I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 8191 

To prohibit discrimination based on an individual’s texture or style of hair. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 30, 2024 

Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN (for herself, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. OMAR, Ms. LEE

of California, Mr. FROST, Ms. LEE of Pennsylvania, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mr. 

JOHNSON of Georgia, Ms. NORTON, Mr. VEASEY, Ms. BROWN, Ms. JACOBS, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mrs. BEATTY, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, Mr. 

BOWMAN, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. MCGARVEY, Mr. MFUME, Mr. JACKSON

of Illinois, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Ms. KAMLAGER-DOVE, Mr. DAVIS of 

North Carolina, Mrs. HAYES, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. GOLDMAN

of New York, Mr. DOGGETT, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Ms. CROCKETT, Ms. 

ADAMS, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Ms. STEVENS, Mr. 

CLEAVER, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. COHEN, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. 

VELA ́ZQUEZ, Mr. TONKO, Mr. ALLRED, Mrs. RAMIREZ, Ms. ESCOBAR, 

Mrs. MCBATH, Mr. EVANS, Ms. STRICKLAND, Mr. SMITH of Washington, 

Ms. UNDERWOOD, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. PETERS, 

Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. HORSFORD, Mr. TRONE, Mr. GARCI ́A of Illinois, Mr. MULLIN, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of California, Mr. 

LANDSMAN, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. POCAN, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Ms. 

GARCIA of Texas, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Ms. MCCLELLAN, Mrs. 

CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK, Ms. WATERS, Ms. SEWELL, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mrs. FOUSHEE, Mr. CARTER of Louisiana, Mr. NEGUSE, Mr. IVEY, 

Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Ms. PLASKETT, Mr. AMO, Mr. CARSON, Mrs. 

SYKES, Ms. BUSH, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. JEFFRIES, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, 

Mr. TORRES of New York, Mr. CLYBURN, and Mr. MEEKS) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, 

and in addition to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, for 

a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 


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A BILL 

To prohibit discrimination based on an individual’s texture 

or style of hair. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Creating a Respectful 

5 and Open World for Natural Hair Act of 2024’’ or the 

6 ‘‘CROWN Act of 2024’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS; PURPOSE. 

8 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

9 (1) Throughout United States history, society 

10 has used (in conjunction with skin color) hair tex11 ture and hairstyle to classify individuals on the basis 

12 of race. 

13 (2) Like one’s skin color, one’s hair has served 

14 as a basis of race and national origin discrimination. 

15 (3) Racial and national origin discrimination 

16 can and do occur because of longstanding racial and 

17 national origin biases and stereotypes associated 

18 with hair texture and style. 

19 (4) For example, people of African descent have 

20 been deprived of educational and employment oppor21 tunities because they are adorned with natural or 

22 protective hairstyles in which hair is tightly coiled or 


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1 tightly curled, or worn in locs, cornrows, twists, 

2 braids, Bantu knots, or Afros. 

3 (5) Racial and national origin discrimination is 

4 reflected in school and workplace policies and prac5 tices that bar natural or protective hairstyles com6 monly worn by people of African descent. 

7 (6) For example, as recently as 2018, the 

8 United States Armed Forces had grooming policies 

9 that barred natural or protective hairstyles that 

10 servicewomen of African descent commonly wear and 

11 that described these hairstyles as ‘‘unkempt’’. 

12 (7) In 2018, the United States Armed Forces 

13 rescinded these policies and recognized that this de14 scription perpetuated derogatory racial stereotypes. 

15 (8) The United States Armed Forces also rec16 ognized that prohibitions against natural or protec17 tive hairstyles that African-American servicewomen 

18 are commonly adorned with are racially discrimina19 tory and bear no relationship to African-American 

20 servicewomen’s occupational qualifications and their 

21 ability to serve and protect the Nation. 

22 (9) Some Federal courts have narrowly inter23 preted the protections against discrimination on the 

24 basis of race or national origin found in existing 

25 Federal civil rights laws, including provisions of the 


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1 Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a et seq.), 

2 section 1977 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 

3 1981), and the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 

4 et seq.), thereby permitting, for example, employers 

5 to discriminate against people of African descent 

6 who wear natural or protective hairstyles, even 

7 though the employment policies involved are not re8 lated to workers’ ability to perform their jobs. 

9 (10) Applying these narrow interpretations has 

10 resulted in a lack of Federal civil rights protection 

11 for individuals who are discriminated against on the 

12 basis of characteristics that are commonly associated 

13 with race and national origin. 

14 (11) Starting in 2019, State legislatures and 

15 municipal bodies throughout the United States have 

16 introduced and passed legislation that rejects certain 

17 Federal courts’ restrictive interpretation of race and 

18 national origin, and expressly classifies race and na19 tional origin discrimination as inclusive of discrimi20 nation on the basis of natural or protective hair21 styles commonly associated with race and national 

22 origin. 

23 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con24 gress that— 


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1 (1) the Federal Government should acknowl2 edge that individuals who have hair texture or wear 

3 a hairstyle that is historically and contemporarily as4 sociated with African Americans or persons of Afri5 can descent have suffered harmful discrimination in 

6 schools, workplaces, and other contexts based upon 

7 longstanding race and national origin stereotypes 

8 and biases; 

9 (2) a clear and comprehensive law should ad10 dress the deprivation of educational, employment, 

11 and other opportunities on the basis of hair texture 

12 and hairstyle that are commonly associated with 

13 race or national origin; 

14 (3) clear, consistent, and enforceable legal 

15 standards must be provided to redress the wide16 spread incidences of race and national origin dis17 crimination based upon hair texture and hairstyle in 

18 schools, workplaces, housing, federally funded insti19 tutions, and other contexts; 

20 (4) it is necessary to prevent educational, em21 ployment, and other decisions, practices, and policies 

22 generated by or reflecting negative biases and 

23 stereotypes related to race or national origin; 

24 (5) the Federal Government must play a key 

25 role in enforcing Federal civil rights laws in a way 


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1 that secures equal educational, employment, and 

2 other opportunities for all individuals regardless of 

3 their race or national origin; 

4 (6) the Federal Government must play a central 

5 role in enforcing the standards established under 

6 this Act on behalf of individuals who suffer race or 

7 national origin discrimination based upon hair tex8 ture and hairstyle; 

9 (7) it is necessary to prohibit and provide rem10 edies for the harms suffered as a result of race or 

11 national origin discrimination on the basis of hair 

12 texture and hairstyle; and 

13 (8) it is necessary to mandate that school, 

14 workplace, and other applicable standards be applied 

15 in a nondiscriminatory manner and to explicitly pro16 hibit the adoption or implementation of grooming re17 quirements that disproportionately impact people of 

18 African descent. 

19 (c) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to institute 

20 definitions of race and national origin for Federal civil 

21 rights laws that effectuate the comprehensive scope of pro22 tection Congress intended to be afforded by such laws and 

23 Congress’ objective to eliminate race and national origin 

24 discrimination in the United States. 


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1 SEC. 3. FEDERALLY ASSISTED PROGRAMS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—No individual in the United 

3 States shall be excluded from participation in, be denied 

4 the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under, 

5 any program or activity receiving Federal financial assist6 ance, based on the individual’s hair texture or hairstyle, 

7 if that hair texture or that hairstyle is commonly associ8 ated with a particular race or national origin (including 

9 a hairstyle in which hair is tightly coiled or tightly curled, 

10 locs, cornrows, twists, braids, Bantu knots, and Afros). 

11 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en12 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ13 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 

14 incorporated in title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 

15 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), and as if a violation of sub16 section (a) was treated as if it was a violation of section 

17 601 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 2000d). 

18 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

19 (1) the term ‘‘program or activity’’ has the 

20 meaning given the term in section 606 of the Civil 

21 Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d–4a); and 

22 (2) the terms ‘‘race’’ and ‘‘national origin’’ 

23 mean, respectively, ‘‘race’’ within the meaning of the 

24 term in section 601 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 2000d) 

25 and ‘‘national origin’’ within the meaning of the 

26 term in that section 601. 


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1 SEC. 4. HOUSING PROGRAMS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—No person in the United States 

3 shall be subjected to a discriminatory housing practice 

4 based on the person’s hair texture or hairstyle, if that hair 

5 texture or that hairstyle is commonly associated with a 

6 particular race or national origin (including a hairstyle in 

7 which hair is tightly coiled or tightly curled, locs, corn8 rows, twists, braids, Bantu knots, and Afros). 

9 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en10 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ11 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 

12 incorporated in the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 

13 et seq.), and as if a violation of subsection (a) was treated 

14 as if it was a discriminatory housing practice. 

15 (c) DEFINITION.—In this section— 

16 (1) the terms ‘‘discriminatory housing practice’’ 

17 and ‘‘person’’ have the meanings given the terms in 

18 section 802 of the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 

19 3602); and 

20 (2) the terms ‘‘race’’ and ‘‘national origin’’ 

21 mean, respectively, ‘‘race’’ within the meaning of the 

22 term in section 804 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 3604) 

23 and ‘‘national origin’’ within the meaning of the 

24 term in that section 804. 


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1 SEC. 5. PUBLIC ACCOMMODATIONS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—No person in the United States 

3 shall be subjected to a practice prohibited under section 

4 201, 202, or 203 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 

5 U.S.C. 2000a et seq.), based on the person’s hair texture 

6 or hairstyle, if that hair texture or that hairstyle is com7 monly associated with a particular race or national origin 

8 (including a hairstyle in which hair is tightly coiled or 

9 tightly curled, locs, cornrows, twists, braids, Bantu knots, 

10 and Afros). 

11 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en12 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ13 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 

14 incorporated in title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 

15 and as if a violation of subsection (a) was treated as if 

16 it was a violation of section 201, 202, or 203, as appro17 priate, of such Act. 

18 (c) DEFINITION.—In this section, the terms ‘‘race’’ 

19 and ‘‘national origin’’ mean, respectively, ‘‘race’’ within 

20 the meaning of the term in section 201 of that Act (42 

21 U.S.C. 2000a) and ‘‘national origin’’ within the meaning 

22 of the term in that section 201. 

23 SEC. 6. EMPLOYMENT. 

24 (a) PROHIBITION.—It shall be an unlawful employ25 ment practice for an employer, employment agency, labor 

26 organization, or joint labor-management committee conVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:54 May 29, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8191.IH H8191

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1 trolling apprenticeship or other training or retraining (in2 cluding on-the-job training programs) to fail or refuse to 

3 hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to dis4 criminate against an individual, based on the individual’s 

5 hair texture or hairstyle, if that hair texture or that hair6 style is commonly associated with a particular race or na7 tional origin (including a hairstyle in which hair is tightly 

8 coiled or tightly curled, locs, cornrows, twists, braids, 

9 Bantu knots, and Afros). 

10 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en11 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ12 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 

13 incorporated in title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 

14 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.), and as if a violation of sub15 section (a) was treated as if it was a violation of section 

16 703 or 704, as appropriate, of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

17 2000e–2, 2000e–3). 

18 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section the terms ‘‘per19 son’’, ‘‘race’’, and ‘‘national origin’’ have the meanings 

20 given the terms in section 701 of the Civil Rights Act of 

21 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e). 

22 SEC. 7. EQUAL RIGHTS UNDER THE LAW. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—No person in the United States 

24 shall be subjected to a practice prohibited under section 

25 1977 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981), based on 


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1 the person’s hair texture or hairstyle, if that hair texture 

2 or that hairstyle is commonly associated with a particular 

3 race or national origin (including a hairstyle in which hair 

4 is tightly coiled or tightly curled, locs, cornrows, twists, 

5 braids, Bantu knots, and Afros). 

6 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en7 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ8 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 

9 incorporated in section 1977 of the Revised Statutes, and 

10 as if a violation of subsection (a) was treated as if it was 

11 a violation of that section 1977. 

12 SEC. 8. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

13 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit defini14 tions of race or national origin under the Civil Rights Act 

15 of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a et seq.), the Fair Housing Act 

16 (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.), or section 1977 of the Revised 

17 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981). 

Æ 


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