Understanding The CROWN Act: What Is It? And What Will It Achieve?

We’re equal before the law, right? That’s the idea. So how do we operate in workplaces and other social environments when the norms for one group have little relevance to another? Worse: when those norms are a subtle form of bias and discrimination. Enter the CROWN Act. A new law designed to stop unlawful discrimination against different hair textures and styles.

Most Americans understand the implicit “norms” around hairstyles. It’s long been a bone of contention for many Black Americans at work. Because of the differences in hair texture, Black hair is subjected to unjust policing in offices and workspaces. Workplace grooming policies and dress codes can prohibit locks, braids, twists, afros, Bantu knots, and natural Black hair. Despite a rich cultural history of these hairstyles from different cultures around the world.

What is the CROWN Act?

The CROWN Act (“Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair”) aims to eliminate the subtle and explicit forms of bias against traditional Black and African American hairstyles. Especially for women and girls.

The discrimination shows up in unfair rules and policies. Subjective and biased beliefs about “professionalism” or “neat” hairstyles lead to penalties for Black people who wear more natural and traditional styles. The “norm” is often based on white standards of beauty, like straight hair. The bill’s proponents argued this is strongly biased against other hair textures. It has forced Black employees to feel they need to straighten or minimize or hide their culture.

What does the CROWN Act include?

Under the bill, race-based discrimination based on hairstyles would be illegal. Certain protective hairstyles would be immune from work-based dress codes. For the first time, Black people can wear their hair with pride without worrying about what the workplace will dictate.

The name wasn’t chosen idly. As Olivia Hancock wrote for Byrdie: “Our hair is our crown, and the celebration of it as such is deeply woven into our ancestral history.”

Who has passed the Act?

California was the first state to outlaw racial discrimination based on protective hairstyles in 2019 under bill SB188. It was followed by New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Colorado, Washington, Maryland, Connecticut, New Mexico, Delaware, Nebraska, Nevada, Illinois, and Oregon.

The law states:

In a society in which hair has historically been one of many determining factors of a person’s race and whether they were a second-class citizen, hair today remains a proxy for race.

Therefore, hair discrimination targeting hairstyles associated with race is racial discrimination.

The bill is expected to go further. It’s already passed the US House and needs to be approved by the US Senate before arriving on President Joe Biden’s desk for the final signature to apply across all US states and territories.

Hair discrimination: What’s the background?

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 explicitly prohibits discrimination based on race. Hairstyles like braids, locks, and twists are still subject to biased rules.

A Texas teenager was barred from attending high school after a policy banning braided or twisted hair was implemented. The policy stated: “braided hair or cornrows will not be allowed.” The 17-year-old, Dyree Williams, had worn locks all his life. Suddenly his beloved hair was prohibited.

These cases aren’t isolated. They aren’t rare.

According to a 2021 study by Dove CROWN Research for Girls:

53% of Black mothers whose daughters experience hair discrimination say their daughters first experience it as early as five years old.
Nearly 100% of Black elementary school girls in majority-white schools who report hair discrimination experience it by age 10.
Black women were 1.5 times more likely to have been sent home (or know of a Black woman sent home) from the workplace because of her hair.

The discrimination and microaggressions have had a devastating effect on young Black girls’ self-image. 81% of Black girls in majority-white schools say they sometimes wish their hair was straight. 90% of Black girls believe their hair is beautiful. The microaggressions and discrimination they endure shape how they see themselves.

Final thoughts

For all the Black men, women, and children struggling with hair discrimination: change is finally here. In some ways, the CROWN Act is a law that should never have had to be written. Legislation like the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Fair Employment and Housing Act already prevent racial discrimination at work. These discriminatory practices should never have been allowed.

With the new act moving through the Federal government, natural hair discrimination should be history.

Shorter POST #2: Four Microaggressions Against Natural Hair

Most Americans are aware of the implicit norms around hairstyles at work. It’s long been a bone of contention for many Black Americans. The different texture of Black hair causes it to be unjustly policed in offices, especially for employees with natural hair. When you’re not subject to that discrimination, it’s hard to picture. Surely, you think, this can’t really be happening. Wouldn’t someone say something?

You’d be surprised.

It’s not just discriminatory policies. It’s also the behavior of colleagues and strangers that makes natural Black hairstyles feel like a burden. Black co-workers feel uncomfortable. They don’t feel like they belong.

Four common microaggressions against people with natural hair:

Unwanted petting. Asking to touch someone’s hair is weird. Not even asking and just walking up and starting to touch it is worse. Yet well-meaning people ask Black men and women if they can touch their hair so they can “feel it” or take pictures. Never treat someone as a curiosity. It’s rude. It’s discriminatory.

Passive-aggressive comments. “Wow. Don’t you get fed up with all that hair? It’s kind of wild!” isn’t empathy. It’s a microaggression. Keep your thoughts to yourself. No one wants unsolicited comments on their appearance or their culture.

Not appreciating difference. We can all be ignorant. Supporting policies that penalize Black hairstyles is more than ignorance. It’s a purposeful effort to set beauty norms and professional standards that exclude and divide. Especially people with natural hair.

Compliments, not questions. Genuine compliments are always welcome. Constant questioning or jokes about changing hairstyles or stereotypes have no place at work. Black hair can look many different ways. Short. Blonde. Red. Whatever it looks like, hair does not define a person’s value.