CROWN Act passes Texas House, heads to Senate

Advocates were at the Texas Capitol Thursday to push state senators to pass the CROWN Act.

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Advocates were at the Texas Capitol Thursday morning to push state senators to pass House Bill 567, otherwise known as The Texas CROWN Act.

According to the authors of the bill, CROWN stands for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair.

The act aims to create a quote respectful environment for natural hair. It would prohibit discrimination based on hair texture or protect hairstyles associated with race.

Representative Rhetta Andrews Bowers, Primary Author of HB 567, was joined by CROWN Act Joint Authors Texas Legislative Black Caucus Chairman Ron Reynolds and Representative Carl Sherman, and CROWN Coalition Co-Creator Adjoa B. Asamoah, from Washington, D.C.

On Thursday, the legislation also received final passage in the Texas House with a vote of 143-5, according to Bowers. The bill is now heading over to the Texas Senate.

“I am incredibly thankful for the broad sweeping and bipartisan support from every corner of the State. From the grassroots advocates that volunteered to show up on their own time to testify, to the Democrats and Republicans that joined me on day one as Joint Authors and Coauthors, we
couldn’t have done it without you," Bowers said in a statement.

So far, 20 states have enacted legislation to outlaw race-based hair discrimination.