Oakland (Special to ZennieReport.com) – Jewish Voice for Peace-Bay Area isthe largest progressive Jewish anti-Zionist organization in the world. JVP organizes a grassroots, multiracial, cross-class, intergenerational movement of U.S. Jews into solidarity with the Palestinian freedom struggle, guided by a vision of justice, equality and dignity for all people. Jewish Voice for Peace Bay Area:https://jvp-bayarea.org/
Jewish Voice for Peace-Bay Area and the California Coalition to Defend Public Education urge Jewish Legislative Caucus to Clean-up AB 715
JVP Bay Area joined the more than 100 civil rights, education, and community-based organizations that make up the CA Coalition to Defend Public Education (CCDPE) in asking the Legislative Jewish Caucus (LJC) to fulfill their commitment to fix AB 715 in the upcoming legislative session. In a letter addressed to LJC co-chairs Senator Scott Wiener and Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, as well as the authors of Assembly Bill (AB) 715, Assemblymembers Rick Chavez Zbur and Dawn Addis, the coalition reminded them of their firm commitment, repeated many times in hearings and debate, to fix the significant flaws in AB 715 promptly in the 2026 legislative session.
The specific demands in the letter include:
- Removal or substantial revision of the “factually accurate” standard in Education Code §§ 51500(b) and 51501(b), in recognition of the testimony from educators and constitutional experts that this language chills instruction, undermines inquiry‑based learning, raises First Amendment concerns, and is in direct conflict with California’s own education standards as presented in the History/Social Studies and English-Language Arts curriculum frameworks.
- Removal of references to the U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism in Education Code § 33803.1(c) as a “basis” for combatting antisemitism and replacement with existing, neutral statutory language in Education Code § 220, which already governs discrimination based on religion, ethnicity, and nationality.
- The Discrimination Prevention Coordinators created under AB 715/SB 48 should be implemented as qualified, career civil service positions, hired through California’s standard merit-based process. The intent of this work is long-term and educational in nature, and the Coordinators must not function as political appointees who change with each administration.
Seth Morrison, Co-Chair of the JVP BA Legislative Team said, “These changes are essential to ensure that AB 715 is not misused to censor open and fair education on Palestine or any other politically charged or historically contested topic”
JVP Bay Area and the Coalition to Defend Public Education are committed to engaging in good‑faith dialogue to ensure that the necessary protections against antisemitism are strengthened without undermining the foundations of an open, democratic education.
Alameda County Supervisors Adopt Ethical Investment Policy with Broad Jewish Support
Alameda County’s Board of Supervisors adopted an Ethical Investment Policy yesterday that prohibits investing county tax dollars in companies complicit in human rights abuses, including Israel’s genocide and apartheid in Palestine.
“This is a historic victory. As Jews honoring our tradition of standing up to injustice and oppression, we applaud Alameda County for adopting this Ethical Investment Policy,” said Cynthia Kaufman, Jewish Voice for Peace Bay Area.
“Opposing Israel’s bombing and starvation of Palestinians is not anti-semitic,” said Jake Petterson, Jewish Voice for Peace Bay Area. “Our county’s Jewish community played an important role in advocating for this victory for human rights both locally and abroad.”
Jewish supporters filled the meeting room and overflow room, standing with diverse communities to say that ethical investing makes all of our communities safer.
“We will continue to advocate for the policy’s full implementation during a review scheduled for the upcoming months,” said Kaufman.
Alameda County puts tax money it collects into investments that earn income for the county and are cashed in to fund county services. These investments include corporate stocks.
The new policy goes beyond avoiding investment in corporations involved in genocide and apartheid. It also prohibits investments in companies complicit in or profiting from war, military occupation, labor exploitation, systemic poverty, mass incarceration, prison labor, border and police militarization, mass surveillance, and environmental or climate destruction.
“This policy is consistent with the moral values of Alameda County residents. It removes our tax dollars from supporting human rights violations perpetrated in the US and abroad. We’re going to keep advocating for the full implementation of this Ethical Investment Policy as Jews standing in solidarity with Palestine,” said Cynthia Kaufman, Jewish Voice for Peace.