Dove And The CROWN Coalition Celebrate The 2nd National CROWN Day With The Inaugural CROWN AWARDS Today Saturday, July 3, 2021

Dove And The CROWN Coalition Celebrate The 2nd National CROWN Day With The Inaugural CROWN AWARDS Today Saturday, July 3, 2021

Presented by Dove and the CROWN Coalition, National CROWN Day, also known as Black Hair Independence Day, is back!  National CROWN Day is a special holiday commemorating the inaugural signing of the first CROWN Act legislation in the United States in 2019 to “Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair.” The July 3^rd celebration will feature a full day of virtual events, including the inaugural CROWN AWARDS at 7:00 p.m. ET honoring Black women paving the way with contributions to culture, community, entrepreneurship, entertainment and the advancement of Black beauty.

To date, thirteen (13) states and twenty-nine (29) municipalities have enacted The CROWN Act, or laws inspired by The CROWN Act, but there is still more work to be done to make hair discrimination illegal across the country. With a federal bill introduced in both chambers of U.S. Congress in March 2021, National CROWN Day 2021 will be an intergenerational experience to mobilize the Black community and allies to call on federal legislators to pass The CROWN Act in Congress. Everyone is asked to join The CROWN Act movement and help us #PASSTHECROWN to end race-based hair discrimination in the U.S. by signing the petition at www.thecrownact.com.

“I am so pleased that Dove and the CROWN Coalition have inspired a movement with such significant impact across the country, and I am grateful for the army of support working tirelessly to end hair discrimination,” stated Esi Eggleston Bracey, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of North America Beauty and Personal Care at Unilever. “Within two years, we’ve successfully passed legislation in 13 states, introduced a federal bill, grown our CROWN Coalition to over 80 powerful organizations, and exceeded our petition signatures with over 265,000 people joining our movement. Dove has always stood for beauty inclusivity and rejects social injustice of any kind, and we now must focus on the work needed to achieve the next major victory — passing the federal bill to protect Black women, men and children nationwide.”

As a founding member of The CROWN Coalition, Dove has championed The CROWN Act movement, created and driven by a team of Black women leaders working with a village of women who share a desire to end discrimination including Esi Eggleston Bracey and Erin Goldson of Dove, Los Angeles County Supervisor, Holly J. Mitchell, and JOY Collective agency leaders, Kelli Richardson Lawson, Orlena Nwokah Blanchard and Adjoa B. Asamoah as lead legislative strategist.

In 2019, Dove and the CROWN Coalition partnered with then State Senator Holly J. Mitchell of California to introduce legislation to address the disparate impact of hair discrimination on Black people in workplaces and in schools. California Senate Bill 188 (SB 188) was introduced in January 2019 and signed into law on July 3, 2019, making California the first state to prohibit discrimination based on protective hairstyles and hair texture associated with race. One year later, on July 3, 2020, the first National CROWN Day was born with a virtual summit of renown experts and celebrities to elevate the public discourse on race-based hair discrimination and galvanize supporters and allies to #PASSTHECROWN nationwide. National CROWN Day became the hallmark of The CROWN Act movement that drives collective impact to end race-based hair discrimination nationwide.

The groundbreaking legislative movement and National CROWN Day are led by The CROWN Coalition, a national alliance founded by Dove, National Urban League, Western Center on Law & Poverty, and Color Of Change, and supported by over 80 community and advocacy organizations.

This year’s events kickoff with a 7-day countdown of virtual engagement and community connections leading up to CROWN Day, which will feature a day of activations, including the inaugural CROWN Awards.

Recognizing Black Women – Legends, Icons, and Young CROWNS
The inaugural CROWN Awards will highlight the extraordinary strength, grace and perseverance of notable Black women, whether at the forefront or behind the scenes of change, whose talents and leadership help advance the legacy of Black beauty and brilliance.  The Legend CROWNS will celebrate honorees 50 and older; Iconic CROWNS will spotlight recipients ages 30-50; and Young CROWNS will highlight winners who are 30 and under. Award categories range from art and business, to music, sports and the champions of The CROWN Act legislation.

CROWN Day Activities

Below are the virtual events for NATIONAL CROWN Day on Saturday, July 3, 2021:

Legislative Victories
First introduced in California in January 2019 by former state Senator Holly J. Mitchell as Senate Bill 188, The CROWN (“Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair”) Act expanded the definition of race in the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and Education Code to ensure legal protection against race-based hair discrimination in workplaces and in K-12 public and charter schools. The inaugural CROWN Act was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom in California on July 3, 2019 and went into effect on January 1, 2020.

As of June 2021, thirteen (13) states have passed The CROWN Act, or legislation inspired by The CROWN Act, to end race-based hair discrimination in workplaces and schools. The 13 states include:

• • California (July 2019)
  • New York (July 2019)
  • New Jersey (December 2019)
  • Virginia (March 2020)
  • Colorado (March 2020)
  • Washington (March 2020)
  • Maryland (April 2020)
  • Connecticut (March 2021)
  • Delaware (April 2021)
  • New Mexico (April 2021)
  • Nebraska (May 2021)
  • Nevada (June 2021)
  • Oregon (June 2021)
• Twenty-nine (29) municipalities have also passed CROWN Act legislation.
• Eight (8) additional states are considering The CROWN Act and have either pre-filed, filed or formally introduced their own anti-hair discrimination bills, including:
  • New Hampshire
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Wisconsin
  • North Carolina
  • Pennsylvania
  • Rhode Island
  • Illinois
• Of note, The CROWN Act was introduced in twenty-two (22) additional states but did NOT move through the legislature before the legislative sessions ended. We will work to support reintroducing the CROWN Act in these states, which include:  Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and West Virginia
• Federal legislation was re-introduced in March 2021 by Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) in the U.S. House of Representatives and Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) in the U.S. Senate.

About The CROWN Coalition

The CROWN Coalition is a national alliance founded by Dove, National Urban League, Color Of Change and Western Center on Law & Poverty, to end race-based hair discrimination in America. The Coalition, now consisting of more than 80 supporting organizations, is the founder of the CROWN Act movement and was the official sponsor of the inaugural CROWN Act legislation in California in 2019.  For a full list of CROWN Coalition members, visit www.thecrownact.com and see the list here:

The CROWN Coalition is proud to have supported anti-hair discrimination legislation to address unfair grooming policies that have a disparate impact on Black women, men and children and has drawn attention to cultural and racial discrimination taking place within workplaces and public schools. The CROWN Coalition members believe diversity and inclusion are key drivers of success across all industries and sectors.

www.thecrownact.com