New Development for Black Man Whose Dreads Were Shaved Off by Prison Officers

In yet another instance of Black hair being policed, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case of Damon Landor, a devoted Rastafarian whose dreadlocks were shorn by prison officials in 2020. This comes after Landor, who was serving a five-month sentence for drug-related charges at Louisiana’s Raymond Laborde Correction Center, filed a lawsuit arguing that the incident violated his religious expression.

Monday, the Supreme Court agreed to take up the case of Landor, who filed a lawsuit based on the 2020 incident when he had his dreadlocks cut off by prison officials in the Correction Center. There, he was serving a five-month sentence for drug-related charges, per NBC News.

His suit says he provided a copy of a court ruling that allowed practicing Rastafarians to keep their locs due to their religious practice of growing their hair. However, his wishes were dismissed and he was handcuffed to a chair for a clean shave.

Landor filed his suit upon his release from prison, arguing that his locs should have been protected under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act. Since then, Louisiana Attorney General Elizabeth Murrill stated new changes were made to ensure this doesn’t happen again to another Rastafarian. However, the report says she challenged the possibility of him being able to claim monetary damages. Both a federal judge and appeals judge also ruled against his claim for damages, per court documents. However, the Supreme Court decided to hear the case.

Landor’s case could have major implications on how hair is protected legally for inmates. The CROWN Act, aimed toward creating statutory protections for hair based on race (not religion), is still fighting its way through national legislation. Though Landor’s case is focused on defending his religion instead of arguing racial discrimination, could his argument still thrust hair protections to the next level for Black inmates in general? The Root asked CROWN Act Champion and scholar Dr. Adjoa B. Asamoah to weigh in.

Source: New Development for Black Man Whose Dreads Were Shaved Off by Prison Officers