The CROWN act, which stands for “Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair” passed in the U.S. House of Representatives on September 21, 2019. It was created in 2019 with a goal of ending race-based hairstyle discrimination in workplaces and public schools.
The CROWN coalition is an alliance of various organizations including Dove, National Urban League, Color of Change and Western Center on Law and Poverty.
The CROWN act website defines race-based hair discrimination as “the denial of employment and educational opportunities because of hair texture or protective hairstyles including braids, locs, twists or bantu knots.”
A 2019 CROWN research study found that more Black women received an appearance or grooming policy in the workplace than other women. The study also found that Black women are 1.5x more likely to be sent home from work because of their hairstyle and 80% of those surveyed resonated with the statement “I have to change my hair from its natural state to fit in at the office”.
The hashtag #hairdiscrimination on Twitter also shares stories of students being told by schools to change or remove their hairstyles.
The act was introduced in California in 2019 and signed into law. The CROWN act is now law in 7 states, including New York, Virginia and Washington.
The CROWN coalition has started a petition to lawmakers across the country to support the CROWN act. The petition currently has 216,152 signatures.
For transparency: Cara Wagner has signed the CROWN Coalition petition