Black Hair : The Untold Story

African American women's health, hair politics, and physical activities. Studies show that African American women tend to pay more attention to their hair instead of their health issues. Researches came up with a theoretical argument to figure out why hair matter for some women. They discover that hair presents a barrier to exercise in that the time and economic restrictions involved in maintaining a hairstyle post exercise for physical activity as prohibitive. This study provides some perception about the relationship between hair and health for African American women and suggests that extra attention is justified to address views about beauty ideals and hairstyles as a barrier to exercise (Versey, 2014, p. 2015)

There has been a notable amount of conversation on the internet on the rebirth of the natural hair movement. Cherise Luter (2014) states that despite afros and the natural hair movement not being a new concept (i.e. the Black Power Movement), it has gone under what she calls a “refreshing change”. Furthermore, what used to be “I’m black and I’m proud”, has been replaced with “I’m me and I’m proud” (Luter 2016). So, what is the natural hair movement? It is defined as a movement where black women decide to not conform to the social norms of chemically altering their hair and wearing it in its natural, kinky, or curled state (Joignot 2015). The movement could also be considered as an outlet for black women to display their racial and cultural pride or to articulate their “political position (Brown 2014:297). However, simply the terminology “movement” is something that should be shocking to many. There is a great amount of historical context behind the continuous influence Eurocentric beauty ideals have had on black women for centuries. According to Nadia Brown (2014), Black natural hair throughout history has proven to be recognized as “either unintended or intended personal and political statements” (298). the beauty standard in Western society which praises European hair textures, has influenced many black women to be critical of other black women who choose to chemically straighten their hair, accusing them of being subservient to the dominant and pervasive racist

Chris Rock’s documentary, Good Hair, investigates the notion of what good hair is. Dominant society views good hair as straight or essentially caucasian hair. This is not only problematic to the self-esteem and confidence of black women, but it can also cause black women to appropriate Asian culture. Black women unfortunately take advantage of Asian culture in search of what society believes is good hair. Many black women wear weaves in order to align to what society believes is good hair. However, when they buy this hair, they do not realize what Asians go through. Likewise, Asians who give up their hair do not know where or who this hair will be going to. Thus, this desire for good hair further perpetuates the lack of understanding that black

The researcher interview with African American women with natural hair and examination of social media. The researchers explain that in the natural hair community a curl texture is more attractive than kinky hair texture and lengthier hair more desirable than short hair; also having manageable hair is dynamic to African American women’s effective performances of Black femininity. This research expands the discourse in African American Studies that theorizes the experiences of African American women with natural hair compared to those of African American women with relaxed hair such as perms (Howard, 2015, p.

* A woman who wears an afro may be perceived as a trouble maker at work and ghetto because of her hair.

Since the early 1900s, Black women have had a fascination with their hair. More explicitly, they have had a fascination with straightening their hair. The need to be accepted by the majority class has caused them to do so. Though the image of straight hair as being better than coarse hair still hasn’t left the Black community, there has been a surge of non straight hairstyles since the nineteen sixties. Wearing more natural hairstyles, which ironically enough include ‘weaves’ and ‘hair extensions’ has been considered to be more empowered and more enlightened. However, this image comes with a price, and though it appears the ‘natural’ hairstyle movement has advanced Black women, it has actually set

The end of slavery bought new challenges for everyone, and the same feelings and views associated with African or African-American people before, were still there (A Look Back at the Black Hair Story).

In today’s society, we live in a heavily social media world that blurs The lines between heritage and trends. The question often arises if someone is solely trying to imitate something without paying homage to other or stealing it without giving the entitled background of where it originated from. What caused these hairstyles that are rooted from Africa to somehow be manipulated and transition to America. The alteration affects the way we view appropriation and what is considered to be a personal identity of a specific background. Our personal identity is connected to the folkloric aspect of traditional customs that are passed on for generations to generation. Having the customs gives people a sense of roots to grow from and always have something to apply in their daily life. It’s important to have something to look onto for guidance having folkloric customs of tradition Africa hairstyles gives that to African American people.

Although I do agree with both of these statements. I also believe that as African Americans are rebelling against the norm and embracing their culture there has also been a rise in culture appropriation. Celebrities often wear things or do things which have usually have been associated negatively with a certain culture. For example, individual who styles their hair in cornrows. African Americans were often ridiculed for wear in their hair in this fashion so when individuals of the same group who were the ones that deemed that hairstyle inappropriate wear and do not acknowledge the struggle of it can be strange. More women and men are wearing their hair natural but I also have seen more people who do not have naturally curly hair trying to change

We as black girls were and still are teased for our “unusual” features. Cloaks of shame are draped around our bodies and self-hate shatters our identity. It is insane, because when our white counterparts sport our anomalies it is exotic and chic. They adopt our culture and make it their own. For example, if a white man were to decide to grow dreadlocks, mind you, this is a popular hairstyle in the black community; he is able to wear them without abiding the obstacles that a black man with dreadlocks would face. The white man is not called a thug nor is he is he labeled a criminal, but the black man is. Moreover, within the past year, cornrows or french braids have become more popular in the white community. The problem is not just a matter of copying the hairstyle. Similar to fashion, beauty has a historical context and in the black community cornrows has added a layer of

Hair as a symbol of virility for men and attractiveness for women is found in widely separated cultures throughout the ages and in all parts of the world. It is surprising to find such a difference of meaning between women and

Not much research has arose pertaining to hair and its effects on perception. Some of the few studies that have been done have focused on hair color, but not much is known about the effects of hair style and texture. Fink et. al. (2016) conducted a study in which one of their experiments focused specifically on how different hairstyles can affect the way individuals perceive age, health, and attractiveness. In their results they found that straight hair was perceived more positively overall compared to other hair styles. Another study that supported these finding was one conducted by Opie and Phillips (2015). They found that models with afrocentric hairstyles were more negatively rated in comparison to those with eurocentric hairstyles when

Across the African diaspora hair is an important part of life and because it is so vastly different from other races, it has to be maintained differently. Maintenance includes cornrows, dreadlocks, twists, and various sorts of braids if not worn in the natural texture. For years when a woman wore cornrows she was considered ghetto and unprofessional. However, when nonblack women such as the Kardashians recently began wearing cornrows or modify their hair into afros or dreadlocks, it is considered edgy and socially acceptable. These women are given praise for starting new trends that have existed for years; meanwhile the originators have been denied access to their own culture without criticism from outsiders. Hair might not sound like a colossal issue, but there are teenage girls protesting in Pretoria, South Africa to wear their hair in the way it grows naturally from the scalp because school only recognizes straight hair as “wearable and tidy”. This is not an isolated event, many men and women of the African diaspora, including Afro-Latinas, are denied employment or education simply because their hair does not naturally fit into Eurocentric beauty standards. This is where cultural appropriation exposes itself as harmful. When a trait that is associated with a less privileged group is taken by someone with a more privileged background, negative stereotypes and

African American women have always be shamed for their coarse and coily hair. This biological “imperfection” has led to African American women's desire for straight and smooth hair. This led to African American women’s “never ending battle of straightening combs, permanents, relaxers, and anything that would promise straight hair” (Camp 697). African American women’s natural hair was considered to be “bedhead” and viewed as unkempt. African American women began covering their hair when it was not straightened to avoid being criticized for who they naturally

According to Cascio (2016), “law was passed to guarantee that people would be considered for jobs not on the basis of the color of their skin, their religion, their gender, or their national origin, but rather on the basis of the abilities and talents that are necessary to perform a job.” (p.76) So if dreads usually go hand and hand with people of African descent discrimination is occurring based on race. Growing up in a black community I saw firsthand the negative perception or stereotype that people with dreads endured. I one point in my life I wanted to grow dreads because some of my favorite athletes and entertainers had dreads but my mom told me if I can find one successful person with dreads outside of the entertainment industry then I could get them and I searched and searched but couldn’t find one leading individual in corporate America that had dreads. So that goes on to prove that opportunities are not being given to people with this hairstyle because of the negative perception but tattoos are becoming more common in the work place although they were once considered unprofessional and the biker stereotype. This is no longer the case for tattoos so why can’t hire officials or anyone else who feels as though it is ok to discriminate against someone with dreads. Unequal treatment is being given to people with dreads because although they may be qualified for the job it