TDBS WIRE: New York Post: California Dems Push To Make Two Muslim Holy Days State Holidays
California lawmakers are moving ahead with legislation that would make two major Muslim holy days official state holidays while also opening the door for public schools to incorporate celebrations of those observances into classroom activities.
Assembly Bill 2017, authored by Democrat Assemblyman Matt Haney of San Francisco, cleared the California Assembly by a 64-1 vote and continues advancing through the state Senate. The proposal would add Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha to California’s list of recognized state holidays and would allow local school districts and community colleges to close campuses in observance of the holidays.
The legislation goes beyond simply recognizing the holidays on the state calendar. Language contained in the bill authorizes public schools to include exercises “acknowledging and celebrating the meaning and importance” of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha and permits the California State Board of Education to develop a model curriculum guide for those activities.
Haney argues the bill is intended to provide equal treatment for California’s Muslim population, which supporters estimate at roughly half a million residents statewide.
“California is home to one of the largest and most vibrant Muslim communities in the country, and their traditions deserve recognition and respect,” Haney said when promoting the legislation. He added, “No student should have to choose between celebrating one of the holiest days of their faith and showing up to school, and no worker should feel they have to sacrifice their religious observance.”
Supporters, including the California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, say the measure addresses practical challenges faced by Muslim students and employees.
CAIR-California Legislative and Government Affairs Director Oussama Mokeddem argued that “Muslim students and employees still face recurring inequity” and said the bill would remove the burden of choosing between religious observance and academic or professional responsibilities. Supporters also note that California recently adopted similar recognition for Diwali and already acknowledges a growing number of cultural observances.
Opposition has centered less on recognizing the holidays themselves and more on what critics view as state-sponsored religious celebration inside public schools.
Greg Burt of the California Family Council said the proposal crosses a line that public schools have traditionally tried to avoid. “This is not about teaching, this is encouraging the celebration of a religious holiday,” Burt said. “What happened to neutrality?”
Critics point to longstanding school policies across California that distinguish between teaching about religion and actively celebrating religious observances. They argue that schools have spent years stripping overt references to Christian traditions from calendars and school events in the name of neutrality, only to now embrace language encouraging celebration of specific religious holidays.
If signed into law, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha would join Diwali, Lunar New Year, Native American Day and other officially recognized observances that California schools may acknowledge or celebrate through approved educational activities.
California lawmakers are incredible. They can spot a cross from a hundred yards away and demand its removal, but somehow they keep finding new reasons to bring religion into public schools.
Nobody is arguing that Muslim Americans should be denied the freedom to celebrate their faith. That’s not the issue. The issue is whether government-run schools should be in the business of “celebrating” any religion at all.
For decades, Americans were told Christmas concerts had to become “winter programs.” Easter vacation became “spring break.” Nativity scenes disappeared. Religious expression was supposedly too divisive, too controversial, too offensive for public institutions.
Now we’re being told that schools should be authorized to celebrate religious holidays in the classroom and perhaps even develop state-approved lesson plans around them.
Interesting how neutrality always seems to be a one-way street.
TDBS WIRE SOURCES:
- New York Post: California Dems Push To Make Two Muslim Holy Days State Holidays
- CalMatters Digital Democracy: AB 2017: State Holidays: Eid
- CAIR California: Eid Holiday Bill Passes Key Assembly Vote
- Real Impact: Muslim Holy Days As Official California State Holidays — Oppose AB 2017
- The MEST Times: California Lawmaker Matt Haney Has Introduced A New Bill To Recognise Eid Al Fitr And Eid Al Adha As Official State Recognised Holidays
- CAIR California (Facebook): CAIR-CA’s Eid Bill Passes Through The State Assembly
