Newsom's Veto Crushes California's Caste Discrimination Ban
California Governor Gavin Newsom has vetoed a bill that aimed to ban caste discrimination in education, housing, and the workplace, making it the first-in-the-nation law of its kind. The bill, Senate Bill 403, had passed both the Assembly and the Senate with strong support. Supporters of the bill, including civil rights and South Asian groups, expressed disappointment with the veto, while opponents argued that the bill unfairly targeted Hindus. Caste discrimination, a centuries-old social hierarchy system prevalent in South Asian countries, has gained attention in Silicon Valley and was the subject of a lawsuit against Cisco in 2020.