Employers should take heed as the number of states to enact
legislation banning discrimination based on an individual's
hair has seen a significant increase over the past year. Creating a
Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair legislation (CROWN
Act) expands the definition of race as a protected class to include
traits which have historically been associated with race, such as
hairstyle, hair texture, hair type and protective hairstyles.
Examples of protective hairstyles commonly found in individual
states' CROWN Act legislation include braids, locs, twists,
cornrows, bantu knots, afros, and headwraps.
While federal court precedent exists for finding an afro
hairstyle protected under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, other
hairstyles historically associated with race have not found similar
protection. Jenkins v. Blue Cross Mut. Hosp. Ins., Inc.,
538 F.2d 164 (7th Cir. 1976); Equal Emp. Opportunity
Comm'n v. Catastrophe Mgmt. Sols., 852 F.3d 1018 (11th
Cir.
