A bill that has been sent to the floor of the California Senate would require textbooks used in public schools to include information on the roles and contributions of gay people throughout history, a move that could affect the content of instructional materials throughout much of the country. The measure would help build tolerance of diverse groups by students in California schools, according to its supporters. Opponents say it bows to the demands of yet another special-interest group and puts inappropriate demands on schools to add to an already vast list of required content. Senator Sheila James Kuehl, a Democrat, introduced the bill, which would revise two existing statutes: one that prohibits adverse depictions of people based on "race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, or handicap" and another that calls for textbooks to contain information representing the state's general population. The bill would add "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" to that list of characteristics and in turn, require that they be included in textbooks.