Beginning around 2009 and we start to see more and more African American women wearing what we now call their “natural hair.” Meaning they had begun the process of NOT getting their hair chemically relaxed or even pressed with the hot comb. This was the beginning of the “Natural Hair Movement.” The reasons for these changes are as varied as the women who made them. Some women wanted to feel more in-touch with themselves as women of African descent, and for them that started with their hair. For others it was about just loving themselves and how God made them. Still, some women were concerned about the damage not only to their hair and scalp that the relaxers potentially caused, but also there has been studies about the correlation between relaxers and uterine fibroids and other health issues in black women. Then there are the group of women who merely wanted to try something new as many of them had been getting their hair relaxed since they were little girls. Whatever the reason for the change, it sparked not only a revolution for the hair industry as a whole, but also for corporate America and the educational system as changes were being demanded by these women.

The community created by these women spans not only the country, but rather the world. Friendships and kinships have been born out of this thing that was once considered something to be suppressed and wrangled, but now is a treasure to be cherished and embraced. A simple internet search for “natural hair” will return so many choices that you’ll have to narrow down your parameters in order to find exactly what you are looking for and even then it will probably still take some scrolling. The point is, where there was once a desert of information, there is now an ocean and that is a wonderful thing.

Thanks to the Natural Hair Movement there are now laws which prohibit discrimination based on person’s hair texture or hairstyle that is commonly attributed to a particular race or national origin. This bill specifically prohibits discrimination against those participating in federally assisted programs, housing programs, public accommodations, and employment. But the bill is being expanded to include schools and corporations that receive public funding. The bill is called H.R. 5309 or the CROWN Act. CROWN stands for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act of 2020 and it was sponsored by Rep. Cedric L. Richmond, Democrat from the state of Louisiana. (Richmond, 2020).