Governor Newsom just released the first-ever Golden State Plan to Counter
Antisemitism. This is a robust set of policy initiatives and calls to action that will make
a material difference on the security and prosperity of California's Jewish community. It
also sets a moral standard for how California responds to hate and divisiveness targeting all communities.
In the aftermath of October 7th, JPAC leadership met with Governor Newsom to
highlight the skyrocketing antisemitism crisis and requested a statewide plan inspired by
President Biden’s National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism.
The Golden State Plan released today is the result of five months of collaboration
between JPAC’s statewide coalition, California’s Legislative Jewish Caucus led by
Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel and Senator Scott Wiener, and the Governor’s office.
At a time when antisemitic harassment, abuse, and violence has permeated all aspects
of our society – our schools, workplaces, streets, and synagogues – this plan serves as
a roadmap to address it wherever it rears its head, proactively and reactively. The
Golden State Plan includes:
Protecting the physical security of the Jewish community, including through nonprofit security grants;
Working to fight antisemitism on college campuses by enforcing and enhancing campus safety policies;
Developing antisemitism education programs for schools, colleges, law enforcement, and diverse communities;
Improving hate crime reporting;
Supporting Israel and uplifting the California-Israel relationship;
Massively expanding Holocaust and genocide education; and
Ensuring that ethnic studies curricula is free from antisemitic or anti-Zionist content.
We are deeply grateful to Governor Newsom for answering our call to develop this
historic Golden State Plan. With so much of Jewish communal life in California at stake,
this strategy will help us reverse the normalization of rising antisemitism and make
California a safer place for all.
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