Natural Hair in the Workplace

The state of California has become the first state to outlaw discrimination based on a hairstyle in the workplace, K-12 public schools, and housing. The bill, The CROWN Act (Creating a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair), was created by Senator Holly Mitchell.

The bill was passed unanimously in California and will be in full-effect on January 1, 2020.

The CROWN Act redefines old terminologies of race and says, “…hair discrimination targeting hairstyles associated with race is racial discrimination.”

Throughout the years, people of color have experienced injustice for their cultural hairstyles, which include:

· Afros

· Braids

· Twists

· Cornrows

· Dreadlocks

The preamble to the CROWN Act states, “[t]he history of our nation is riddled with laws and societal norms that equated ‘blackness’ and the associated physical traits . . . to a badge of inferiority, sometimes subject to separate and unequal treatment.” It goes on to note that this association came to permeate the workplace, where “professionalism was, and still is, closely linked to European features and mannerisms,” leading some to “alter their appearances, sometimes drastically and permanently, in order to be deemed professional.”

Throughout my 29 years of growing dreadlocks I’ve been denied jobs, contracts, and numerous other opportunities due to my hair.

After completing my masters degree in elementary education I was denied my first teaching job because of my hair. The principal who would not hire me was not White but African American. Despite being highly qualified and the fact that I would have been the only Black male teacher in the school, I was not hired.

Unbeknownst to the principal, I happened to have a family member who worked in the office who was told by the principal, “with his credentials and life experiences he is a solid candidate but — that hair has got to go! I can’t hire him looking like that around here.”

Our very own Director of Marketing and Strategic Planning, Skye Frank, had a negative experience at a property management company a few years ago. One of her colleagues suggested that she do something else with her hair, which was locked, and make it more presentable.

Even with a doctorate and as President of Logan Consulting Services, I am sometimes still stereotyped as uneducated, unprofessional and nonconforming — especially depending on the setting and how I am dressed.

Although our country as a whole has been more open and accepting towards wearing “natural hair,” there is still a stigma attached.

It’s nearly 2020 and we as a society–only one state thus far–are only recently enacting legislation to ban this level of racial discrimination. Better late than never, I suppose.

However, it’s essential to remember that changing the laws can be done in a stork of the pen; changing the hearts, minds and motivations of people can take years, a lifetime, and even multiple generations.

Nonetheless, this is an important step to take as real change needs to happen systematically. Any organization or leader who seeks to remain relevant, competitive and successful in the 21st Century must embrace diversity and inclusion even at this level.

In the comments, feel free to share your story or hair-discrimination.