By Hannah Nightingale – The Postmillennial
On Friday, the California Assembly voted to pass AB 957, a bill that would take into consideration a parent’s affirmation of a child’s gender identity when making custody rulings.
The bill passed in the Assembly 57 to 16 after being amended in the Senate. The bill now heads to Governor Gavin Newsom’s desk for his signature.
The bill, which was introduced by Assemblymember Lori Wilson alongside its Senate bill by Scott Wiener, was amended by the Senate most recently on August 17, 2023.
The bill would amend the state’s Family Code to read that in making custody determinations, the “health safety, and welfare of the child” would be taken into consideration.
This includes “A parent’s affirmation of the child’s gender identity or gender expression.”
The bill has received backlash from California parents, who gathered at the state capital in August to protest the bill, along with other legislation.
“There has been an increasing groundswell of parental concern that really has come out of the school board meeting drama here in California, where parents have been challenged and parents have been calibrated against for attending school board meetings, in defense of their children’s education and safety,” Christian megachurch pastor of Calvary Chapel Chino Hills Jack Hibbs, told Fox News.
This is a breaking story and will be updated.