Today, I sent an official letter to the Chancellors of the UC, CSU, and Community College systems demanding an end to vaccine and booster mandates. You can see the letter at this link. Here’s the gist of it:
Our institutions of higher learning should be places that are open, inclusive, and non-discriminatory. They should also be guided by facts, knowledge, and critical thought.
I ask you to consider whether the continuation of COVID-19 vaccination and booster requirements at your institutions is consistent with these principles. If the answer were not already clear, a recent update to the CDC’s guidelines has removed all doubt.
Specifically, an August 11 release titled “Summary of Guidance for Minimizing the Impact of COVID-19” states that “CDC’s COVID-19 prevention recommendations no longer differentiate based on a person’s vaccination status because breakthrough infections occur.”
There is a word for a policy of exclusion that lacks a rational basis: discrimination. And it should not go on at our institutions of higher learning for another day. I request that you rescind all COVID-19 vaccination requirements for students and staff immediately.
California universities have been among the worst offenders in the COVID insanity. In early 2021 we caught one literally imprisoning students, even banning “solo outdoor exercise.” Things eased up a bit after I got the Chancellor on the phone and sent a letter to every campus.
My last day as a California Legislator is December 4, and I’m going to fight to the end to root out as much insanity as possible. My goal by the time I leave office: the end of all mandates. After that, if elected to Congress, our goals will be even bigger.