BOISE, Idaho — Editor's note: The video above this article was published March 8, when the women initially filed the federal lawsuit.
An Idaho lawmaker has introduced a bill that would lift the licensing requirements for professional hair braiders after three women filed a federal lawsuit over the braiding rules.
Tedy Okech, Charlotte Amoussou and Sonia Ekemon have a combined 60 years of experience practicing African-style hair braiding, but under the current state law, they are unable to charge for their services.
Idaho is one of five states that still require cosmetology licenses for professional hair braiding.
The licenses require 1,600 hours of training and can cost up to $20,000, even though cosmetology schools aren’t required to teach braiding techniques for naturally textured hair.
The women, who are all Black, filed the lawsuit against the Idaho Barber and Cosmetology Services Licensing Board in Boise’s U.S. District Court on Tuesday.
The lawsuit alleges that requiring braiders to get a license in an unrelated profession is unconstitutional, as it infringes on the right to earn an honest living, and that the Constitution does not allow the government to impose onerous licensing requirements on something as "safe and common as braiding hair".
Cosmetology training largely focuses on how to cut, color and chemically treat hair. Only two of 110 questions on the written cosmetology exam are on braiding, and the practical exam doesn’t cover the topic at all, according to the Institute for Justice.
The Institute for Justice has worked to end braiding license requirements in 31 states through lawsuits and legislation.
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