Policing Our Hair: Analyzing the History of Hair Discrimination Toward Black Students

• In Event: Navigating State-Level Anti-Equity Policies

Abstract

On March 18, 2022, the United States House of Representatives passed the CROWN ACT which was proposed to forbid racially based hair discrimination. Black students in the United States have historically experienced a variety of anti-Black acts of violence against them, which includes policies that ban them from wearing their hair in styles or states common within the Black and African diaspora. These discriminatory practices limit how Black students can be holistically present within schools which in turn influences their learning. This paper analyses hair discrimination policies in the US and within internatioanal contexts such as Nigeria, Kenya and Jamaica to show how they are related, and to propose a path towards repairing harm and restoring dignity.

Author

• Grace L. Tukurah, Michigan State University