Legislation

Beauty Beyond Bars, California Lawmakers Introduce Legislation to Ensure Incarcerated People of Color Have Access to Suitable Hair Products

Friday, January 19 (Sacramento, CA) — Assemblymember Tina McKinnor (D-Ingelwood), Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Culver City) and Senator Steven Bradford, with support from Beauty Beyond Bars, introduced legislation to empower incarcerated individuals in California through beauty and hygiene products.

The landmark proposal, the Culturally-Competent Hair Care Act (AB-1875), would require the implementation of culturally-competent hair care products at California correctional facilities, mandating items such as sulfate-free shampoos and conditioners to be sold at canteens. While past California legislation (SB-474) has addressed price gouging in correctional facility’s canteens, this bill addresses the limited product selection that disproportionately impacts Black and Brown individuals. Current California regulations apply almost exclusively to Black and Brown hair, mandating that any inmate “with hair/facial hair styles, including but not limited to braids, cornrows, ponytails, or dreadlocks, shall be required to unbraid, undo, or take down their hair, as applicable for thorough inspections.

In 2019, Senator Holly Mitchell authored the Creating a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act, banning discrimination of natural hair by employers and public education institutions. AB-1875 would extend such protections to correctional facilities and rehabilitative institutions. It is a first step towards humanizing the living conditions of incarcerated people.

"I recognized the need for beauty and hygiene accessibility in correctional facilities during my interviews with formerly incarcerated people," said Beauty Beyond Bars Executive Director Lea Nepomuceno. "I was shocked by people's accounts of DIY toiletries, with many exchanging food for components needed to create shampoo, makeup, and soap. The more interviews I conducted, the more evident it became that beauty is not a matter of vanity, it's a matter of survival. And for the over one million incarcerated people in America, it's getting increasingly difficult to survive."