Statement on Senate Passage ofBill to Allow Legal Discrimination

SACRAMENTO – Senator Patricia Bates (R-Laguna Niguel) issued the following statement after the Senate approved Assembly Constitutional Amendment 5 (Weber):

“I cannot in good conscience support a measure that would enshrine into law the soft bigotry of low expectations. ACA 5 would be a step back from achieving Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream where we can be judged by the content of our character instead of the color of our skin. I hope California’s voters will reject the false promise of ACA 5 at the ballot box.”
 
ACA 5 would repeal Proposition 209 (approved by California’s voters in November 1996) from the California Constitution, which states:
 
“The state shall not discriminate against, or grant preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the base of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education or public contracting.”
 
California’s voters will decide ACA 5’s fate in the November 2020 general election.
 
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Senator Patricia Bates (R-Laguna Niguel) represents the 36th Senate District in the California Legislature, which covers South Orange County, North San Diego County, and Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. Click here to download her official Senate photo.