Have
you
heard
of
the
CROWN
Act?
No,
it
isn’t
a
popular
TV
streaming
series
about
Queen
Elizabeth
II.
The
CROWN
Act
is
a
new
antidiscrimination
law
sweeping
the
nation,
and
it
could
be
coming
to
a
legislature
near
you
soon.
What
Sparked
Movement
To
Protect
Race-Based
Hairstyles
The
Creating
a
Respectful
and
Open
World
for
Natural
Hair
Act,
or
CROWN
Act,
is
part
of
a
national
coalition
aimed
at
securing
protections
for
race-based
hairstyles
in
workplaces
and
public
schools.
The
Act
extends
current
discrimination
laws
to
protect
hair
texture
and
protective
styles,
such
as
braids,
locks,
twists,
and
knots.
Under
the
statute,
an
employer
can’t
discriminate
against
individuals
because
they
have
a
natural
hair
texture
or
choose
to
wear
their
hair
in
braids
or
dreadlocks.
The
CROWN
Act
grew
out
of
a
research
study
that
revealed
black
women
are
80
percent
more
likely
to
be
sent
home
from
work
because
of
their
hairstyle
and
1.5
times
more
likely
than
white
women
to
report
they
had
to
change
their
hairstyle
to
fit
in
at
the
workplace.
Also,
some
courts
have
found
employees
discriminated
against
because
of
their
hairstyles—even
styles
primarily
associated
with
a
certain
race—aren’t
protected
under
Title
VII
of
the
Civil
Rights
Act
of
1964.
In
a
2016
case,
for
example,
the
U.S.
11th
Circuit
Court
of
Appeals
concluded,
“Title
VII
protects
persons
in
covered
categories
with
respect
to
their
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