Assembly Bill 2159 to Stop Politically-Motivated Censorship

We are urging CFA members to send a message to the Speaker of the California Assembly, Robert Rivas, asking him to allow Assembly Bill 2159 to be amended and to receive a hearing. AB 2159 aims to address antisemitism issues in K-12 schools while protecting free speech. 

The bill helps address three major concerns with AB 715, which was signed into law by Governor Newsom in October 2025. CFA members were concerned that the bill would have a chilling impact on classroom teachers and censor their ability to facilitate critical discussion on important and timely events. 

Instead of preventing antisemitism, this bill would potentially weaponize it and aid in Trump’s attempt at a political ploy to divide marginalized groups. 

Worried about how this could jeopardize academic freedom and free speech, CFA members, alongside our coalition partners, worked with Assemblymember Robert Garcia to author cleanup bill AB 2159.  

First, the bill would remove the reference to the United States National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism and instead reference existing anti-discrimination laws that encompass all protected classes. The referenced document in AB 715 incorporates the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism – a definition that conflates political speech critical of Israel and advocacy for Palestinian rights with antisemitic speech.  

Second, the bill would remove the political appointment of the Antisemitism Coordinator and make the antisemitism coordinator hired through the state’s existing merit-based civil service qualification process. Despite the position’s interaction with students and parents in highly sensitive situations, AB 715 does not have any requirements for the position to be based on competence, qualifications, or competitive examinations. CFA has advocated that all coordinators, not just the antisemitism coordinator, be hired through the normal civil service process (other coordinators were created through SB 48 2025).   

Third, AB 2159 would remove language regarding “accepted standards of professional responsibility” in the sentence that reads “Teacher instruction shall be factually accurate and align with the adopted curriculum and standards as described in paragraph (3) of subdivision (c) of Section 60200, and be consistent with accepted standards of professional responsibility, rather than advocacy, personal opinion, bias, or partisanship.” This language is vague and subjective and would make it easier to file discrimination complaints against teachers who teach vaccine education, reproductive health, and LGBTQ+ issues. Discrimination complaints based on this language have already been filed.  

Revising these three parts of the bill would help address the concerns raised by the education community and ensure that the definition of antisemitism does not conflate protected political speech with discrimination. 

Fighting against antisemitism and for justice for Palestinians are part of the same struggle for a better world.  

Again, we are urging our members to send a message to Speaker Rivas to allow Assembly Bill 2159 to be amended and to receive a hearing.