Democrats reintroduce CROWN Act to ban hair discrimination
Democrats have reintroduced federal legislation to ban hair discrimination.
Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.) reintroduced the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act, or CROWN Act, on Tuesday.
The legislation institutes federal protections against discrimination of natural hairstyles, such as curly and kinky hair, as well as protective styles like Bantu knots, locs and twists.
“There are women, there are girls, there are boys and there are men who have been treated negatively, either in job situations or school situations or even beyond, simply because of the way they wear their hair,” Watson Coleman told The Hill.
She continued, “People assume that they're less than, that they’re unprofessional, that they're not, not clean and tidy and things of that nature, and they use the texture of the hair or the style of the hair to make impressions and decisions as to whether or not to entertain an interview with them, whether or not they could stay in school that day, whether or not they can receive a promotion, or whether or not they can even represent their companies, simply because the way they wear their hair.”
Concerns around hair discrimination have increased in the last several years, particularly as high-profile cases have made headlines.
One of the most recent incidents in Texas involved an 18-year-old student who served several months of in-school suspension for his locs, a type of protective hairstyle. That student, Darryl George, won the support of advocates around the nation, and the Congressional Black Caucus invited him to former President Biden’s State of the Union in 2024.
A similar incident occurred in 2020, when two Texas students of Black and Trinidadian descent were assigned to in-school suspension and excluded from extracurricular activities and graduation for refusing to cut their locs, which they had been growing for years in homage to their heritage.
But disciplining students or employees over their hair “just doesn't make any sense,” said Watson Coleman.
“It is not connected to whether or not you have the ability to do the job or to get the education or to do whatever it is that you're being asked to do,” she said. “So it's an affront to everyone. It's an extension of what we saw in the Civil Rights Movement that dealt with the color of your skin. It's just an extension of that, and it's 2025. … We need to have a national standard, because people are treated differentially depending upon where they are.”
Though multiple states have a CROWN Act, the federal legislation has failed to pass.
The House passed the CROWN Act in 2022, but it stalled in the Senate. This time, Watson Coleman has the support of Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), and she hopes that can push the legislation forward in the upper chamber.
“This is not controversial legislation. This is very simplistic,” Watson Coleman said. “Wearing Bantu knots and curly cues and other kinds of hairstyles that are typically found associated with Africans and African Americans, that's nothing other than an expression of how you see yourself. There's no disrespect intended.”
But Watson Coleman admits she’s unsure if the House will pass the act this time around, as Republicans have set their sights on ending any legislation and programs related to diversity, equity and inclusion.
“I am worried about Republicans on every level. I have seen Republicans remove some of the most brilliant people who happen to be women, who happen to be minorities, and replace them with the most mediocre people,” Watson Coleman said.
“This House right now is very dysfunctional, evil and crazy,” she said. “So I don't know what to expect from them, but if they had any sense, they'd let some of the easier things go through so they don't look like they’re against everything.”
Watson Coleman added that if exceptions are made for individuals to change the color of their hair and continue to be allowed in class or at work, then that same acceptance should be shown for the texture of an individual’s hair.
“I know that this is a very difficult time, because I know that white supremacy has really reared its ugly head in a way that is hard for people to embrace and to respond to,” she said. “But at the end of the day, this is the government of, by and for the people, and collectively, we are more powerful than those who choose to be racist and misogynistic and Islamophobic.”
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