CROWN is an acronym for “Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair”. While employees in New Jersey are protected from race discrimination as to hairstyles in the workplace because the state passed its own version of the CROWN Act, there is yet no similar Federal protection for all workers nationwide. On December 05, 2019, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) unveiled a bill that would ban discrimination based on hair textures and hairstyles that are commonly associated with a particular race or national origin. This proposed Legislation arose following many spates of hair race discrimination with cruel consequences for the victims, sparking national outcry. A Federal CROWN Act has not yet passed both Houses of Congress, but President Joseph R. Biden has stated he will absolutely sign it if it passes both Houses. A Federal law is needed for those nationally who have been forced or feel subtly pressured to change their hair in order to appeal to Euro-centric standards as a condition to pursue economic advancement. To read a more detailed description of the Federal CROWN Act as it makes its rocky and interrupted passage through the two Houses of Congress, scroll down further within this article to *Status of Passage of Federal CROWN Act, found below.
Discrimination against natural hair is race discrimination and it is a violation of civil rights. An employer may not intend to be racist yet be disapproving of natural hairstyles in the workplace or consider them to be inappropriate. It happens every day for minority races and ethnicities across the country. Implicit and explicit biases against natural hair of minority races are deeply ingrained in business and workplace norms. Employees should not be ridiculed, harassed, or fired for beautiful hairstyles that are true to themselves and their cultural heritage. Employees of minority races and ethnicities feel may a need to conform their hairstyles to traditional Euro-centric styles and fear it could otherwise hamper promotions, etc.
If you are a worker who is experiencing discrimination, you should contact this office today for a free consultation. I accept clients from all over NJ. I have represented employees who were harassed and pushed out of jobs because of their race and was successful in recovering financial compensation for their emotional pain and suffering and moneys for lost wages, both for past lost wages and projected future lost wages.
* Status of Passage of Federal CROWN Act: 24 States, Including New Jersey, Passed a State Version of CROWN Act, Its Rocky and Interrupted Passage
As of this time, twenty-four states across the country, including New Jersey, have passed a state version of the CROWN Act which prohibits hair-based discrimination in schools and in employment in each respective state. The New Jersey CROWN Act was enacted early, despite there being no Federal CROWN Act enacted. New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed the NJ CROWN Act in December of 2019. This Act acknowledges that the elimination of race discrimination includes the elimination of discrimination based on traits inextricably intertwined with race, including a person’s hairstyle.
NJ adopted the CROWN Act and thereby amended the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD) by specifically defining race discrimination due to include discrimination based upon “traits historically associated with race, including, but not limited to, hair texture, hair type, and protective hairstyles” such as braids, locks, and twists. The proposed Federal bill and the NJ CROWN Act was a response to lawsuits where an employee was terminated or a child dismissed from school because they wore their hair exactly how it grows without conforming to Caucasian hairstyles.
As to status of passage of a Federal CROWN Act, when the CROWN Act was first introduced during the 116th Congress, it passed the House of Representatives by voice vote without objection. Senator Cory Booker introduced the bill in 2019 in the Senate, but it did not garner sufficient support from Republicans.
At the Federal level, the CROWN Act was again introduced in the 117th Congress by Rep. Watson Coleman (D-N.J.). It passed in the House in March 2022 with a vote of 235–189. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) subsequently presented it on the Senate floor, making a case for passage by unanimous consent of both Houses. However, it did not pass the Senate.
When it was reintroduced in 2021, it passed the House or Representatives once again, despite the Republican efforts to delay it. On December 14, 2022, Senate Republicans blocked passage of the CROWN Act, although it passed the House earlier that year. In both instances, Republican Senators stood in the way of the bill’s passage. Despite bipartisan, bicameral support, the CROWN Act did not garner sufficient support from enough Republican Senators to override a filibuster. The obstruction of proposed civil rights laws is part of a long tradition of weaponizing the filibuster to block civil rights legislation.
It has not been reintroduced in the 2023–2024 Congress. Although the passage of the CROWN Act has been gaining momentum among states to pass their own state statute, twenty-six states have not yet done so. Not having a Federal version of the Act will have a lesser effect on states like New Jersey that already have enacted their own state version of the CROWN Act banning discrimination in employment and schools based on hair textures and hairstyles that are commonly associated with a particular race or national origin.
A Federal CROWN Act is still needed so that no person anywhere in the US suffers such discrimination.
What You Can Do
I have successfully represented employees who were racially harassed and discriminated against and called the n-word and was successful in recovering multiple six figure moneys for them. If you are experiencing race harassment or discrimination in the workplace, you should contact this office immediately for a free consultation.
I am an aggressive and compassionate employment law attorney who is experienced in successfully representing persons who were subjected to workplace discrimination. If you think you have been retaliated against for complaining about or reporting to your employer what you believe are your employer’s illegal practices or a racially hostile work environment, it is essential for you to contact an experienced, competent and successful race discrimination attorney who will be aggressive about enforcing your rights as soon as possible.
If You Resign, You May Lose Right to Prevail in a Lawsuit
In many instances of discrimination and retaliation, if you resign, you may lose right to prevail in a lawsuit unless you first take certain legally required measures to preserve your job while you are still employed.
If you are thinking of resigning, or think you will be fired, or have been fired, you should contact this office immediately for a free consultation to discuss your options in the safest way for you.
If you are being subjected to such unlawful workplace discrimination or believe you are being pushed out of your job, contact Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law today for a free consultation. I accept discrimination and whistleblower cases from all over New Jersey and have locations in Southern, Central and Northern NJ to meet with clients.
Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law represents workers throughout the entire state, including Hackensack, Jersey City, Newark, Irvington, Orange, East Orange, Trenton, Paterson, Montclair, Elizabeth, North Brunswick, Cherry Hill, Vineland, Union, Plainfield, Hamilton Township, Lakewood, Edison, Parsippany-Troy Hills, Franklin, Lakewood, and every NJ County, including Bergen, Hudson, Middlesex, Essex, Monmouth, Somerset, Ocean, Union, Camden, Passaic, Morris, Gloucester, Atlantic, Burlington, Camden Counties.