51 Texas school districts are not complying with state ban on hairstyle discrimination, ACLU says

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The ACLU of Texas said Wednesday it found 51 school districts in violation of the Texas CROWN Act, which bans race-based hair discrimination, and urged them to update their dress codes.

The Texas CROWN Act prohibits schools, workplaces and housing authorities from discriminating against hairstyles historically associated with race such as dreadlocks, cornrows or afros.

“All Texas school districts — including those that we have identified — must immediately comply with the Texas CROWN Act,” said Chloe Kempf, an attorney at the ACLU of Texas. “Not only is it the law — but it’s essential for ensuring that students of color are free to be themselves and to express their racial and cultural identity at school.”

The ACLU said it reviewed the dress code policies of every school district in Texas and sent letters to the 51 they found weren’t complying with the law. The ACLU said officials at one school district, Tolar ISD in North Texas, immediately responded to the letter Wednesday and said they intend to update their policies to comply with the CROWN Act ahead of the upcoming school year. It was not immediately known how other schools responded.

The CROWN Act was signed into law last year after receiving overwhelming support from the Texas Legislature. Social justice advocate Adjoa B. Asamoah first pitched the legislation in 2018.

In February, a Texas judge ruled that Barbers Hill ISD did not violate the CROWN Act when district officials punished a Black student for wearing his hair in long locs.

Darryl George, a junior at Barbers Hill High School, had been in-school suspension since August of last year because of his hairstyle. The monthslong dispute came to a head when Judge Chap B. Cain Ⅲ ruled that Barber Hill ISD can enforce its dress code policy, which prohibits male students from wearing hair that exceeds a certain length.

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