Under a bill signed into law by California Governor Jerry Brown, California public schools will be required to teach the contributions of gay, lesbian,  bisexual and transgender Americans, starting January 1.

loading...

The bill requires textbooks in the social sciences curriculum to include information on the role of LGBT Americans, as well as Americans with disabilities.

This law is the first of its kind in the nation, and Brown says it's historic.

"History should be honest", Brown says. "This bill revises existing laws that prohibit discrimination in education and ensures that the important contributions of Americans from all backgrounds and walks of life are included in our history books."

The provision on inclusion in textbooks could reach beyond California, as many book publishers tailor their texts to California's standards because of the state's large population.

Even though the bill requires textbooks to include gay history starting January 1, that's going to be difficult because California's budget crisis has delayed the purchasing new textbooks until at least 2015.

More From Newstalk 860