For years, clients seeking professional hairstyles at Lorraine Ruley’s Island Design Natural Hair Studio in Philadelphia have confessed to her a reality: they had to take out their braids or cut their locs to secure a job or keep their position.
That era is ending after the CROWN Act was signed into law Tuesday.
The new measure amends the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act (PHRA), offering explicit legal protection to ensure Pennsylvanians can pursue opportunity and show up to work or school as their authentic selves.
The bill offers expanding protections against racial discrimination to include natural hair texture and protective hairstyles.
Pennsylvania the 28th state to ban discrimination based on hair texture and protective styles historically associated with race.
Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, signed the CROWN Act into law Wednesday at Lorraine Ruley’s Island Design Natural Hair Studio.
The bill, introduced by state Rep. La’Tasha Mayes, a Democrat from Pittsburgh, passed the General Assembly with strong bipartisan support.
The CROWN Act, which stands for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act, specifically expands the definition of “race” in the PHRA to include traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture, protective hairstyles and religious creed.
The legislation makes it illegal for employers to discriminate against applicants or employees based on natural hairstyles, including but not limited to locs, twists, coils, braids, Bantu knots, afros and extensions. Businesses may still enforce health and safety policies that apply equally to all employees, according to the governor’s office.
According to a 2022 report from the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, the state received 916 complaints related to racial discrimination involving hair texture and protective hairstyles that year.
“Real freedom means being respected for who you are — no matter what you look like, where you come from, who you love, or who you pray to,” Shapiro said. “For too long, many Pennsylvanians have faced discrimination simply for hairstyles that reflect their identity and culture — that ends today.”
Democratic Pennsylvania House Speaker Joanna McClinton, of Philadelphia, stressed the real-world impact of the new law for workers.
“They will not look at your hair and decide you can’t work here,” McClinton said. “They will not look at your hair and decide you don’t belong in this C-suite. They will not look at your hair and say, ‘you can’t be in the boardroom.’”
Mayes thanked her staff, the statewide coalition of more than 100 organizations that supported the bill, and Dr. Adjoa B. Asamoah, the ‘CROWN Act’ champion, for their efforts.
“As a child growing up in the Virgin Islands with natural hair, wearing my natural hair has been all that I know,” said Lorraine Ruley, owner of Island Design Natural Hair Studio. “But as I opened my salon and spoke to different clients, clients that wear braids are telling me, ‘Lorraine, I have to take these braids out. I have a job interview,’ or ‘Lorraine, I have to cut my locs down because my job says they’re too long.’ The experience has been really heartbreaking… so, the CROWN Act is very important to me.”
“Too many black adults have been passed over for promotions, had offers of employment rescinded, and even been fired for showing up authentically,” Asamoah said.
In speaking, Asamoah said that the necessity to conform can lead to health risks from chemical relaxers.
Advertisement
Meet Your Canna Coach: Personalized Guidance, Free for You!
Leave a Comment