A bill passed by the California legislature with the intent of explicitly outlawing caste discrimination in the state was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, his office announced in a letter Saturday. The bill would have included caste in the state’s definition of ancestry, solidifying protections against caste discrimination under the Fair Employment and other state laws. Newsom, in his veto letter, said the bill was unnecessary as California “already prohibits discrimination based on sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, and other characteristics, and state law specifies that these civil rights protections shall be liberally construed.” The veto dashed proponents’ hopes that California would become the first state to specifically ban caste discrimination.
