Last week, New York City made a monumental step in acknowledging just that—we are our hair, and we shouldn’t be punished for it. The New York City Commission on Human Rights declared that companies are prohibited from discriminating against individuals based on their hairstyle. This came after several complaints presented to the commission where employees had been fired based on their hairstyles or were forced to alter their hair to keep their jobs.
The new law protects all New Yorkers and is not limited to the workplace. As outlined in the guidelines: “These protections extend to all users of public accommodations, including businesses such as restaurants, fitness clubs, stores, and nightclubs, and other public spaces, like parks, libraries, healthcare providers, and cultural institutions.” Entities found in violation of the new law could face hefty fines up to $250,000. The commission can also enforce internal policy changes and re-hires at offending institutions.
This law seeks to serve as a remedy for the unfair treatment of African Americans in the workplace due to their choice of hairstyle. The guidelines specifically mention the right of New Yorkers to maintain their “natural hair, treated or untreated hairstyles such as locs, cornrows, twists, braids, Bantu knots, fades, Afros, and/or the right to keep hair in an uncut or untrimmed state.” The law is a step in the right direction and is something that other states should look to as we move toward more inclusive workplaces.
The passing of New York’s law banning hairstyle discrimination also sheds light on an issue that many may have assumed no longer existed. Click To TweetI believe the passing of New York’s law banning hairstyle discrimination also sheds light on an issue that many may have assumed no longer existed. Given the media and Hollywood’s intentional attempts to glamorize curls and coils, one may assume that natural hair textures are widely accepted. Unfortunately, we know that not to be true. In 2016, The Perception Institute conducted a study that found:
- On average, white women show explicit bias toward black women’s textured hair. They rate it as less beautiful, less sexy/attractive, and less professional than smooth hair.
- Black women in the natural hair community have significantly more positive attitudes toward textured hair than other women, including black women in the national sample.
- Millennial naturalistas have more positive attitudes toward textured hair than all other women.
- Black women perceive a level of social stigma against textured hair, and this perception is substantiated by white women’s devaluation of natural hairstyles.
Once you look beyond the status of stars with natural hair and dig deeper into the majority of Americans’ lives, you’ll find everyday people who still struggle with being able to bring their true authentic selves to work. First Lady of New York City Chirlane McCray said it best: “Bias against the curly textured hair of people of African descent is as old as this country and a form of race-based discrimination.”
It’s great to see New York City take a stance on this topic and go beyond federal guidelines to enforce a more inclusive law that will clear up grey areas that kept court cases around this topic from ending in justice. I hope this is just the beginning, and more municipalities and states will take a page from New York’s book. It is strides like these that eventually change the world and how we experience it. I hope all New Yorkers had a chance to walk into work this week without fear of losing their jobs because of their hairstyles. I hope you all had a chance to be your authentic self.
I hope all New Yorkers had a chance to walk into work this week without fear of losing their jobs because of their hairstyles. I hope you all had a chance to be your authentic self. Click To TweetRead the NYC Commission on Human Rights Legal Enforcement Guidance on Race Discrimination on the Basis of Hair here.
