The Crown Act

The Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act (or C.R.O.W.N. Act) is a law that prohibits race-based hair discrimination, which is the denial of employment and/or educational opportunities because of hair texture or protective hairstyles including braids, locs, twists, or bantu knots. It was first introduced in California in January 2019 and signed into California law later that summer. Since then, this legislation has galvanized support from both state and federal legislators in the movement to end hair discrimination in the United States.

Research conducted by Dove and the CROWN Coalition reveals that racial discrimination based on hair can start as early as five years old. In 2021, the CROWN Research Study for Girls found that 66% of Black children in majority-white schools have faced race-based hair discrimination. This discrimination can look like harmful school policies and dress codes that ostracize students with certain styles or completely ban styles outright By banning protective styles like braids, locs, and bantu knots of all different lengths, these policies are basically forcing Black children to manipulate their hair from its natural state or face punishment

Racial discrimination against hairstyles has real, measurable social and economic impacts on Black people and especially on Black women This type of discrimination disproportionally affects the frequency of upward mobility opportunities Black women are afforded in education and in the workplace. The statistics are staggering and unacceptable.

How To Get Involved

In the US, the laws in many states do not currently afford protection to folks for racebased hair discrimination even if the hairstyle is inherent to a racial identity The CROWN Coalition has sponsored The Crown Act (SB 188) and it has been passed into law in 19 states It's not enough And the time to act is now!

Visit thecrownact.com to sign the petition to urge federal legislators to sign The Crown Act into national law After being passed by the House of Representatives just last year, the bill was blocked by a senator from Kentucky and so will need to be reintroduced into the 2023 legislative session You can also email your federal legislators directly from the website using a template the site provides - easy!

You or your organization can also join the CROWN Coalition itself! This is an alliance of advocacy and non-governmental organizations, including founding members like Dove, National Urban League, Color of Change, and Western Center on Law & Poverty, who are dedicated to the advancement of anti-hair discrimination legislation With the help of a diverse array of individuals and organizations in the social justice, business, legal, and education sectors, the CROWN Coalition has successfully elevated the public narrative around this important issue and inspired a growing movement to end hair bias and discrimination forever!

Share on social media using the official hashtag "#passthecrown" to spread the word about the long-lasting effects of hair discrimination and how we can all work together to end it