101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
SB3477

 

Introduced 2/14/2020, by Sen. Mattie Hunter

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
775 ILCS 5/1-103  from Ch. 68, par. 1-103

    Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act. Provides that the Act may be referred to as the CROWN (Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair) Act. Provides that "race", as used in the Employment and Elementary, Secondary, and Higher Education Articles, includes traits historically associated with race, including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists.


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A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning human rights.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. References to Act. This Act may be referred to
5as the CROWN (Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for
6Natural Hair) Act.
 
7    Section 5. The Illinois Human Rights Act is amended by
8changing Section 1-103 as follows:
 
9    (775 ILCS 5/1-103)  (from Ch. 68, par. 1-103)
10    Sec. 1-103. General definitions. When used in this Act,
11unless the context requires otherwise, the term:
12    (A) Age. "Age" means the chronological age of a person who
13is at least 40 years old, except with regard to any practice
14described in Section 2-102, insofar as that practice concerns
15training or apprenticeship programs. In the case of training or
16apprenticeship programs, for the purposes of Section 2-102,
17"age" means the chronological age of a person who is 18 but not
18yet 40 years old.
19    (B) Aggrieved party. "Aggrieved party" means a person who
20is alleged or proved to have been injured by a civil rights
21violation or believes he or she will be injured by a civil
22rights violation under Article 3 that is about to occur.

 

 

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1    (B-5) Arrest record. "Arrest record" means:
2        (1) an arrest not leading to a conviction;
3        (2) a juvenile record; or
4        (3) criminal history record information ordered
5    expunged, sealed, or impounded under Section 5.2 of the
6    Criminal Identification Act.
7    (C) Charge. "Charge" means an allegation filed with the
8Department by an aggrieved party or initiated by the Department
9under its authority.
10    (D) Civil rights violation. "Civil rights violation"
11includes and shall be limited to only those specific acts set
12forth in Sections 2-102, 2-103, 2-105, 3-102, 3-102.1, 3-103,
133-104, 3-104.1, 3-105, 3-105.1, 4-102, 4-103, 5-102, 5A-102,
146-101, and 6-102 of this Act.
15    (E) Commission. "Commission" means the Human Rights
16Commission created by this Act.
17    (F) Complaint. "Complaint" means the formal pleading filed
18by the Department with the Commission following an
19investigation and finding of substantial evidence of a civil
20rights violation.
21    (G) Complainant. "Complainant" means a person including
22the Department who files a charge of civil rights violation
23with the Department or the Commission.
24    (H) Department. "Department" means the Department of Human
25Rights created by this Act.
26    (I) Disability. "Disability" means a determinable physical

 

 

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1or mental characteristic of a person, including, but not
2limited to, a determinable physical characteristic which
3necessitates the person's use of a guide, hearing or support
4dog, the history of such characteristic, or the perception of
5such characteristic by the person complained against, which may
6result from disease, injury, congenital condition of birth or
7functional disorder and which characteristic:
8        (1) For purposes of Article 2, is unrelated to the
9    person's ability to perform the duties of a particular job
10    or position and, pursuant to Section 2-104 of this Act, a
11    person's illegal use of drugs or alcohol is not a
12    disability;
13        (2) For purposes of Article 3, is unrelated to the
14    person's ability to acquire, rent, or maintain a housing
15    accommodation;
16        (3) For purposes of Article 4, is unrelated to a
17    person's ability to repay;
18        (4) For purposes of Article 5, is unrelated to a
19    person's ability to utilize and benefit from a place of
20    public accommodation;
21        (5) For purposes of Article 5, also includes any
22    mental, psychological, or developmental disability,
23    including autism spectrum disorders.
24    (J) Marital status. "Marital status" means the legal status
25of being married, single, separated, divorced, or widowed.
26    (J-1) Military status. "Military status" means a person's

 

 

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1status on active duty in or status as a veteran of the armed
2forces of the United States, status as a current member or
3veteran of any reserve component of the armed forces of the
4United States, including the United States Army Reserve, United
5States Marine Corps Reserve, United States Navy Reserve, United
6States Air Force Reserve, and United States Coast Guard
7Reserve, or status as a current member or veteran of the
8Illinois Army National Guard or Illinois Air National Guard.
9    (K) National origin. "National origin" means the place in
10which a person or one of his or her ancestors was born.
11    (K-5) "Order of protection status" means a person's status
12as being a person protected under an order of protection issued
13pursuant to the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986, Article
14112A of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963, the Stalking No
15Contact Order Act, or the Civil No Contact Order Act, or an
16order of protection issued by a court of another state.
17    (L) Person. "Person" includes one or more individuals,
18partnerships, associations or organizations, labor
19organizations, labor unions, joint apprenticeship committees,
20or union labor associations, corporations, the State of
21Illinois and its instrumentalities, political subdivisions,
22units of local government, legal representatives, trustees in
23bankruptcy or receivers.
24    (L-5) Pregnancy. "Pregnancy" means pregnancy, childbirth,
25or medical or common conditions related to pregnancy or
26childbirth.

 

 

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1    (M) Public contract. "Public contract" includes every
2contract to which the State, any of its political subdivisions,
3or any municipal corporation is a party.
4    (N) Religion. "Religion" includes all aspects of religious
5observance and practice, as well as belief, except that with
6respect to employers, for the purposes of Article 2, "religion"
7has the meaning ascribed to it in paragraph (F) of Section
82-101.
9    (O) Sex. "Sex" means the status of being male or female.
10    (O-1) Sexual orientation. "Sexual orientation" means
11actual or perceived heterosexuality, homosexuality,
12bisexuality, or gender-related identity, whether or not
13traditionally associated with the person's designated sex at
14birth. "Sexual orientation" does not include a physical or
15sexual attraction to a minor by an adult.
16    (P) Unfavorable military discharge. "Unfavorable military
17discharge" includes discharges from the Armed Forces of the
18United States, their Reserve components, or any National Guard
19or Naval Militia which are classified as RE-3 or the equivalent
20thereof, but does not include those characterized as RE-4 or
21"Dishonorable".
22    (Q) Unlawful discrimination. "Unlawful discrimination"
23means discrimination against a person because of his or her
24actual or perceived: race, color, religion, national origin,
25ancestry, age, sex, marital status, order of protection status,
26disability, military status, sexual orientation, pregnancy, or

 

 

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1unfavorable discharge from military service as those terms are
2defined in this Section. As used in Articles 2 and 5A of this
3Act, "race" includes traits historically associated with race,
4including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective
5hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists.
6(Source: P.A. 100-714, eff. 1-1-19; 101-81, eff. 7-12-19;
7101-221, eff. 1-1-20; 101-565, eff. 1-1-20; revised 9-18-19.)