Passed unanimously by the General Assembly, the Delaware Crown Act (Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair) protected people of color from facing discrimination due to their braids, locs, twists and other hairstyles or hair textures historically associated with race.
A recent study by the Unilever personal care brand Dove found that Black women are particularly targeted by workplace discrimination related to their hair. The study found that Black women’s hair is more likely to be perceived as unprofessional, while Black women are more likely to be made aware of their employer’s workplace appearance policy and more likely to be sent home because of their hair.
Delaware became the eighth state to pass some version of the CROWN Act, which has not been adopted by a total of 23 states.
