“If a person of color wants to embrace their cultural identity by wearing their hair in a certain style, they should be free to do so without fear of prejudice,” said lawmaker Verlina Reynolds-Jackson, who sponsored the bill. “No one should be told to straighten, cut or change their hair in any way to meet certain norms. It’s time we enshrine these values into our law.” New Jersey, the third state with a hair discrimination ban, modeled its legislation after California’s Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act , or CROWN.