September 3rd 2023.
On September 1, the state of Texas enacted the Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act. The new law provides strong protection against discrimination in the workplace and public schools based on natural hairstyles like Afros, braids, twists, and locs.
Texas State Representative Rhetta Andrews Bowers, D-Rowlett, has been advocating for the CROWN Act for years. During the 2023 legislative session, the Act finally passed with “overwhelming bipartisan support”. Bowers had to educate her fellow lawmakers about the gravity of hair-based microaggressions and discrimination. She even shared her own experience, when a white male colleague asked to touch her hair on the House floor.
“He’s asking me, ‘Can I touch your hair?’ and I’m thinking, ‘That is really not going to be a good thing to do because we are right here; you do not want to touch my hair,’” Bowers recalled. “And he laughed, and that was the other thing — some of it, to some people, was a joke, and I had to make them understand that it was about more than hair, that it was about acceptance, really.”
The CROWN Act will be a positive force for many affected people, according to Bowers. Children will no longer be kept from instruction because of their hair, nor will people be held back from promotion.
LaToya Gadson, who is currently transitioning away from relaxers to natural hair, is grateful for the new law. “I think it’s crazy because, of course, it’s hair that we were born with, right? And the norm is having straight hair,” Gadson expressed. “And now, it’s embracing … this is who I am.”
Her stylist, Aliyah Hale, understands the significance of the Act. “For me, it’s providing ease to Black women in particular. Because, for us, I feel like everything is hard,” Hale said. “It’s a time saver, it’s convenient, it makes people feel more confident and beautiful.”
The CROWN Act is an important step towards providing equity and acceptance in Texas, and beyond. By making it illegal to discriminate against people based on their hair, the Act empowers individuals to embrace their natural beauty and cultural identity.
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