One year after a black high school wrestler in New Jersey was forced to cut his dreadlocks to participate in a match, Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law this week making it illegal to discriminate against people based on hairstyles associated with race.
The law, “Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair Act,” also known as the Crown Act, makes it illegal to target people at work, school or in public spaces based on their hair texture, hair type and protective hair styles — like braids, locks and twists.
The act updates the state’s existing “Law Against Discrimination,” and the same penalties will apply, said Michael Zhadanovsky, a spokesman for the governor’s office. A first violation could draw a fine of up to $10,000, he said. The maximum penalty for a second violation within five years is $25,000, while a third and subsequent violation within seven years could bring a fine of up to $50,000.
The law was introduced after Andrew Johnson, a Buena Regional High School wrestler, faced forfeiture at a match in southern New Jersey on Dec. 19, 2018, if he did not immediately cut his hair.
A referee told Mr. Johnson that his hair and the hair cover he was wearing violated wrestling rules. A video capturing Mr. Johnson’s hurried, last-minute haircut drew widespread attention and prompted a civil rights investigation by the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights, a part of the state’s Office of the Attorney General.
The Crown Act was signed Thursday — one year to the day after the match.
“Race-based discrimination will not be tolerated in the state of New Jersey,” Governor Murphy, a Democrat, said in a statement. “No one should be made to feel uncomfortable or be discriminated against because of their natural hair.”
New Jersey is the third state to pass a Crown Act, according to State Senator Sandra Cunningham, a Democrat and primary sponsor of the bill. The move follows a national trend of states and cities passing and proposing similar laws.
California was the first state to sign a Crown Act into law, on July 3, and New York followed shortly after. Several cities, including New York City and Cincinnati, passed laws outlawing hair-based discrimination, and Michigan, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Maryland, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia and Kentucky are all considering similar legislation, according to the Crown Coalition.
“Unfortunately, it’s all too common for African-Americans and people of color to be subjected to discrimination at work or school for wearing their hair in braids, twists and dreadlocks or embracing their natural curls,” Assemblywoman Angela McKnight, a Democrat and one of the New Jersey bill’s primary sponsors, said in a statement.
There have been several cases in the past few years in which action taken based on hairstyle has drawn criticism for racial insensitivity.
In August 2019, an elementary school in Georgia was widely criticized when it created a display of black children’s photos to illustrate appropriate and inappropriate haircuts.
In August 2018, an 11-year-old student in New Orleans was asked to leave class because administrators said her braided hair extension violated the private Roman Catholic school’s rules. The week before that, a black 6-year-old in Florida was sent home on his first day of school because he had dreadlocks. In 2017, twin sisters in Malden, Mass., were forced to serve detention for wearing their hair in braids.
“Discrimination against black hair is discrimination against black people and no one should be denied a job, an education or face discrimination because of their hairstyle,” Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, a Democratic presidential candidate, said in a statement on Thursday.
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December 21, 2019 at 06:59AM
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New Jersey Is Third State to Ban Discrimination Based on Hair - The New York Times
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