Florida Senator Shevrin Jones (D-Miami Gardens) and House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell (D-Tampa) have refiled the “Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act,” legislation that seeks to ban discrimination based on hair texture and protective styles.
Filed as SB 252 and HB 235, the CROWN Act would make it unlawful to discriminate against people for wearing natural hairstyles such as braids, locs, twists, or bantu knots.
If passed, Florida would join 25 other states that have already enacted similar protections. The legislation aims to address long-standing biases that have disproportionately affected Black and Brown people, particularly women of color, in workplaces and schools.
“Black and brown people, especially women of color, encounter hair discrimination at work, school, and throughout their daily lives. Stemming from a long history of bias, this leads to systemic disadvantages in employment and education opportunities,” said Senator Jones in a press release. “The CROWN Act is a critical protection that’s needed here in Florida given these very tangible real-world consequences.”
Leader Driskell added that the bill also protects students who have faced punishment for wearing natural hairstyles.
“Our children should be able to focus on learning in school, not worry about being punished for how they wear their natural hair,” she said in a press statement.
This session, Driskell is partnering with Tampa-based nonprofit Black Girls Govern to help mobilize youth advocates through the CROWN Act Fellows program and encourage local businesses to support the bill.
This is a Hy-Lo News Staff Report.
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