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CROWN Act

Meaning ❉ The CROWN Act establishes legal protections against discrimination based on hair texture and styles frequently worn by individuals of Black or mixed heritage. This legislation provides a clear framework for understanding that hair, in its natural forms—such as coils, locs, braids, and twists—is a valid and respected presentation within schools and workplaces. For those seeking structured hair care, the Act supports systematization by removing barriers that might otherwise compel individuals to alter their hair’s natural state for professional or academic acceptance. It permits the practical application of care routines and styling choices aligned with hair health and cultural identity, without fear of adverse consequences. This legal measure grounds the ability to present one’s hair authentically, ensuring personal styling decisions align with inherent hair needs and cultural expression rather than prescriptive societal norms.

A striking black and white portrait features a woman with closely-cropped, textured hair meticulously styled with evenly spaced circular accessories. Her sophisticated appearance is enhanced by a sleek black turtleneck, strong lighting, and a refined aesthetic highlighting modern hair adornment and the beauty of natural hair form.

Systemic Racism

Meaning ❉ Systemic racism is a pervasive societal framework perpetuating racial disadvantage through institutional policies and cultural norms, profoundly impacting textured hair heritage.
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A black and white portrait showcases a woman with intricate braided textured hair and a decorative coin headdress. Her severe yet captivating expression is framed by complex rows of coiled braids, augmented by metallic accents, conveying deep rooted traditions, ancestral heritage, and expressive styling.

Black Hair Politics

Meaning ❉ Black Hair Politics is the societal, historical, and personal contestation surrounding textured hair, deeply rooted in its heritage and identity.
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A woman's profile shows her smiling, with abundant type 3C coiled hair dynamically moving in the wind. Strong sunlight casts shadows on her face and light blouse, illustrating textures in her epidermal layers. It evokes natural beauty, celebrating Black hair traditions and highlighting the inherent vibrancy and styling possibilities within the genetics of textured hair.

Textured Hair Liberation

Meaning ❉ Textured Hair Liberation is the cultural and personal reclamation of natural hair, honoring its ancestral roots and challenging oppressive beauty standards.
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A close-up black and white portrait features an elder with dignified presence. His textured hair is styled into thick locs, some gathered atop head bound with light fabric. Graying beard and the depth of experience etched onto skin, creating a study in ancestral heritage and resilience. Expressive styling reveals cultural pride.

Workplace Hair Bias

Meaning ❉ Workplace Hair Bias is the systemic discrimination against natural, textured hair, particularly in professional settings, rooted in Eurocentric beauty norms.
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A close-up portrait in monochrome features a young woman, her gaze direct and engaging. She sports a cropped textured haircut with contrasting highlights enhancing the overall layered shape and its natural pattern. This emphasizes her individual expression and is set against a plain background.

Anti-Discrimination Movement

Meaning ❉ The Anti-Discrimination Movement is a societal effort to eliminate prejudice, particularly as it intersects with the historical and cultural significance of textured hair.
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A striking black and white portrait features a woman with neatly styled, short textured hair, showcasing its sleek formation and distinct character. Dramatic lighting accentuates her sharp features and subtle facial expressions, embodying confidence and depth, honoring ancestral practices within a contemporary beauty aesthetic. Her dark attire adds to the mood.

Black Liberation

Meaning ❉ Black Liberation, in the context of textured hair, is the ongoing reclamation of selfhood, dignity, and ancestral connection through hair.
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A powerful monochrome portrait features an African person with a regal gaze, adorned with elaborate coil-patterned hair formations. Jewelry accents the earlobes and neckline, enhancing the connection to ancestral heritage. The light accentuates skin texture, adding depth and narrative to the image.

Natural Coil Preservation

Meaning ❉ Natural Coil Preservation is the dedicated practice of maintaining the inherent structure and cultural significance of textured hair.
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A striking black and white portrait captures a woman adorned with an elaborate headwrap, framing her face. Natural, tightly coiled hair peeks out, casting intricate shadows. Her serene gaze and traditional dress evoke heritage, while the chiaroscuro emphasizes texture and form, inviting reflection on identity and expressive style.

Legal Advocacy

Meaning ❉ Legal advocacy for textured hair champions rights, combats discrimination, and asserts the cultural significance of Black and mixed-race hair.
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Monochrome portrait highlights a woman's expressive gaze, framed by a traditional Madras head tie and halo of resilient low porosity spirals. Soft diffused light accentuates the texture of her high-density strands and smooth skin, connecting ancestral heritage, sebaceous balance care, and authentic stylistic expressions.

Hair as Crown

Meaning ❉ Hair as Crown defines textured hair as a sacred, regal declaration of identity, embodying ancestral wisdom, cultural resilience, and self-possession.
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A striking black and white studio portrait captures a woman with voluminous afro textured hair, showcasing its coiled structure. Her elegant, minimalist dress frames her face, emphasizing strong features highlighted by soft lighting. The image explores themes of beauty, heritage, and empowered expression, within Afro hair traditions.

Natural Hair Standards

Meaning ❉ Natural Hair Standards represent the evolving cultural, social, and aesthetic values ascribed to unaltered textured hair, deeply rooted in ancestral heritage and identity.
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Captured in stark monochrome, the portrait reveals a young person with deeply shadowed features and meticulously sculpted short afro-textured hair, displaying precise fade lines and a graphic design undercut that highlights contemporary black hair traditions with intentionality. Holistic hair style shows ancestral heritage and identity.

Cultural Discrimination

Meaning ❉ Cultural discrimination against textured hair is the systemic devaluation of Black and mixed-race hair traditions, impacting identity and opportunity.
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A stark black and white portrait reveals a woman's face framed by cascading, dense coils, highlighting the contrast between deep shadows and luminous skin. Bold eyeliner accentuates her eyes, drawing focus to a confident gaze, while her hairstyle signifies cultural identity and expressive self-styling within textured hair traditions.

Identity Suppression

Meaning ❉ The systemic pressure to conceal or alter natural hair textures, thereby denying an integral aspect of one's cultural and personal identity.
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A powerful black and white studio shot reveals a person with expertly shaped and precision fade textured Afro hair, embodying strength and unique style, set against a neutral backdrop. The contrast emphasizes the short, textured curls and distinctive hairline, paired with a classic leather jacket.

New Orleans Culture

Meaning ❉ New Orleans culture signifies a dynamic confluence of African, French, Spanish, and Indigenous heritage, deeply expressed through its textured hair traditions.
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A monochrome portrait captures a Black woman's face framed by intricate braided hairstyles. These braids incorporate both tightly secured plaits and free-flowing spiral hair formations. The image highlights ancestral heritage, expressive styling, and the cultural significance of textured hair within beauty standards.

Black Hair Autonomy

Meaning ❉ Black Hair Autonomy is the inherent right to define, style, and present one's textured hair free from external constraint or societal prejudice.
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A striking black and white portrait captures a woman with voluminous textured hair adorned with two prominent white braids accentuating her face. Intense shadows emphasize her features, creating a high-contrast image highlighting heritage beauty and a sophisticated approach to expressive styling through braided elements near hairline.

Hair Bias Laws

Meaning ❉ Hair Bias Laws are legislative measures that prohibit discrimination based on hair texture and styles historically associated with race.
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