SPRINGFIELD – According to the CDC, six in 10 young people and five in 10 adults consume a sugary drink each day. A measure by State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) to ensure kids’ meals have healthy beverage options as a default to combat the risk of health issues passed the Senate Tourism and Hospitality Committee Thursday.

“Improving the nutritional quality of restaurant children’s meals can help improve diet quality and cultivate lifelong healthy eating behaviors, which help children grow up healthier,” Hunter said. “If we can prevent children from having certain illnesses and behavioral issues, we should do everything in our power to do so.”

Senate Bill 1846 would require restaurants to provide healthier drink options to automatically come with children’s meals. Drinks could include water, sparkling water, unsweetened flavored water, unsweetened low-fat or non-fat milk, unsweetened non-dairy milk alternatives, or 100% fruit or vegetable juice.

Parents would still have the choice to ask for other types of beverages, like soda or lemonade, if they wish.

SB 1846 is an initiative of the Illinois Public Health Association to foster healthier eating with children.

A 2012 analysis reported that 33%of children eat foods or beverages from fast-food restaurants and 12 percent from full-service restaurants on a typical day. Americans spend almost half of their food budget on restaurant foods. Children eating out has been associated with higher consumption of calories, sugary drinks, saturated fat, and total sugars, and with lower diet quality compared to meals at home.

Frequently drinking sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with dozens of health issues, including weight gain/obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, kidney diseases, non-alcoholic liver disease, tooth decay and cavities, and gout.

“Ensuring health for our children and future generations is something I am very passionate about, and I am proud to bring this groundbreaking legislation to our state,” Hunter said.

Senate Bill 1846 waits to be heard by the full Senate and can be tracked online here. A podcast on this bill can be heard here.

CHICAGO – A 2019 Dove study found that African American women face the highest instances of hair discrimination and are more likely to be sent home from the workplace because of their hair. State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) is working to ensure this will no longer be the case in Illinois.

“No one should have to miss out on a job opportunity or miss a school graduation because of the hair that grows naturally out of their head,” Hunter said. “It’s 2021. As a nation, we should be past this petty discrimination.”

Senate Bill 1847 – also known as the Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act – amends the Illinois Human Rights Act to provide that the term "race" includes traits historically associated with race, including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks and twists.

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) is leading an initiative that would extend the student-assistance contribution tax credit, which passed the Senate Revenue Committee Wednesday. 

“I am proud to sponsor this initiative to help parents get a head start on saving for their children’s college expenses,” Hunter said. “Children who have a savings account are more likely to go to college, so it is important to encourage planning early.”

Senate Bill 340 extends the sunset of the student-assistance contribution tax credit from Dec. 30, 2021 to Dec. 31, 2031. Additionally, this bill provides that for taxable years on or after Dec. 31, 2021, the maximum credit should be $1,000 – rather than the current amount of $500.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois Legislative Black Caucus (ILBC) is celebrating passage of the Illinois Health Care and Human Service Reform Act, a broad-based measure addressing challenges facing Illinois families including health care access, infant and maternal mortality, mental health and substance abuse treatment, and hospital access in low-income communities.

SPRINGFIELD – Following a year of grave racial injustice and in light of continuing challenges stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) passed legislation out of the General Assembly that will improve equity in the state health care system.

“This legislation has been a long time coming. My colleagues and I have worked extremely hard to pass these measures to target the structural racism that Black Illinoisans face in various sectors, including the health care industry,” Hunter said. “These measures seek to bring an end to the disparities in our health care system that exist not just for Black people, but for other communities of color and low-income Illinoisans.”

SPRINGFIELD – A transformative plan by State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) to end health care disparities in Illinois was advanced out of the Senate Executive Committee Wednesday.

“I am happy to reintroduce the health care pillar this session, and ready for it to progress all the way,” Hunter said. “The pandemic has exacerbated the need for social equity in the health care sector, and the measures in this bill will dramatically alter the structure of our health care system for the better.”

Access to health care, hospital closures, managed care organization reform, community health worker certification, maternal and infant mortality, mental and substance abuse treatment, hospital reform, and medical implicit bias are all areas that would be remedied in the groundbreaking legislation, originally introduced during January’s session.

CHICAGO – State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) is expressing support for Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ becoming a national historical site after U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois) introduced federal legislation this week.

“I am pleased that Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ may become a national landmark,” Hunter said. “Churches were an integral part of the Civil Rights movement, and should be remembered as such.”

The Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley, and Roberts Temple National Historic Site Act would establish the church as a historic site to be managed by the U.S. National Park Service to ensure the church continues to stand and that an important part of Emmett Till’s story is preserved. This legislation has bipartisan support.

The church is remembered for hosting Emmett Till’s funeral in 1955, which was a pivotal moment for the Civil Rights Movement. Till’s public, open-casket wake was attended by thousands who saw how the 14-year-old was brutally beaten and lynched while visiting family in Mississippi earlier that year.

The call for preservation, federal recognition and National Historic Site status for Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ, as well as for sites linked to Emmett Till in Mississippi, has been spearheaded by the Till and Roberts families and various organizations.

“Earlier this year, it was decided that Emmett Till’s childhood home would become an official landmark, so this proposal is another extension of Till’s troubling legacy,’ Hunter said. “We must remember these moments in our nation’s history, so that we can heal from them accordingly.”

The text of this bill can be found here.

CHICAGO – State Senator Mattie Hunter, who represents part of Chinatown in Chicago, is outraged about the rise of violence against Asian Americans in America and released the following statement after the shooting of eight people – six who were Asian American –  in Georgia-based massage parlors last night:

“My heart is saddened by the events that transpired in Atlanta. It’s sickening that this shooting was a possible hate crime against Asian Americans.

“I send my support to the victims’ families and to any person in the Asian community that feels unsafe, including anyone in the district I represent. We have to bring an end to hate against Asian populations, and to all bigotry, no matter where it takes place.

“This type of violence and bigoted ideology must stop. Everyone deserves to feel safe in this country, and I will work to ensure that no community feels like they might be the victim of something as tragic as this.”