FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DOVE AND THE CROWN COALITION CELEBRATE THE STATE OF DELAWARE BECOMING THE NINTH STATE TO PASS THE CROWN ACT BANNING HAIR DISCRIMINATION
Delaware now joins Connecticut, California, New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Colorado, Washington, and Maryland As States Prohibiting Natural Hair Discrimination in the Workplace and Schools
Delaware Legislation Signed Into Law by Governor John Carney on Tuesday, April 13, 2021
#PASSTHECROWN#PASSTHECROWN
ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, NJ – April 15, 2021 – The CROWN Coalition, a national alliance comprised of Dove, National Urban League, Color Of Change, and Western Center on Law & Poverty, are excited to announce Delaware as the ninth state to pass legislation (SB 32) banning hair discrimination in workplaces and public schools. The CROWN Act was introduced by primary sponsor Senator Darius J. Brown (D-Wilmington) in January 2021 and is designed to prevent students, workers, and tenants from being subjected to unequal treatment due to hair texture or protective hairstyles historically associated with race. The Act amends Delaware discrimination law so that the term "race" is inclusive of traits historically associated or perceived to be associated with race, including hairstyles like braids, locs, and twists.
The CROWN Act initiative, founded and led by beauty brand Dove and the CROWN Coalition, continues gaining traction in other states. To date, nine states – including California, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, Colorado, Washington, and Connecticut – have passed the CROWN Act while 25 other states have introduced similar legislation. New Mexico recently passed legislation inspired by the CROWN Act that also protects against hair discrimination. A federal bill passed in the U.S. House of Representatives last year and was reintroduced in March 2021, both in the House and Senate.
"I'm so proud of the work we're leading with the CROWN Coalition to address racial equity in workplaces and schools through The CROWN Act," said Esi Eggleston Bracey, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of North America Beauty and Personal Care at Unilever. "Dove is excited Delaware has joined the other states in enacting The CROWN Act – and applaud the leadership of Senator Darius Brown, Rep. Kendra Johnson, Rep. Franklin Cooke, Rep. Melissa Minor-Brown, Rep. Sherae'a Moore, along with Governor John Carney for making race-based hair discrimination illegal in Delaware."
"I was proud to sponsor Delaware's CROWN Act and I join thousands of Delawareans in celebrating this important new law," stated Sen. Darius Brown. "This statute is part and parcel to establishing racial equity, fairness in employment, and ending race-based discrimination. It makes clear that traits historically associated with race - specifically hair texture and styles - are included in our definition of race and cannot be used to skirt long-standing anti-discrimination statutes. Hair should never define a person, their capability, or their place on this Earth and I am proud to have played a part in building a better, fairer future for all Delawareans."
Support the movement that is continuously creating significant change for Black and Brown people by signing the petition at www.TheCROWNAct.com. The CROWN Coalition looks forward to more states joining the movement and passing this vital legislation.
About The CROWN Coalition
The CROWN Coalition are the official founders of the CROWN Act movement; an alliance founded by Dove, National Urban League, Color Of Change, and Western Center on Law & Poverty along with 80+ CROWN Act supporting organizations. For a full list of CROWN Coalition members, log on to the website @ www.thecrownact.com.
The CROWN Coalition is proud to have sponsored and/or supported anti-hair discrimination legislation in California, New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Colorado, Washington, Maryland, Connecticut, and Delaware. The bills 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 charter schools. The CROWN Coalition members believe diversity and inclusion are key drivers of success across all industries and sectors.
About Dove
Dove started its life in 1957 in the US, with the launch of the Beauty Bar, with its patented blend of mild cleansers and ¼ moisturizing cream. Dove’s heritage is based on moisturization – proof, not promises grew Dove from a Beauty Bar into one of the world’s most beloved beauty brands.
Women have always been our inspiration and since the beginning, we have been wholly committed to providing superior care to all women and to championing real beauty in our advertising. Dove believes that beauty is for everyone. That beauty should be a source of confidence and not anxiety. Dove’s mission is to inspire women everywhere to develop a positive relationship with the way they look and realize their personal potential for beauty.
For 60 years, Dove has been committed to broadening the narrow definition of beauty in the work they do. With the ‘Dove Real Beauty Pledge,’ Dove vows to:
1. Portray women with honesty, diversity, and respect. We feature women of different ages, sizes, ethnicities, hair color, type, and style.
2. Portray women as they are in real life, with zero digital distortion and all images approved by the women they feature.
3. Help young people build body confidence and self-esteem through the Dove Self-Esteem Project, the biggest provider of self-esteem education in the world.
About Unilever North America
Unilever is one of the world’s leading suppliers of Beauty & Personal Care, Home Care, and Foods & Refreshment products with sales in over 190 countries and reaching 2.5 billion consumers a day. In the United States and Canada, the portfolio includes brand icons such as: Axe, Ben & Jerry’s, Breyers, Degree, Dollar Shave Club, Dove, Hellmann’s, Klondike, Knorr, Lever 2000, Lipton, Love Beauty and Planet, Magnum, Nexxus, Noxzema, Pond’s, Popsicle, Pure Leaf, Q-tips, Seventh Generation, Simple, Sir Kensington’s, St. Ives, Suave, Talenti Gelato & Sorbetto, TAZO, TIGI, TRESemmé, and Vaseline. All of the preceding brand names are trademarks or registered trademarks of the Unilever Group of Companies.
Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan (USLP) underpins the company’s strategy and commits to:
Helping more than a billion people take action to improve their health and well-being by 2020.
Halving the environmental impact of our products by 2030.
Enhancing the livelihoods of millions of people by 2020.
The USLP creates value by driving growth and trust, eliminating costs, and reducing risks. In 2018, the company’s Sustainable Living Brands grew 69% faster than the rest of the business, compared to 46% in 2017.
Since 2010 we have been taking action through the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan to help more than a billion people improve their health and well-being, halve our environmental footprint and enhance the livelihoods of millions of people as we grow our business. We have already made significant progress and continue to expand our ambition – most recently committing to ensure 100% of our plastic packaging is fully reusable, recyclable, or compostable by 2025. While there is still more to do, we are proud to have been recognized in 2018 as a sector leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and as the top-ranked company in the GlobeScan/SustainAbility Global Corporate Sustainability Leaders survey, for the eighth consecutive year.
For more information on Unilever U.S. and its brands visit: www.unileverusa.com For more information on the USLP: www.unilever.com/sustainable-living/
About National Urban League
The National Urban League is a historic civil rights organization dedicated to economic empowerment in order to elevate the standard of living in historically underserved urban communities. The National Urban League spearheads the efforts of its 90 local affiliates through the development of programs, public policy research and advocacy, providing direct services that impact and improve the lives of more than 2 million people annually nationwide. Visit www.nul.org and follow us on Twitter and Instagram: @NatUrbanLeague.
About Color Of Change
Color Of Change is the nation’s largest online racial justice organization. We help people respond effectively to injustice in the world around us. As a national online force driven by more than 1.4 million members, we move decision-makers in corporations and government to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people and our allies in America. Our campaigns and initiatives win changes that matter. By designing strategies powerful enough to fight racism and injustice—in politics and culture, in the workplace and the economy, in criminal justice and community life, and wherever they exist—we are changing both the written and unwritten rules of society. We mobilize our members to end practices and systems that unfairly hold Black people back, and champion solutions that move us all forward.
About Western Center on Law & Poverty
Western Center fights for justice and system-wide change to secure housing, health care, racial justice, and a strong safety net for low-income Californians. Western Center attains real-world policy solutions for our clients through litigation, legislative and policy advocacy, and technical assistance and legal support for the state’s legal aid programs. Western Center is California’s oldest and largest legal services support center. Visit wclp.org.
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Contacts:
Marcy Polanco
917-940-3099
Shemika Harmitt
Shemika@joycollective.com
202.885.5527