Virginia becomes first southern US state to ban hair discrimination.
Virginia has become the first southern US state to ban hair discrimination based on racial identifiers including hair texture and hair type.
Unlike Virginia now, Texas does not have laws that ban discrimination based on a person’s natural hairstyle or texture.
“A person’s hair is a core part of their identity,” Delores McQuinn, a Virginia state delegate and the bill’s lead sponsor, told local TV station WHSV.
Other states continue to weigh legislation to ban hair discrimination in the workforce and classroom.
Known as the Crown Act, it protects against discrimination based on hairstyles by extending statutory protection to hair texture and protective styles.
Virginia’s hair discrimination ban takes effect 1 July. »