Protests outside a California school district meeting turns violent

GLENDALE, Calif. (CBS, KYMA/KECY) - Protests outside a Glendale school district meeting turned violent as groups began several brawls as administrators debate gender and sexual identity studies.

Demonstrations outside of the Glendale Unified School District building stayed relatively civil throughout the day. However, scuffles between protesters and counter-demonstrators began after 6:00pm. The same groups, totaling about 200 people, protested outside a North Hollywood elementary school last week. School administrators said many of the protesters did not have students in the district.

The city's police department deployed around 50 officers to the meeting to prevent scuffles among the groups. After several brawls, officers ordered the protesters to disperse and threatened to use less-than-lethal force to break up the crowd.

The battle over LGBTQ+ instruction has been an ongoing conflict in the United States as communities demand school boards limit discussions of sexual orientation. The decision to ban a book about pioneering gay rights figure Harvey Milk garnered the attention of California Gov. Gavin Newsom last week after a school board president made accused the slain activist of being a pedophile.