New Jersey Bans Hairstyle Bias Connected to Race

New Jersey is the third state to ban workplace bias based on race-associated hairstyles and textures, after Gov. Phil Murphy signed the legislation into law Dec. 19.

The Democratic governor signed the bill, S-3945, three days after it won nearly unanimous passage from the state Assembly and Senate. Effective immediately, the new law expands the definition of race in the state’s anti-discrimination law to include “traits historically associated with race, including, but not limited to, hair texture, hair type, and protective hairstyles.”

California and New York earlier this year became the first states to enact laws specifically banning hairstyle-based ...