Wear Your CROWN: How Racial Hair Discrimination Impacts the Career Advancement of Black Women in Corporate America

Abstract

This research explored the intersection of being Black, a woman, and wearing natural hair in a leadership role through the lens of intersectionality and phenomenology. This qualitative phenomenological research study used the theoretical framework of intersectionality and in-depth interviews to explore racial hair discrimination, current employment practices, and legislation that influence leadership advancement opportunities of 10 Black women working in corporate America. The participants interviewed provided a glimpse of the daunting measures Black women must employ in the workplace to navigate the discrimination practices experienced when wearing their natural hair. The findings in this study support the proposition that racial discrimination against wearing natural hair negatively affects the availability of professional opportunities to Black women as well as their career trajectories and overall self-esteem. The hope for the future is that federal legislation such as the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act will ensure that Black women may be able to have one less employment barrier to overcome.