S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4563
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 5, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  GRIFFO, AKSHAR, HELMING, JORDAN -- read twice and
   ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee  on
   Investigations and Government Operations
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  executive law and the penal law, in relation to
   protections against anti-Semitism in the human rights law

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Legislative  findings and determinations. The legislature
 finds and determines that discrimination and attacks have been  unfairly
 and  wrongfully  levied and directed against the Jewish people and their
 faith for generations, from ancient times to the present. Such discrimi-
 nation and attacks, manifesting themselves through  acts  of  anti-Semi-
 tism, have proven to be among the most despicable acts of mankind, call-
 ing  witness  to  countless  acts  of  death, deprivation, injustice and
 holocaust.
   The legislature further finds and determines that anti-Semitism  sadly
 remains  today,  still  a  persistent,  disturbing  problem  in  certain
 segments of society, political movements, on college  campuses,  and  by
 select disturbed and/or seriously misguided or hateful individuals.
   The  legislature  also finds and determines that acts of anti-Semitism
 have even very recently resulted in  homicidal  attacks  against  Jewish
 places  of worship in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and in the defacement and
 mutilation of publicly displayed photographs in New York City of a prom-
 inent and respected Jewish member of the United States Supreme Court.
   The legislature additionally finds and determines that both the feder-
 al Department of Justice, and the federal Department of Education,  have
 properly  concluded  that both state and federal law prohibits discrimi-
 nation against persons of the Jewish faith, as well as members of  other
 religious  groups,  when  such  discrimination is based on the actual or
 perceived religious faith, shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, or
 when the discrimination is based on actual or perceived  citizenship  or
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD04350-01-1

 S. 4563                             2
 
 residence  in  a  country whose residents share a dominant religion or a
 distinct religious identity.
   The  legislature  further  finds  and  determines  that persons of the
 Jewish faith, and/or of Jewish heritage, are continuing  to  be  threat-
 ened,  harassed  or intimidated in their daily lives, work and education
 (including on their college campuses) and in the practice of their reli-
 gion, by acts of anti-Semitism, due to  the  basis  of  their  religious
 belief,  shared  ancestry  or  ethnic characteristics, including but not
 limited to harassing conduct  that  creates  a  hostile  environment  so
 severe,  pervasive,  or  persistent  as to interfere with or limit their
 ability to participate in or benefit from the services,  activities,  or
 opportunities  offered by their daily life, work, schools or practice of
 their faith and/or religious principles.
   The legislature finally  finds  and  determines  that  legislation  is
 therefore  necessary  to  place a definition of anti-Semitism within the
 state human rights law, to specifically provide that acts of  anti-Semi-
 tism  shall constitute a violation of the state human rights law, and to
 further provide that anti-Semitism that incites, causes  or  results  in
 any  act  of  violence,  or  injury  to  a  person,  or the damage to or
 destruction of real or personal property, shall be deemed to  constitute
 a hate crime.
   §  2.  Section  292  of the executive law is amended by adding two new
 subdivisions 39 and 40 to read as follows:
   39. THE TERM "CREED" MEANS  A  SET  OF  MORAL,  RELIGIOUS  OR  ETHICAL
 BELIEFS, AND THE PRACTICES AND OBSERVANCES ASSOCIATED WITH SUCH BELIEFS,
 AND  SHALL  INCLUDE  BOTH  TRADITIONAL RELIGIOUS BELIEFS ASSOCIATED WITH
 RECOGNIZED, ORGANIZED RELIGIONS, AS WELL AS BELIEF SYSTEMS THAT MAY  NOT
 BE  EXPRESSED  BY  SUCH  ORGANIZED  RELIGIOUS  GROUPS.   THE PROTECTIONS
 PROVIDED BY THIS ARTICLE SHALL  NOT  ONLY  INCLUDE  PROTECTIONS  AGAINST
 DISCRIMINATION  BASED  ON  CREED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO DISCRIMI-
 NATION AGAINST ANYONE PRACTICING A BELIEF IN ANY FORM  OF  CHRISTIANITY,
 JUDAISM,  ISLAM,  HINDUISM,  BUDDHISM OR ANY OTHER TYPE OF RELIGION, BUT
 SHALL ALSO SPECIFICALLY PROVIDE FOR PROTECTIONS AGAINST ANTI-SEMITISM.
   40. THE TERM "ANTI-SEMITISM" MEANS THE PUBLIC DEMONSTRATION  OF  NEGA-
 TIVE  ACTIONS, BEHAVIORS OR PERCEPTIONS REGARDING THOSE PERSONS PRACTIC-
 ING THE JEWISH RELIGION OR EXHIBITING A JEWISH HERITAGE, INCLUDING:
   A. HATRED OR SEVERE DISPARAGEMENT TOWARD THE JEWISH  PEOPLE  OR  THEIR
 CULTURE;
   B. RHETORICAL, VIOLENT AND/OR PHYSICAL MANIFESTATIONS DIRECTED AGAINST
 JEWISH  OR  NON-JEWISH  INDIVIDUALS OR PROPERTY, JEWISH COMMUNITY INSTI-
 TUTIONS, AND/OR JEWISH RELIGIOUS FACILITIES;
   C. THE CALLING FOR, AIDING, ENCOURAGING, SUPPORTING OR JUSTIFYING  THE
 KILLING, HARMING OR DEFAMING OF ANYONE, SIMPLY FOR PRACTICING THE JEWISH
 RELIGION OR EXHIBITING A JEWISH HERITAGE;
   D. MAKING FALSE AND MENDACIOUS, DEHUMANIZING, DEMONIZING, DEMEANING OR
 STEREOTYPICAL ALLEGATIONS, ABOUT PERSONS PRACTICING THE JEWISH RELIGION,
 OR  ABOUT THOSE WHO EXHIBIT A JEWISH HERITAGE, OR ABOUT THE MYTH ABOUT A
 WORLD JEWISH CONSPIRACY, OR ABOUT JEWISH PERSONS  ALLEGEDLY  CONTROLLING
 THE MEDIA, ECONOMY, GOVERNMENT OR OTHER SOCIETAL INSTITUTIONS;
   E.  ACCUSING  THOSE  PRACTICING  THE  JEWISH RELIGION, OR EXHIBITING A
 JEWISH HERITAGE, WHETHER SINGULARLY OR  COLLECTIVELY,  AS  BEING  WHOLLY
 RESPONSIBLE  FOR  ANY  REAL OR IMAGINED WRONGDOING COMMITTED BY A SINGLE
 JEWISH PERSON OR GROUP;
   F. ACCUSING THOSE PRACTICING THE  JEWISH  RELIGION,  OR  EXHIBITING  A
 JEWISH  HERITAGE,  WHETHER  SINGULARLY  OR COLLECTIVELY, AS BEING WHOLLY

 S. 4563                             3
 
 RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY REAL OR IMAGINED WRONGDOING COMMITTED BY  THE  STATE
 OF ISRAEL; AND
   G.  ACCUSING  THOSE  PRACTICING  THE  JEWISH RELIGION, OR EXHIBITING A
 JEWISH HERITAGE, WHETHER SINGULARLY OR COLLECTIVELY, OF BEING MORE LOYAL
 TO ISRAEL, OR TO THE ALLEGED PRIORITIES OF JEWISH PEOPLE WORLDWIDE, THAN
 TO THE INTERESTS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE  OF  NEW  YORK,  OR  TO  THE
 INTERESTS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
   §  3.  Section  297  of  the  executive law is amended by adding a new
 subdivision 11 to read as follows:
   11. IN REVIEWING, INVESTIGATING, ADJUDICATING OR  DETERMINING  WHETHER
 THERE HAS BEEN A VIOLATION OF THIS ARTICLE ON THE BASIS OF CREED, AND/OR
 TO  AFFORD  PROTECTIONS AGAINST ANTI-SEMITISM, AS DEFINED BY SUBDIVISION
 FORTY OF SECTION TWO HUNDRED NINETY-TWO OF THIS ARTICLE, AS A RESULT  OF
 ACTIONS  TAKEN  AGAINST  A  PERSON  BECAUSE OF AN INDIVIDUAL'S ACTUAL OR
 PERCEIVED JEWISH RELIGIOUS PRACTICES,  OR  JEWISH  ANCESTRY,  OR  JEWISH
 ETHNIC  CHARACTERISTICS,  THE  DIVISION  OR THE COURT UPON REVIEW, SHALL
 TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THE DEFINITION  OF  ANTI-SEMITISM  CONTAINED  IN
 SUBDIVISION  FORTY OF SECTION TWO HUNDRED NINETY-TWO OF THIS ARTICLE, AS
 PART OF ITS ASSESSMENT, IN ANY DECISION, DETERMINATION, ADJUDICATION  OR
 JUDGMENT  AS TO WHETHER THE ALLEGED PRACTICE WAS MOTIVATED BY ANTI-SEMI-
 TIC INTENT.
   § 4. Section 485.05 of the penal law is amended by adding a new subdi-
 vision 5 to read as follows:
   5. IN ADDITION TO ANY OTHER HATE CRIME PROVIDED FOR IN  THIS  SECTION,
 ANY  PERSON  WHO COMMITS AN ACT OF ANTI-SEMITISM, AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVI-
 SION FORTY OF SECTION TWO HUNDRED NINETY-TWO OF THE EXECUTIVE LAW,  THAT
 INCITES,  CAUSES  OR  RESULTS  IN  ANY  ACT  OF VIOLENCE, OR INJURY TO A
 PERSON, OR THE DAMAGE TO OR DESTRUCTION OF REAL  OR  PERSONAL  PROPERTY,
 SHALL BE DEEMED TO CONSTITUTE A HATE CRIME UNDER THIS SECTION.
   §  5.  Nothing in the act shall be deemed to diminish or infringe upon
 any right protected under section 3 or 8 of Article I of  the  Constitu-
 tion  of  the State of New York, or by the first amendment to the United
 States Constitution.
   § 6. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.