
Charlie seemed confused by the question, and I admit that it took me a while to make the connection. But the question got at the heart of what was wrong with AB 2918. If it had been conservative Christians (as opposed to the Israel lobby) who advocated for such a bill, we would have immediately recognized the bill for what it was: anti-Palestinian racism.
This is where the topic of another Black schoolteacher, this one in Becker’s district, came up. The teacher in question had merely used a teaching module that had already been approved, but which permitted discussion of Palestinian issues. Pro-Israel parents reacted swiftly and angrily, and the Black teacher was hounded out of her job.
A Palestinian American participant said that it was unconscionable that the Black teacher had been treated this way.
Charlie nodded, but replied that her lesson module contained “inaccuracies”.
Carla didn’t miss a beat: “If that’s so, then it is a district issue to take up with the teacher to fix — it is not the job of the legislators to censor.” Legislators should protect teachers, Carla emphasized, not create dangerous legislation in response to something that a single teacher had or had not done.
A Palestinian American participant added: “There are tens of thousands of Palestinian, Muslim, and Arab students, it is unconscionable to deny their existence, to deny peoples’ existence.” The participant stood up. “Look at me,” he said, “I am a human being. Here, let me show you, I will shake your hand.” That simple nicety had been missed in the rush to get everyone seated.
Post-handshake, he returned to his seat, and someone said to Charlie, “We’re not living in Israel where teachers are fired for teaching Palestine’s history and the school will lose funding. It’s shameful what this bill is trying to do.”
Another teacher added wearily, “it’s giving into a kind of fascism.”
I tried in that moment to imagine the difficulty of having to teach about genocide, which includes the Holocaust, without ever mentioning the last ten months of ICJ-deemed “plausible genocide” of Palestinians. The patience of the teachers was extraordinary, but it was also unhealthy to expect them to maintain the absurd position demanded of them.
For Becker, “It's Personal”
Charlie was straightforward in his comments: “I have to be candid,” he told the group. “Becker supports the bill.”
“But why?” someone asked. Charlie explained that one of Becker’s children had been in that classroom where the “controversial” model that includes a history of Palestine had been discussed, and that, for Becker, “it's personal.”
The question of why it was personal that students should learn about Palestinians was not explained. These were Becker’s feelings, the feelings of a wealthy State Senator! A friend of Jerry Brown’s! And a man who had likely made tens of millions of dollars or more through his venture capital and biotech enterprises. Who were these hardworking teachers to contradict Senator Becker’s feelings?
The teachers humbly thanked Charlie for listening, and began to leave the room. But one of the Palestinian participants lingered, as did Carla, the retired Jewish math teacher.
“He is my senator,” the Muslim participant said solemnly, and asked, “why is this bill a priority for him?”
Charlie didn’t have an explanation other than what had already been offered, and gently ushered us out of the room.
In true New Yorker style, Carla got in one more comment, mentioning to Charlie with a weary chuckle, “You know, there are different Jewish narratives than the Zionist narrative. My grandfather was a Bundist/Socialist from Eastern Europe, not a Zionist.”
Carla sighed, “I come from a different line of thought than Becker’s.”
Charlie nodded and closed the door after us.
How did I come to know late in life so many smart and funny and decent “Carla’s” and so few pro-Israel Jewish people these days? It used to be the opposite. What tides had shifted?
For the rest of the day, I heard from more teachers about other incidents of retaliation against teachers and students for speaking up about Palestine. My notebook was nearly full. It had been a lot to take in. When we finally emerged from the legislative offices at approximately 4 pm, after hours of meetings, the outside temperature hovered at 105 degrees Fahrenheit. For a long time, the teachers stood in the heat, continuing to relate incidents and exchange contact information.
Coming Home
When I made it back to the cool air of Richmond, I remembered something psychologist David Glick had told me months ago about the strategy of the JCRC and JPAC. “They’re not stupid,” he had laughed, “there’s a reason they’re going after the schools.”
Glick’s point was that the pro-Israel lobby knows it has to indoctrinate the next generation, and that’s becoming harder to do, as younger people aren’t bound to the three networks David’s generation and my generation grew up on. “The kids” are watching Al Jazeera, they’re following Palestinian journalists on the ground in Gaza through various social media feeds, and they’re mourning the eventual killings of these journalists (a number now in excess of 150) by the Israeli Defense Forces.
This is what inspired the pro-ceasefire high school walkouts, which weren’t contained only to San Francisco and the East Bay, but which took place in Marin County, too.
On Thursday night, two days after the teachers had convened, I received another tranche of documents from a CPRA I ran in Marin County. And in that batch of documents was evidence of what clearly seemed to be the unlawful, malicious treatment by both a school administrator — and a local municipality — of a high school student who had organized a peaceful protest. The document shocked me. And then I started reaching out to some of the people I had met in Sacramento.
It is my hope that there is a legal process in response to this mistreatment of the student, prior to an article. I raise the issue now only to make the point that the rights of pro-Palestinian, pro-peace students are already being violated in Marin County. The four bills that the teachers thankfully stand in opposition to will only make that situation worse.
©️2024 Eva Chrysanthe
Postscript: I am retrieving revealing documents faster than I can write them up. Please let me know if you would like to be on a list for more frequent email notifications as I plan to ramp up release of documents. Thanks as always for your continued readership, your insights, your legal chops, and your time.