Parents’ rights, anti-trans groups will march in Fair Oaks against Gov. Gavin Newsom

A group of local organizers affiliated with national parents’ rights groups and anti-trans groups are marching to the governor’s home on Saturday as part of a “worldwide” Stop the War on Children rally.

One of the protest’s main organizers is Gays Against Groomers, founded in 2022 by right-wing, 2020 election conspiracy theorist Jaimee Michell, a frequent guest on Fox News and One American News Network. Members of Gays Against Groomers have also been linked with the far-right Proud Boys. The group promotes the homophobic and transphobic conspiracy theory that members of the LGBTQ community are “grooming” young children.

The Freedom Angels Foundation, which started in 2019 to campaign against vaccines, is also headlining the protest.

Local chapters of the national Mom Army will be attending. Mom Army has “battalions” in 10 states and Washington, D.C., including in the Sacramento area. The group opposes gender-affirming care and protests against school curriculum that mentions race, gender identity or sexuality. Members frequently attend school board meetings with requests for book cancellations and curriculum changes.

The Sacramento march will specifically protest three bills Gov. Newsom signed at the end of the legislative session.

Assembly Bill 665, authored by Wendy Carillo, D, Los Angeles, will allow children ages 12 and older who are enrolled in Medi-Cal to receive outpatient mental health services without the consent of their parents. This has been the case for children covered by private insurance since 2010, thanks to former republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Critics of the bill, like those marching this Saturday, say this is part of a larger effort on behalf of liberal politicians to keep parents out of their children’s health care.

Corey Jackson’s Assembly Bill 1078 was heavily contested by parents’ rights advocates. It will bar school boards from banning books, instructional materials or curricula that are deemed inclusive and diverse.

And finally, SB 107, authored by Democrat San Francisco state Senator Scott Wiener, will make California a safe haven for non-resident families seeking gender-affirming care for their transgender children.

“Gavin Newsom & his cronies have politicized our children and sold our families out to the political, education, and pharma cartels,” wrote Tara Thornton, of the Freedom Angels, in an Instagram post promoting the event.

A representative for Newsom said that Newsom’s signature on the bills “speaks for itself.”