Kentucky: The CROWN Act (SB63)
Adopted: March 2024 Bill Number: SB63 Governor: Andy Beshear Status: Enacted
Kentucky enacted its CROWN Act in March 2024 when Governor Andy Beshear signed SB63, extending hair discrimination protections to the upper South. The legislation prohibits discrimination based on natural hair texture and protective hairstyles in employment and other covered domains.
Key Provisions
Kentucky Civil Rights Act amendment. SB63 amends the state’s civil rights framework to include hair texture and protective hairstyles within the definition of race.
Employment and public accommodation. The legislation covers employment decisions, housing, and public accommodation, providing protections consistent with Kentucky’s existing anti-discrimination framework.
Kentucky Commission on Human Rights. The commission has jurisdiction over hair-related discrimination complaints under the amended statute.
Kentucky Context
Kentucky’s adoption added another Southern state to the CROWN Act roster, continuing the movement’s geographic expansion. With approximately 370,000 Black residents, concentrated in Louisville and Lexington, Kentucky has a significant African American community with deep historical roots.
Louisville, the state’s largest city, has been a centre of racial justice activism and provided strong grassroots support for the legislation. The city’s concentration of healthcare, logistics, and manufacturing employers creates numerous workplaces where grooming standards affect diverse employees.
Kentucky’s adoption in March 2024 was contemporaneous with the French National Assembly’s vote on the Proposition de loi Serva, creating an interesting transatlantic parallel: legislative action on hair discrimination advancing on both sides of the Atlantic in the same month.
For the complete CROWN Act movement overview, see the main US page. For the timeline of state adoptions, see the CROWN Act timeline.
For detailed legal analysis of Kentucky’s CROWN Act provisions, contact contact@crown.ngo.