CROWN Act of 2022

IIB 117TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 2116 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 21, 2022 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary AN ACT To prohibit discrimination based on an individual’s texture or style of hair. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 HR 2116 RFS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Creating a Respectful 2 and Open World for Natural Hair Act of 2022’’ or the 3 ‘‘CROWN Act of 2022’’. 4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS; PURPOSE. 5 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 6 (1) Throughout United States history, society 7 has used (in conjunction with skin color) hair tex- 8 ture and hairstyle to classify individuals on the basis 9 of race. 10 (2) Like one’s skin color, one’s hair has served 11 as a basis of race and national origin discrimination. 12 (3) Racial and national origin discrimination 13 can and do occur because of longstanding racial and 14 national origin biases and stereotypes associated 15 with hair texture and style. 16 (4) For example, routinely, people of African 17 descent are deprived of educational and employment 18 opportunities because they are adorned with natural 19 or protective hairstyles in which hair is tightly coiled 20 or tightly curled, or worn in locs, cornrows, twists, 21 braids, Bantu knots, or Afros. 22 (5) Racial and national origin discrimination is 23 reflected in school and workplace policies and prac- 24 tices that bar natural or protective hairstyles com- 25 monly worn by people of African descent. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 HR 2116 RFS (6) For example, as recently as 2018, the U.S. 1 Armed Forces had grooming policies that barred 2 natural or protective hairstyles that servicemembers 3 of African descent commonly wear and that de- 4 scribed these hairstyles as ‘‘unkempt’’. 5 (7) The U.S. Army also recognized that prohi- 6 bitions against natural or protective hairstyles that 7 African-American soldiers are commonly adorned 8 with are racially discriminatory, harmful, and bear 9 no relationship to African-American servicewomen’s 10 occupational qualifications and their ability to serve 11 and protect the Nation. As of February 2021, the 12 U.S. Army removed minimum hair length require- 13 ments and lifted restrictions on any soldier wearing 14 braids, twists, locs, and cornrows in order to pro- 15 mote inclusivity and accommodate the hair needs of 16 soldiers. 17 (8) As a type of racial or national origin dis- 18 crimination, discrimination on the basis of natural 19 or protective hairstyles that people of African de- 20 scent are commonly adorned with violates existing 21 Federal law, including provisions of the Civil Rights 22 Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.), section 1977 23 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981), and the 24 Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.). How- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 HR 2116 RFS ever, some Federal courts have misinterpreted Fed- 1 eral civil rights law by narrowly interpreting the 2 meaning of race or national origin, and thereby per- 3 mitting, for example, employers to discriminate 4 against people of African descent who wear natural 5 or protective hairstyles even though the employment 6 policies involved are not related to workers’ ability to 7 perform their jobs. 8 (9) Applying this narrow interpretation of race 9 or national origin has resulted in a lack of Federal 10 civil rights protection for individuals who are dis- 11 criminated against on the basis of characteristics 12 that are commonly associated with race and national 13 origin. 14 (10) In 2019 and 2020, State legislatures and 15 municipal bodies throughout the U.S. have intro- 16 duced and passed legislation that rejects certain 17 Federal courts’ restrictive interpretation of race and 18 national origin, and expressly classifies race and na- 19 tional origin discrimination as inclusive of discrimi- 20 nation on the basis of natural or protective hair- 21 styles commonly associated with race and national 22 origin. 23 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 24 gress that— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 HR 2116 RFS (1) the Federal Government should acknowl- 1 edge that individuals who have hair texture or wear 2 a hairstyle that is historically and contemporarily as- 3 sociated with African Americans or persons of Afri- 4 can descent systematically suffer harmful discrimi- 5 nation in schools, workplaces, and other contexts 6 based upon longstanding race and national origin 7 stereotypes and biases; 8 (2) a clear and comprehensive law should ad- 9 dress the systematic deprivation of educational, em- 10 ployment, and other opportunities on the basis of 11 hair texture and hairstyle that are commonly associ- 12 ated with race or national origin; 13 (3) clear, consistent, and enforceable legal 14 standards must be provided to redress the wide- 15 spread incidences of race and national origin dis- 16 crimination based upon hair texture and hairstyle in 17 schools, workplaces, housing, federally funded insti- 18 tutions, and other contexts; 19 (4) it is necessary to prevent educational, em- 20 ployment, and other decisions, practices, and policies 21 generated by or reflecting negative biases and 22 stereotypes related to race or national origin; 23 (5) the Federal Government must play a key 24 role in enforcing Federal civil rights laws in a way 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 HR 2116 RFS that secures equal educational, employment, and 1 other opportunities for all individuals regardless of 2 their race or national origin; 3 (6) the Federal Government must play a central 4 role in enforcing the standards established under 5 this Act on behalf of individuals who suffer race or 6 national origin discrimination based upon hair tex- 7 ture and hairstyle; 8 (7) it is necessary to prohibit and provide rem- 9 edies for the harms suffered as a result of race or 10 national origin discrimination on the basis of hair 11 texture and hairstyle; and 12 (8) it is necessary to mandate that school, 13 workplace, and other applicable standards be applied 14 in a nondiscriminatory manner and to explicitly pro- 15 hibit the adoption or implementation of grooming re- 16 quirements that disproportionately impact people of 17 African descent. 18 (c) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to institute 19 definitions of race and national origin for Federal civil 20 rights laws that effectuate the comprehensive scope of pro- 21 tection Congress intended to be afforded by such laws and 22 Congress’ objective to eliminate race and national origin 23 discrimination in the United States. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 HR 2116 RFS SEC. 3. FEDERALLY ASSISTED PROGRAMS. 1 (a) IN GENERAL.—No individual in the United 2 States shall be excluded from participation in, be denied 3 the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under, 4 any program or activity receiving Federal financial assist- 5 ance, based on the individual’s hair texture or hairstyle, 6 if that hair texture or that hairstyle is commonly associ- 7 ated with a particular race or national origin (including 8 a hairstyle in which hair is tightly coiled or tightly curled, 9 locs, cornrows, twists, braids, Bantu knots, and Afros). 10 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en- 11 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ- 12 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 13 incorporated in title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 14 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), and as if a violation of sub- 15 section (a) was treated as if it was a violation of section 16 601 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 2000d). 17 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 18 (1) the term ‘‘program or activity’’ has the 19 meaning given the term in section 606 of the Civil 20 Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d–4a); and 21 (2) the terms ‘‘race’’ and ‘‘national origin’’ 22 mean, respectively, ‘‘race’’ within the meaning of the 23 term in section 601 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 2000d) 24 and ‘‘national origin’’ within the meaning of the 25 term in that section 601. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 HR 2116 RFS SEC. 4. HOUSING PROGRAMS. 1 (a) IN GENERAL.—No person in the United States 2 shall be subjected to a discriminatory housing practice 3 based on the person’s hair texture or hairstyle, if that hair 4 texture or that hairstyle is commonly associated with a 5 particular race or national origin (including a hairstyle in 6 which hair is tightly coiled or tightly curled, locs, corn- 7 rows, twists, braids, Bantu knots, and Afros). 8 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en- 9 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ- 10 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 11 incorporated in the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 12 et seq.), and as if a violation of subsection (a) was treated 13 as if it was a discriminatory housing practice. 14 (c) DEFINITION.—In this section— 15 (1) the terms ‘‘discriminatory housing practice’’ 16 and ‘‘person’’ have the meanings given the terms in 17 section 802 of the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 18 3602); and 19 (2) the terms ‘‘race’’ and ‘‘national origin’’ 20 mean, respectively, ‘‘race’’ within the meaning of the 21 term in section 804 of that Act (42 U.S.C. 3604) 22 and ‘‘national origin’’ within the meaning of the 23 term in that section 804. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 HR 2116 RFS SEC. 5. PUBLIC ACCOMMODATIONS. 1 (a) IN GENERAL.—No person in the United States 2 shall be subjected to a practice prohibited under section 3 201, 202, or 203 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 4 U.S.C. 2000a et seq.), based on the person’s hair texture 5 or hairstyle, if that hair texture or that hairstyle is com- 6 monly associated with a particular race or national origin 7 (including a hairstyle in which hair is tightly coiled or 8 tightly curled, locs, cornrows, twists, braids, Bantu knots, 9 and Afros). 10 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en- 11 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ- 12 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 13 incorporated in title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 14 and as if a violation of subsection (a) was treated as if 15 it was a violation of section 201, 202, or 203, as appro- 16 priate, of such Act. 17 (c) DEFINITION.—In this section, the terms ‘‘race’’ 18 and ‘‘national origin’’ mean, respectively, ‘‘race’’ within 19 the meaning of the term in section 201 of that Act (42 20 U.S.C. 2000e) and ‘‘national origin’’ within the meaning 21 of the term in that section 201. 22 SEC. 6. EMPLOYMENT. 23 (a) PROHIBITION.—It shall be an unlawful employ- 24 ment practice for an employer, employment agency, labor 25 organization, or joint labor-management committee con- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 HR 2116 RFS trolling apprenticeship or other training or retraining (in- 1 cluding on-the-job training programs) to fail or refuse to 2 hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to dis- 3 criminate against an individual, based on the individual’s 4 hair texture or hairstyle, if that hair texture or that hair- 5 style is commonly associated with a particular race or na- 6 tional origin (including a hairstyle in which hair is tightly 7 coiled or tightly curled, locs, cornrows, twists, braids, 8 Bantu knots, and Afros). 9 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en- 10 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ- 11 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 12 incorporated in title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 13 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.), and as if a violation of sub- 14 section (a) was treated as if it was a violation of section 15 703 or 704, as appropriate, of such Act (42 U.S.C. 16 2000e–2, 2000e–3). 17 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section the terms ‘‘per- 18 son’’, ‘‘race’’, and ‘‘national origin’’ have the meanings 19 given the terms in section 701 of the Civil Rights Act of 20 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e). 21 SEC. 7. EQUAL RIGHTS UNDER THE LAW. 22 (a) IN GENERAL.—No person in the United States 23 shall be subjected to a practice prohibited under section 24 1977 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981), based on 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Mar 21, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2116.RFS H2116 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 HR 2116 RFS the person’s hair texture or hairstyle, if that hair texture 1 or that hairstyle is commonly associated with a particular 2 race or national origin (including a hairstyle in which hair 3 is tightly coiled or tightly curled, locs, cornrows, twists, 4 braids, Bantu knots, and Afros). 5 (b) ENFORCEMENT.—Subsection (a) shall be en- 6 forced in the same manner and by the same means, includ- 7 ing with the same jurisdiction, as if such subsection was 8 incorporated in section 1977 of the Revised Statutes, and 9 as if a violation of subsection (a) was treated as if it was 10 a violation of that section 1977. 11 SEC. 8. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 12 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit defini- 13 tions of race or national origin under the Civil Rights Act 14 of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a et seq.), the Fair Housing Act 15 (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.), or section 1977 of the Revised 16 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981). 17 SEC. 9. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS. 18 The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 19 complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, 20 shall be determined by reference to the latest statement 21 titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation’’ for this 22 Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record 23 by the Chairm [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]