CROWN Act praises efforts of Louisiana, Maine and Alaska to make race-based hair discrimination illegal

Black Women

Jun 8

Credit: Getty/Illustration: EEW Magazine Online

By EEW Magazine Online

The CROWN Act, which exists to bring an end to natural hair discrimination, is gaining traction.

This is why the CROWN Coalition, a national alliance founded by Dove, National Urban League, Western Center on Law & Poverty and Color Of Change – along with 90+ members of the CROWN Coalition – is celebrating a few new champions of the cause.

While Maine governor, Janet Mills, and Tennessee governor, Bill Lee, have both officially signed the CROWN Act into law, most recently, Louisiana, Illinois and Alaska have passed legislation to make hair discrimination illegal in their states.

As it stands now, they are awaiting their governors’ signatures.

Positive strides such as these signify more widespread acceptance of Black hair after years of being unjustly regulated in schools and the workplace.

CROWN— which stands for “Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair”— is a “grassroots movement that continues to grow,” said Esi Eggleston Bracey, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Unilever which owns 400 brands, including Dove, among the most vocal advocates of the CROWN Act.

"We applaud all the great work done in Maine and Tennessee to make the CROWN Act law,” said Bracey.

Louisiana State Representative, Candace Newell, who introduced House Bill 1083, inspired by the CROWN Act to protect Black men, women and children in the workplace and schools from hair discrimination, is also receiving high praise.

In a statement obtained by EEW Magazine Online, Newell said she is “proud” to champion “the first CROWN Act inspired legislation to pass a state legislature in the Deep South.”

“Discrimination based on hair texture, natural hairstyles, and protective hairstyles is deeply rooted in the belief that straight hair is 'more professional.' This is a win for the people of Louisiana but specifically for Black and Brown individuals who have been historically marginalized based off their hair for generations,” said Newell.

On March 18, 2022, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the CROWN Act which would ban race-based hair discrimination at work, federal programs, and public accommodations.

It has not been voted on in the U.S. Senate.

But The CROWN Coalition is undeterred from its mission of progressing the CROWN Act until hair discrimination is illegal in all 50 states and at the federal level.

Since its founding, Dove has conducted several key research studies showing that Black women are 1.5 times more likely to be sent home from the workplace because of their hair. 80 percent of Black women are more likely to report that they must change their hair from its natural state to fit in at an office.

At school, 86 percent of Black students said that they experienced discrimination based on their natural hair by the age of 12. At majority-white schools, the micro-aggressions for non-white students can begin early and impact a child's – then teenager's – mental health and school performance.

The CROWN Act, driven by a team of Black leaders working with a village of women who share a desire to end discrimination, has galvanized support from federal and state legislators.

If you desire to support the movement to #PASSTHECROWN and end race-based hair discrimination in the U.S., sign the petition and email your Senator: www.dove.com/crown.

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