The CROWN Act is a law that bans discrimination based on hair texture and protective hairstyles associated with race, treating those traits as part of race itself under civil rights statutes. As of 2025, 28 states and Washington, D.C. have adopted some version of it, but no federal version has been signed into law. Where you live determines whether your natural hair is explicitly protected at work or in school.
What the Law Actually Does
Before these laws, courts often drew a line between traits you’re born with, like skin color, and traits treated as choices, like how you wear your hair. That distinction let employers and schools enforce grooming policies that penalized Black employees and students without technically violating anti-discrimination law. The CROWN Act closes that gap by expanding the legal definition of “race” to include hair texture and the styles most commonly tied to Black identity.
The federal bill, H.R. 2116, named the textures and styles that qualify: tightly coiled or tightly curled hair, locs, cornrows, twists, braids, Bantu knots, and Afros.1GovInfo. Text of H.R. 2116, the CROWN Act of 2022 State laws generally track the same list, with wording that varies by jurisdiction.
The problem the law targets is real. Chastity Jones lost a job offer from Catastrophe Management Solutions in Alabama after she refused to cut her locs; an HR manager told her the company couldn’t hire her “with the dreadlocks” because “they tend to get messy.” The Eleventh Circuit dismissed the EEOC’s case in 2016, ruling that Title VII protects immutable characteristics like skin color but not hairstyles, even when culturally tied to race.2Justia Law. EEOC v. Catastrophe Mgmt. Solutions, No. 14-13482 (11th Cir. 2016) Students have faced the same treatment: a New Jersey high school wrestler was told to cut his locs on the mat or forfeit his match in 2018, and a Texas 17-year-old, Darryl George, spent weeks in in-school suspension starting in 2023 because his loc’d hair was deemed too long under his district’s dress code.
Where the CROWN Act Applies
California signed the first CROWN Act in 2019 after State Senator Holly Mitchell introduced it as an amendment to the state’s Fair Employment and Housing Act and Education Code. Since then, 28 states have followed with their own versions, along with Washington, D.C. and dozens of local ordinances that cover cities and counties in states where the legislature has not acted.
Most state versions cover employment and education. An employer cannot refuse to hire, discipline, or fire you for wearing a protected hairstyle, and a school cannot suspend, expel, or otherwise punish a student for one. Some states reach further. Illinois extended its protections to housing, financial transactions, and public accommodations. The federal bill, if it passes, would cover federally assisted programs, housing, public accommodations, and employment nationwide.1GovInfo. Text of H.R. 2116, the CROWN Act of 2022
Approaches vary. Most states amended existing civil rights or fair employment statutes; a few adopted standalone laws. The scope, covered settings, and enforcement mechanisms differ, so checking your own state’s law is worth the effort.
Federal Status
The U.S. House has passed the CROWN Act twice: first by voice vote in the 116th Congress, then again in 2022 during the 117th. Both times it stalled in the Senate.3Watson Coleman House. Senate Republicans Block Passage of CROWN Act The most recent version, the CROWN Act of 2025 (H.R. 1638), was introduced in February 2025 and remains in the early legislative stages.4Congress.gov. H.R.1638 – 119th Congress (2025-2026): CROWN Act of 2025
If You’re in a State Without a CROWN Act
Your protection turns on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and federal courts have read it narrowly. The EEOC’s guidance says Title VII covers “cultural characteristics often linked to race or ethnicity,” including grooming practices, and prohibits banning natural Afros that comply with otherwise neutral grooming rules.5U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Section 15 Race and Color Discrimination But for braids, cornrows, and locs, courts have been less receptive. In the Catastrophe Management Solutions case, the Eleventh Circuit rejected the EEOC’s broader reading and held that hairstyles are mutable characteristics not protected by Title VII’s disparate treatment framework, noting that “every court to have considered the issue has rejected the argument that Title VII protects hairstyles culturally associated with race.”2Justia Law. EEOC v. Catastrophe Mgmt. Solutions, No. 14-13482 (11th Cir. 2016) A disparate impact challenge is still possible, but the path is harder and the outcome less certain.
What Counts as Hair Discrimination
The law targets policies that read as neutral on the surface but land hardest on Black employees and students. A blanket ban on “unprofessional” hairstyles that captures locs or Afros qualifies. So does a dress code that limits hair length in a way that effectively singles out natural Black hair. Not every grooming policy is discriminatory. The point is that a policy cannot use subjective terms like “neat” or “professional” as a pretext for prohibiting hairstyles rooted in racial identity.
Safety Exceptions
The CROWN Act does not override legitimate safety requirements. If your job involves operating machinery with moving parts, working in food preparation, or handling hazardous materials, your employer can still require you to restrain or cover your hair. The FDA Food Code, for instance, requires food employees to wear hair restraints such as hats, hair coverings, or nets to keep hair away from food and equipment.6U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA Food Code 2022 That rule applies to everyone the same way.
The distinction is between requiring hair containment for safety and banning a hairstyle outright. An employer can say all hair must be secured under a net while operating certain equipment. An employer cannot say locs are prohibited and call it a safety policy. Many CROWN Act statutes allow hair-related workplace rules only when all of the following apply:
- A genuine health or safety hazard would exist without the rule.
- The rule was adopted for reasons unrelated to race.
- The rule is tied to the specific position or activity, not imposed as a blanket policy.
- The rule applies equally to everyone in similar roles.
If an employer claims a safety exception, the burden is on them. A vague appeal to “professional image” or “customer preference” does not qualify.
How to File a Complaint
If you believe you’ve been discriminated against because of your hair, you file a charge with the EEOC. The deadline is 180 calendar days from the discriminatory act, extended to 300 days if your state or local government has an anti-discrimination agency covering hair-based discrimination.7U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Time Limits For Filing A Charge In states with a CROWN Act, a state fair employment agency almost always exists, so the 300-day window usually applies. For ongoing harassment, the clock runs from the most recent incident.
Filing starts through the EEOC’s online Public Portal. You submit an inquiry, complete an intake interview, and then file the formal charge.8U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Filing A Charge of Discrimination If you file with a state or local agency, the charge is dual-filed automatically, so a separate EEOC submission isn’t required.
After the investigation, the EEOC issues a Notice of Right to Sue. You can also request the notice yourself once 180 days have passed since filing; the EEOC is required to grant it at that point. Once you have the notice, you have 90 days to file a lawsuit in federal or state court.9U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Filing a Lawsuit Miss that 90-day window and you lose the right to sue on that charge. That deadline is where claims most commonly die.
Federal employees follow a different process: contact an EEO Counselor at your agency within 45 days of the incident, and if counseling doesn’t resolve it, file a formal complaint with your agency’s EEO office within 15 days of receiving the counselor’s notice.10U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Overview Of Federal Sector EEO Complaint Process
What You Can Recover
If you prevail, remedies fall into two categories: equitable relief and money damages. A court or the EEOC can order reinstatement, hiring, or promotion to put you where you would have been without the discrimination. When returning to the workplace isn’t practical, front pay can compensate for future lost earnings instead.11U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Chapter 11 REMEDIES Back pay covers lost wages and benefits going back up to two years before you filed, including overtime, leave, health insurance contributions, and retirement.
For intentional discrimination under Title VII, you can also recover compensatory damages (for emotional distress and other non-economic harm) and punitive damages. Federal law caps the combined total based on employer size:12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S. Code 1981a – Damages in Cases of Intentional Discrimination in Employment
- 15 to 100 employees: $50,000
- 101 to 200 employees: $100,000
- 201 to 500 employees: $200,000
- More than 500 employees: $300,000
These caps have not been adjusted since 1991. Back pay and front pay are not subject to them. Attorney’s fees and litigation costs are recoverable separately, and a prevailing complainant is presumptively entitled to them, which is what makes it viable for attorneys to take these cases on contingency.11U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Chapter 11 REMEDIES
State CROWN Acts may offer different or additional remedies. Some states do not impose the same damage caps federal law does, which can make a state-law claim more valuable depending on the facts. If your state has a CROWN Act, filing under state law alongside or instead of a federal claim is worth talking through with an employment attorney.