California Republican Introduces Bill to Ban Political Discrimination

California State Senator Melissa Melendez (R-Lake Elsinoe) introduced legislation Tuesday to prohibit discrimination on the basis of political affiliation, in which she explained was a reaction against “cancel culture” targeting conservatives.

The legislation, SB 238, is titled the “Diversity of Thought Act.” As a press statement from Melendez’s office explained, “aims to amend the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) in the Government Code, by adding political affiliation as a protected class under California’s Anti-Discrimination laws. If enacted, the bill protects California residents from discrimination when seeking employment opportunities or housing, based on political affiliation.”

Melendez also introduced SB 239, which “amends the Education Code, including political affiliation, to prohibit discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and bullying in schools.”

“Cancel culture and the efforts to silence differing opinions and voices should be a growing concern for all of us,” she said in the statement. “A climate of intolerance has been established and has stifled healthy and normal debate. Anyone who values their own freedom of speech should be concerned. This cannot and should not be allowed to continue.”

Supporters of President Donald Trump have been the targets of threats for years. Since the 2020 election, many have lost their access to social media accounts, or have lost jobs, because of their perceived political views.

Democrats and anti-Trump Republicans, including the disgraced Lincoln Project, have been targeting “lists” of Trump allies, including lawyers who represented the former president in election challenges.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.