Dear San Rafael parents, community members and concerned citizens,

We urge you to contact San Rafael City Schools (SRCS) leadership, including its superintendent and board members to demand they immediately pause the implementation of a discriminatory program called “Parents for Racial Equity.”

Between October 4, 2023 and January 17, 2024, the SRCS will host a series of [racial equity workshops](https://app.peachjar.com/flyers/2545648/schools/54200) for parents who “have an interest in engaging with a community of learners to elevate their racial consciousness, expand their personal knowledge and develop the tools to talk about race and racism.” Steeped in ideologically loaded jargons, this upcoming program is a political litmus test, funded by SRCS taxpayers, that will compel attendees to hyper-focus on race and conform to certain viewpoints. Alarmingly, the program contains this disclaimer: “[T]his series is NOT for those who want to debate about issues of race or racism,” which shows its illiberal and discriminatory nature.

A partnership between SRCS and Dr. Lori Watson, a self-proclaimed anti-racist [trainer](https://www.race-work.com/) with far-left political beliefs, the “Parent for Racial Equity” program consists of the following four workshops:
1. October 4, 2023, Language/ “Tools”/ Parameters: How to talk about race.
2. November 1, 2023, Beliefs/Consciousness: How to construct racial narratives.
3. December 6, 2023, Whiteness: How to define white privilege, culture and consciousness.
4. January 17, 2024, Children & Race: How to talk to children about race.

These components not only promote divisive and controversial political beliefs, but also inculcate racially discriminatory treatment of individuals, which contravenes the constitutional right of San Rafael parents, students and community members to equal treatment. Racially disparate treatment, as promoted in the workshops, also violates California Ed. Code 201 which prohibits public schools from engaging in discrimination and bias. Notably, the program’s premise that “children begin to notice race as early as 6 months and begin to develop biases as young as 3” is a radical notion often invoked and abused to justify divisive and discriminatory programs that indoctrinate students and the community.

As such, we encourage you to reach out to SRCS Superintendent Diaz Ghysels and the SRCS Board of Education to oppose the “Parent for Racial Equity” workshops. You can contact them via email:

1. Superintendent Diaz Ghysels: superintendent@srcs.org
2. Board President Gina Daly: gdaly@srcs.org
3. Board Vice President Lucia Martel-Dow: lmarteldow@srcs.org
4. Board Member Linda Jackson: ljackson@srcs.org
5. Board Member Carolina Martin: cmartin@srcs.org
6. Board Member Marina Palma: mpalma@srcs.org

Our friends at the New Tolerance Campaign have created a form that allows you to send a message to Superintendent Ghysels and the SRCS Board with just a few clicks. You can access the form [here](https://p2a.co/gdu8Nmr).

Going forward, CFER will continue to monitor future developments regarding these racial equity workshops in San Rafael and keep the local community updated.

Thank you in advance!



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Action Alert in San Rafael City Schools: Reject “Parents for Racial Equity Workshops”

**For Immediate Release**

**September 22, 2023**

**SAN DIEGO, CA – September 22, 2023-** The Californians for Equal Rights Foundation (CFER) expresses our strong support for the Sequoia Union High School District (SUHSD) Students First in its diligent pursuit of education excellence, academic transparency and local education accountability. CFER also condemns the SUHSD Board for [disregarding](http://go.boarddocs.com/ca/seq/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=CVMTH377645A) community and parental opposition to an equity-focused [proposal](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1r1DD-sWKIOCJct0c0vq-6HtMTLxtuMAvUQEflmHdVRs/edit) that eliminated ten Honors and Advanced Standing (AS) classes in four SUHSD high schools.

[SUHSD Students First](https://suhsdstudentsfirst.godaddysites.com/), a grassroots coalition of student advocates, parents, teachers and community members dedicated to holding the school district accountable to high-quality education, has been fighting to restore these ten rigorous Honors/AS courses since March 2023. Sadly, their efforts, which include a [joint letter](https://strapi-cfer.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/8da6f338c0621cba7a5a00e402aa997e.pdf?updated_at=2023-09-22T14:14:14.843Z) signed by over 600 students, parents, teachers and community members, have fallen on deaf ears as the school board refused a vote at the September 20 Board [Meeting](http://go.boarddocs.com/ca/seq/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=CVMTH377645A) to reverse its previous decision to eliminate these classes.

Comparing this development to similar events such as the cancellation of high school honors classes in San Diego’s Patrick Henry High School, CFER President Frank Xu commented: “It is an alarming trend when ‘equity’ as a fancy euphemism is invoked to lower standards and attack academic excellence. While SUHSD’s equity-based reform claims to create more diverse learning environments and increase student success, it does the exact opposite and pulls resources away from student learning.”

“As a brown immigrant and parent of two recent SUHSD graduates, I am deeply concerned about the actions our district has taken over the last few years in eliminating ten Honors/AS,” said Ram Duriseti, community volunteer and parent. “Lowering the bar for students is the soft bigotry of low expectations. There was no public awareness or transparency and it was fundamentally anti-democratic.”

"As a teacher at Carlmont for over 20 years, I have personally witnessed endless students of all socio-economic and academic levels benefit from advanced course offerings. It saddens both me and many of my fellow faculty members that steps are being taken to remove academic opportunity and I urge the board to reverse course,"  said Jayson Waller, Carlmont High School Social Studies Department Chair.

Student Trustee Jacob Yuryev stated, “The elimination of introductory honors courses negatively affects passionate students who aren’t intellectually stimulated enough in standard courses.”

Going forward, CFER will continue to support the battle for high-quality education fought by SUHSD Students First and other local stakeholders. We urge the SUHSD Board to fully consider public concerns and reverse course on its anti-merit plan.

The following is the list of Honors/AS classes that have been eliminated at our comprehensive sites.

1. Menlo Atherton High School - AS Biology, AS Chemistry, AS Physics, AS English I
2. Woodside High School - AS Biology, AS English I
3. Sequoia High School- AS Chemistry
4. Carlmont High School - AS Biology, AS Chem, AS Physics

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CFER Supports the Courageous Fight for Merit and Transparency by Parents and Students in Sequoia Union High School District

**For Immediate Release**

**September 5, 2023**

**SAN DIEGO, CA – September 5, 2023-** On September 1, the California Assembly Appropriations Committee voted [12-to-4](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billVotesClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240ACA7) to approve [ACA-7](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240ACA7) and propelled this proposal of racial discrimination to the Assembly Floor. If adopted by both the State Assembly and the State Senate, ACA-7 would make its way onto the 2024 state ballot and threaten California’s constitutional guarantee of equal treatment. The Californians for Equal Rights Foundation (CFER) strongly condemns this legislative development to legalize racial discrimination without regard for public opinions or legal ramifications.

“California Assembly Democrats have lost their credibility by approving ACA-7, in spite of warnings of legal troubles from their own legislative staffers,” commented Frank Xu, CFER president. “Knowing that a similar repeal (Prop. 16) was overwhelmingly shot down by California voters in 2020 and that another campaign would cost California taxpayers tens of millions of dollars, they voted for it anyways. Their partisan support of racial discrimination is devoid of merit and reason.”

Eva Zhou, the CFER Board Member who attended the committee hearing and spoke against ACA-7 on CFER’s behalf, commented: “It is incomprehensible that the state lawmakers voted for a bill even though no proponent of ACA-7 was present at the hearing and a coalition of organizations including CFER gave comments in opposition.”

CFER and its allies including the Equal Rights for All PAC, the San Diego Asian Americans for Equality, the Silicon Valley Chinese Association and the Bay Area Homeowner Network sent representatives to [testify](https://t.co/s4uJlipsul) against ACA-7 at the Sep. 1 committee hearing. Not a single organization or individual testified in support. However, members of the Assembly Appropriations Committee gave no consideration of the opposition or more importantly, the bi-partisan national consensus against racial preferences in their hyperpartisan approval of the proposal. Most alarmingly, the committee ignored its own legislative [analysis](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billAnalysisClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240ACA7) warning that ACA-7 “is more likely to have a difficult time withstanding scrutiny if challenged in federal court,” given the recent Supreme Court ruling in _Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard_ and _the University of North Carolina_.

A constitutional amendment intended to effectively repeal Prop. 209, ACA7 would allow the state government to fund “research-based, or research-informed, and culturally specific programs based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, or marginalized genders, sexes, or sexual orientations designed to improve outcomes for people in those groups.” It would circumvent the California State Constitution Article I Section 31(a) (Prop. 209) with language explicitly contradicting Prop. 209. Since June, CFER has led a [series](https://cferfoundation.org/posts/ACA7_expose_June_2023) of [efforts](https://cferfoundation.org/posts/ACA-7-action-alert-082923) to educate the public about the dangers of ACA-7. We will continue to monitor its progress in the state legislature and alert the public through awareness building, alliance building and advocacy.

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CFER Denounces the Undemocratic and Hyper-partisan Approval of ACA-7 at the California Assembly Appropriations Committee

**We urgently need your help to stop another attack on Prop. 209 and on equal protection in the California State Legislature!**  
  
**On Friday (09/01), the California State Assembly Appropriations Committee will hold  [a public hearing](https://apro.assembly.ca.gov/hearings#toggle)  on  [ACA 7](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240ACA7)**, a constitutional amendment intended to effectively repeal Prop. 209, our state's constitutional guarantee of equal protection. Disregarding a rising public consensus against racial preferences and the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling banning race-preferential college admissions, the hyperpartisan California Assembly is pressing forward with ACA 7, a renewed attempt to legalize discrimination!  
  
ACA7 would allow the state government to fund  **“research-based, or research-informed, and culturally specific programs based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, or marginalized genders, sexes, or sexual orientations designed to improve outcomes for people in those groups.”**  In other words, it seeks to circumvent the California State Constitution Article I Section 31(a) (Prop. 209) with language explicitly contradicting Prop. 209!  
  
CFER has been fighting against ACA 7 since earlier this year. We have submitted  [position](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=1de1fffa92&e=0111f1f5cd)  [letters](https://www.americancivilrightsproject.org/blog/submissions/american-civil-rights-project-and-californians-for-equal-rights-foundation-register-with-california-assembly-our-opposition-to-aca-7/), published [several](https://californiaglobe.com/articles/supreme-courts-affirmative-action-ruling-a-win-for-america-but-not-for-california-progressives/)  [OPEDs](https://californiaglobe.com/articles/a-desperate-measure-cloaked-in-science-the-lefts-latest-attempt-to-overturn-proposition-209/)  and issued various  [action alerts](https://cferfoundation.org/posts/ACA7_expose_June_2023)  to raise public awareness about it.  **Now we need your help!** **Please take immediate action before this Friday (09/01) to voice your concern about ACA 7.** Please refer to CFER's opposition  [letters](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=1de1fffa92&e=0111f1f5cd)  as a reference.  
  
You can:  
1. Attend the State Assembly Appropriations Committee hearing in person at **1021 O Street, Room 1100, Sacramento, California**  and give a public comment. (**ACA 7 will be the first bill to be heard and voted on**).  
2.  **Contact  [members](https://apro.assembly.ca.gov/membersstaff)  of the State Assembly Appropriations Committee with your opposition**. Below are their names and ways through which they can be contacted:  
*Chris Holden (AD 41, Chair): (916) 319-2041; chris.holden@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD41&inframe=N)  
*Megan Dahle (AD 01, Vice Chair): (916) 319-2001; megan.dahle@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD01&inframe=N)  
*Isaac Bryan (AD55): (916) 319-2055; isaac.bryan@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD55&inframe=N)  
*Lisa Calderon (AD 56): (916) 319-2056; lisa.calderon@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD56&inframe=N)  
*Wendy Carrillo (AD 52): (916) 319-2052; wendy.carrillo@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD52&inframe=N)  
*Diane Dixon (AD 72): (916) 319-2072; diane.dixon@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD72&inframe=N)  
*Mike Fong (AD 49): (916) 319-2049; mike.fong@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD49&inframe=N)  
*Gregg Hart (AD 37): (916) 319-2037; gregg.hart@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD37&inframe=N)  
*Josh Lowenthal (AD 69): (916) 319-2069; josh.lowenthal@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD69&inframe=N)  
*Devon Mathis (AD 33): (916) 319-2033; devon.mathis@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD33&inframe=N)  
*Diane Papan (AD 21): (916) 319-2021; diane.papan@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD21&inframe=N)  
*Gail Pellerin (AD 28): (916) 319-2028; gail.pellerin@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD28&inframe=N)  
*Kate A. Sanchez (AD 71): (916) 319-2071; kate.sanchez@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD28&inframe=N)  
*Esmeralda Soria (AD 27): (916) 319-2027;  esmeralda.soria@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD27&inframe=N)  
*Akilah Weber (AD 79): (916) 319-2079;  akilah.weber@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD79&inframe=N)  
*Lori Wilson (AD 11): (916) 319-2011;  lori.wilson@asm.ca.gov; [online contact form](https://lcmspubcontact.lc.ca.gov/PublicLCMS/ContactPopup.php?district=AD11&inframe=N)  
  
**You can find out which assembly district you reside in through  [here](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=57b2b46331&e=0111f1f5cd). Thank you in advance for helping us defeat racial discrimination!**

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Act Now! Call or Email Members of the California Assembly Appropriations Committee to Oppose ACA 7!

**For Immediate Release**

**August 23, 2023**

**SAN DIEGO, CA – August 23, 2023-** On August 22nd, the Californians for Equal Rights Foundation (CFER) sent an [open letter](https://strapi-cfer.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/e925bfc2a434cd724f0da018cfb2b60d.pdf?updated_at=2023-08-22T20:36:06.094Z) to the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, condemning the two agencies’ recent joint [guidance](https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocr-questionsandanswers-tvi-20230814.pdf?utm_content=&utm_medium=email&utm_name=&utm_source=govdelivery&utm_term=) on the Supreme Court ruling regarding college admissions. Our statement points out that the guidance misrepresents the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in _Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. (SFFA) v. Harvard College_ and _SFFA v. University of North Carolina et al_. _(UNC),_ while encouraging the continuation of race-preferential practices in American higher education.

“The Biden administration's guidance on college admissions is a direct insult to the Supreme Court ruling. Its approach to misinterpret the ruling will further divide our country by race and dumb downs academic standard,” commented Frank Xu, the president of CFER. “We urge the Federal Government to faithfully embrace the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, enforce federal civil rights laws, and provide equal protection to all Americans.”

CFER’s statement criticizes three major problems with the guidance:

1. It misrepresents the SFFA court ruling by glossing over the ruling’s major argument and spending extensive space on one sentence in the ruling related to essay writing.

2. It irresponsibly encourages the use of race proxies in college admissions without stating the need for narrow tailoring and at the same time condones the attacks on merit and academic standards.

3. It engages in political overreach and ideological signaling by paying only lip service to the principle of equal justice and overstating the role of race-based practices in boosting diversity.

CFER will continue to monitor how institutions of higher education, especially those in California, implement their admissions policies. We will continue to work to ensure the SFFA ruling is observed in practice and take legal as well as administrative actions in cases of violation. We will also continue to strive to educate the public about equal rights through advocacy, research and outreach.

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CFER Sent an Open Letter to the Federal Government Criticizing Its Guidance Regarding the Students for Fair Admissions Court Ruling

Yesterday (July 12) evening, after concluding a 10-day public input period and listening to over 70 public comments at the hearing, the California State Board of Education (SBE) voted to adopt  [the 2023 Mathematics Framework](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=d2cdaf9625&e=0111f1f5cd).  **In spite of testimonies from experts and parents who question its scientific evidence and ideological underpinnings, California's  _educrats_  are now poised to push forward an equity-based, anti-merit and purely experimental math framework.**  
  
**But the fight is far from over.**  Although the framework is approved at the state level, it is important to keep in mind that  **it only offers guidelines and local school districts will have the ultimate decision-making authority to choose the best math curriculum**. Since 2021, CFER has worked diligently to promote public awareness about the new math framework through advocacy, alliance building and research. Several of the 60 callers that gave public comments at the SBE meeting voiced their opposition in response to CFER's  [action alert](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=a04c98f356&e=0111f1f5cd).  **We sincerely thank you for your participation, which will help inspire more to get involved at the local level!** CFER's Wenyuan Wu also testified in opposition:  
  
_"This deeply flawed framework will only exacerbate the problem of low performance by dumbing down academic standards and obsessing over ideological devices like social justice and equity."_  
  
Shockingly, at the public  [hearing](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=9bc9c0cc33&e=0111f1f5cd), **SBE President Linda Darling-Hammond accused the opposition of "circulating misinformation" about the math framework because we have not read the materials "twice or three times."**  However, it is a fact,  [exposed](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=971bc3ac56&e=0111f1f5cd)  by many math and STEM  [experts,](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=82607dac14&e=0111f1f5cd)  that the new math framework discourages 8th graders from taking Algebra I, something the SBE denies. The framework recommends that "**all students take the same rich mathematics courses**  in kindergarten through grade eight" (Chapter 10, Lines 808-810), while Algebra I is not listed for Grade 8 (Chapters 8 and 9).  **It is unbelievable that Dr. Darling-Hammond and the education bureaucrats would lie to promote a political agenda!**  
  
**California's journey to adopt equity math is a snapshot of our culture war.**  While academics and experts, including two Stanford math professors and a UC Berkeley STEM professor, spoke about the framework's myriad of problems, interest groups like the California Teachers Association and the Education Trust-West weighed in to support equity math.  
  
**Going forward, we will continue to work with our partners and local stakeholders to closely monitor the implementation of the 2023 math framework.** We will help parents, community members and local education leaders to advocate for rigorous math standards and curriculums that promote excellence and merit for all students. Please stay tuned and continue to  [support](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=5f13370062&e=0111f1f5cd)  our work!  
  
CFER's upcoming annual conference will provide a platform to connect national and state experts with local parents and activists. In the spirit of continuing to fight, I want to announce that we are  **running a $90 registration special between  now and July 28  for CFER's annual conference on August 12 to celebrate the overturning of race-based affirmative action in the recent Supreme Court ruling in the Harvard and UNC cases.**  Please utilize this opportunity and  [sign up](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=5120dcccfb&e=0111f1f5cd)  to join us in August in beautiful San Diego, if you haven't already done so. SFFA President Mr. Edward Blum will be our keynote speaker and many other leaders will also join us to talk about their success stories and experiences in fighting the culture war. You can check out detailed information about the event including the agenda and speakers [here](https://cferfoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b78c84756813bc7a3a38500a0&id=387f909a96&e=0111f1f5cd).

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