California Governor Signs Bill Requiring Schools to Teach Gay History

"History should be honest," Democratic California Gov. Jerry Brown said about the gay history legislation.

One of the reasons I believe that gays are so easily maligned by the "godly folk" is that so few Americans know about our contributions to society.  And too often the local media and even entertainment outlets censor news and movies that have positive gay themes.  A case in point?  The Imitation Game which looks at the role of Alan Turning in breaking the German enigma code in WWI has hit the theaters.  Is it playing anywhere in Hampton Roads, Virginia, an area with 1.7 million people? Nope, not at a single theater.  In fact there is an online effort to demand that the movie be shown in the region.  California Gov. Jerry Brown seeks to change this problem in his state and has signed a bill that will require public schools in the state to teach students about the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans.  One can already hear the spittle flecked rants of the Christofascists over having accurate history of gays portrayed.  A leading mouth piece is the hate group, Traditional Values Coalition ("TVC") which regularly disseminates baldfaced lies about LGBT individuals..   Here are highlights from CNN (which true to form fails to note that TVC is a hate group):

Democratic California Gov. Jerry Brown said Thursday he had signed a bill that will require public schools in the state to teach students about the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans.

The bill, believed to be the first of its kind in the nation, will also require teachers to provide instruction on the role of people with disabilities.

"History should be honest," Brown said in a statement.

"This bill revises existing laws that prohibit discrimination in education and ensures that the important contributions of Americans from all backgrounds and walks of life are included in our history books. It represents an important step forward for our state, and I thank Senator Leno for his hard work on this historic legislation."

"Today we are making history in California by ensuring that our textbooks and instructional materials no longer exclude the contributions of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) Americans," Sen. Leno said in a statement.

The bill, which passed the state legislature this month and the senate in April, according to the senator's office, is not without controversy.

It has drawn criticism from some religious and conservative groups, like the Traditional Values Coalition, a lobby organization that says it speaks on behalf of more than 43,000 churches.

"It is an outrage that Governor Jerry Brown has opened the classroom door for homosexual activists to indoctrinate the minds of California's youth, since no factual materials would be allowed to be presented," Rev. Louis Sheldon, chairman and founder of the Traditional Values Coalition, said in a statement.  "If parents don't already have their children out of public schools, this should cause them to remove them," he said.

The true outrage is that hate merchants like Sheldon - who makes a nice living fanning hatred - are afforded any respect or deference whatsoever.   As for honesty, no one lies more than the "godly Christian" crowd.