New York Human Rights Law

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The New York Human Rights Law (NYHRL) is article 15 of the Executive Law (which is itself chapter 18 of the Consolidated Laws of New York) which prohibits discrimination on the basis of "age, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, military status, sex, marital status or disability" in employment, housing, education, credit, and access to public accommodations [1] The law was originally passed in 1945 as the Law Against Discrimination, [2] and was the first of its kind in the United States. [3] It is enforced by the New York State Division of Human Rights.

The Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act passed in 2002 added "sexual orientation"; the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act is a bill that passed the New York state legislature in January 2019, to explicitly add "gender identity or expression".

See also

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The Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act (SONDA) is a New York law which prohibits discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation in employment, housing, public accommodations, education, credit, and the exercise of civil rights. Passed in 2002, SONDA added the term "sexual orientation" to the list of specifically protected characteristics in various state laws, including the Human Rights Law, the Civil Rights Law, and the Education Law.

The Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) is a 2019 New York law which added gender identity and gender expression to the state's human rights and hate crimes laws as protected classes; banned discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations based on gender identity and gender expression; and provided enhanced penalties for bias-motivated crimes. GENDA was first introduced in 2003. The bill passed the New York State Assembly every year from 2008 to 2019, but did not receive a floor vote in the New York State Senate until January 2019. It was passed by each house of the New York State Legislature on January 15, 2019, and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed it into law on January 25, 2019.

The right to sexuality incorporates the right to express one's sexuality and to be free from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. Specifically, it relates to the human rights of people of diverse sexual orientations, including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, and the protection of those rights, although it is equally applicable to heterosexuality. The right to sexuality and freedom from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation is based on the universality of human rights and the inalienable nature of rights belonging to every person by virtue of being human.

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References

  1. N.Y. Executive Law §§291, 296-a (McKinney 2005)
  2. Holland v. Edwards, 282 A.D. 353, 357 (N.Y. App. Div. 1953)
  3. "Mission Statement | New York State Division of Human Rights". dhr.ny.gov. Retrieved 2021-04-27.