CROWN Act of 2020

IIB 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 5309 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES SEPTEMBER 22, 2020 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 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 HR 5309 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 2020’’ or the 3 ‘‘CROWN Act of 2020’’. 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 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 HR 5309 RFS (6) For example, as recently as 2018, the 1 United States Armed Forces had grooming policies 2 that barred natural or protective hairstyles that 3 servicewomen of African descent commonly wear and 4 that described these hairstyles as ‘‘unkempt’’. 5 (7) In 2018, the United States Armed Forces 6 rescinded these policies and recognized that this de- 7 scription perpetuated derogatory racial stereotypes. 8 (8) The United States Armed Forces also rec- 9 ognized that prohibitions against natural or protec- 10 tive hairstyles that African-American servicewomen 11 are commonly adorned with are racially discrimina- 12 tory and bear no relationship to African-American 13 servicewomen’s occupational qualifications and their 14 ability to serve and protect the Nation. 15 (9) As a type of racial or national origin dis- 16 crimination, discrimination on the basis of natural 17 or protective hairstyles that people of African de- 18 scent are commonly adorned with violates existing 19 Federal law, including provisions of the Civil Rights 20 Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.), section 1977 21 of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981), and the 22 Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.). How- 23 ever, some Federal courts have misinterpreted Fed- 24 eral civil rights law by narrowly interpreting the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 HR 5309 RFS meaning of race or national origin, and thereby per- 1 mitting, for example, employers to discriminate 2 against people of African descent who wear natural 3 or protective hairstyles even though the employment 4 policies involved are not related to workers’ ability to 5 perform their jobs. 6 (10) Applying this narrow interpretation of race 7 or national origin has resulted in a lack of Federal 8 civil rights protection for individuals who are dis- 9 criminated against on the basis of characteristics 10 that are commonly associated with race and national 11 origin. 12 (11) In 2019 and 2020, State legislatures and 13 municipal bodies throughout the United States have 14 introduced and passed legislation that rejects certain 15 Federal courts’ restrictive interpretation of race and 16 national origin, and expressly classifies race and na- 17 tional origin discrimination as inclusive of discrimi- 18 nation on the basis of natural or protective hair- 19 styles commonly associated with race and national 20 origin. 21 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 22 gress that— 23 (1) the Federal Government should acknowl- 24 edge that individuals who have hair texture or wear 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 HR 5309 RFS a hairstyle that is historically and contemporarily as- 1 sociated with African Americans or persons of Afri- 2 can descent systematically suffer harmful discrimi- 3 nation in schools, workplaces, and other contexts 4 based upon longstanding race and national origin 5 stereotypes and biases; 6 (2) a clear and comprehensive law should ad- 7 dress the systematic deprivation of educational, em- 8 ployment, and other opportunities on the basis of 9 hair texture and hairstyle that are commonly associ- 10 ated with race or national origin; 11 (3) clear, consistent, and enforceable legal 12 standards must be provided to redress the wide- 13 spread incidences of race and national origin dis- 14 crimination based upon hair texture and hairstyle in 15 schools, workplaces, housing, federally funded insti- 16 tutions, and other contexts; 17 (4) it is necessary to prevent educational, em- 18 ployment, and other decisions, practices, and policies 19 generated by or reflecting negative biases and 20 stereotypes related to race or national origin; 21 (5) the Federal Government must play a key 22 role in enforcing Federal civil rights laws in a way 23 that secures equal educational, employment, and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 HR 5309 RFS other opportunities for all individuals regardless of 1 their race or national origin; 2 (6) the Federal Government must play a central 3 role in enforcing the standards established under 4 this Act on behalf of individuals who suffer race or 5 national origin discrimination based upon hair tex- 6 ture and hairstyle; 7 (7) it is necessary to prohibit and provide rem- 8 edies for the harms suffered as a result of race or 9 national origin discrimination on the basis of hair 10 texture and hairstyle; and 11 (8) it is necessary to mandate that school, 12 workplace, and other applicable standards be applied 13 in a nondiscriminatory manner and to explicitly pro- 14 hibit the adoption or implementation of grooming re- 15 quirements that disproportionately impact people of 16 African descent. 17 (c) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to institute 18 definitions of race and national origin for Federal civil 19 rights laws that effectuate the comprehensive scope of pro- 20 tection Congress intended to be afforded by such laws and 21 Congress’ objective to eliminate race and national origin 22 discrimination in the United States. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 HR 5309 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 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 HR 5309 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 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 HR 5309 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 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 HR 5309 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 03:56 Sep 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5309.RFS H5309 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 HR 5309 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 Chairman of the House Budget Committee, pro- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]