Describe The Different Types Of Hair In African American

They go from straight to wavy to their natural state a lot. Whitney Bellinger (2007) explains in her article why African American of the younger generation use the term “good hair” in order to understand why they change there out of the “natural” state. Throughout this research conduct she gives more details towards the women no longer want to stay towards the historical norms wanting to have a White appearance but states it “claim they change it because their hair’s chemical make-up time, ease of styling and the creation and perpetuation of healthy hair.” (Bellinger, 2007, p. 63) Some don’t change their hair because of racial pride taught by their mothers. An example of a way young women change their hair was with chemicals such as relaxers or perms and color dye. While conducting this research Bellinger also discover the main reason why the younger generation change their hairstyle is because seeing their parents change their hairstyles. The older generation then believed if they had “impression of Caucasian hair” they would be promoted in the job force (Bellinger, 2007, p.

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

It is apparent from the black female actresses that Chris Rock interviewed, like Nia Long, that black women are not aware of what Asian women go through in order to provide black women with straight hair. During this scene, it is revealed that many Indian women often give up their hair for religious purposes. However, this is not always the case. Some Indian women are often subjected to having their hair cut off and stolen. This is how black women in the United States are getting their hair, and it is unfortunate that some Indian women are being victimized in order to help black women assimilate to Western ideologies. Therefore, black women are appropriating the Asian culture whether they know it or not. They are trying to obtain this straight hair that society has deemed as good hair. Thus, they are not considering what Asian women or Asian workers are going through in order to get them this hair. However, I cannot completely blame black women for victimizing and appropriating Asians. This appropriation is the result of society convincing black women that their hair is not good enough. Hence, societal notions of what good hair looks like causes black women to lose self-confidence in their natural

The attitudes and arguments towards and against black hair in “Balm” by Lonnae O’Neal Parker and “My First Conk” by Malcolm X are contingent because they express two distinct views on black hair. Malcolm X pleads that manipulation of our hair by straightening or covering by wig is self- degradation. While Parker believes that the time she spent doing her daughters hair is translated to the love she has for them. This time not only assures the girls that they have a loving mother, it assures Parker that she could send them out into a world that would appreciate them because they had someone who put time (love) into the girls. Parker is aware of the scary truth that our worth by outside world is one dimensional and fuel by aesthetics. Both Lonnae O’Neal Parker and Malcolm X have analyze the importance of hair in the black community. Parker praises the “black hair ritual” while Malcolm criticizes it. Even though their topics differ, both essays share the act of taming natural hair, and the motifs of love and pain

Most African American women get their hair advice from low class salon who are self-taught. Low class salons have no knowledge of black women's natural hair texture nor natural hair styles that will protect their hair to keep it from breaking off. These salons use hair relaxer products on their African American clients because it is a fast process and are able to quickly move on to the next client. However, African American woman does not have the option to choose between a relaxer or a protective hair style when dealing with these salons, As a matter of fact, The New York Times mentions, plenty of salons are educating themselves on natural hair styles. “Many wear their twist, locks or teenie-weenie Afros”,” proud to have not given in to the

They were taken from their home and forced to work as slaves in a place they have never seen before. They were dehumanized and ripped of their culture by getting their hair shaved or cut off, trying to make them forget where they came from and who they were. After having to work under the hot sun, in a field, they never had time to take care of their hair nor did not have the same products that they have always used, so they were forced to wear scarves and forget about taking care of their hair. Due to not being able to properly take are of their hair, African American women hair were mocked and turned into jokes, which lately turned into not being social acceptable due to their hair. Resulting in Madame C.J Walker creating a cream to turn their hair from kinky curls to bone straight. Fortunately, years later African American women waned a change and felt that their hair should not be hidden. Slowly but surely African American women started to follow this wave and started to become natural, but another obstacle stood in their way, learning what to do and getting ahold of the needed items. Social media was the only way to gain the information that was needed to learn how to properly take care of their hair. Without the use of social media, it would be difficult for African Americans to get the natural hair care products that they need because in major department stores, the sections for black hair is very vague and even if they did have the item one was looking for, it is usually not in stock. More research should be done to understand why is it still difficult in some areas, Nationwide, for African Americans to get access to the hair care products that they need but not the same for other hair types? The sales for natural hair products are growing online, yet still not occurring in stores. Why is

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

When you get a hairstyle you feel like a completely new individual. It just makes you feel clean/new as it were. Numerous men take pride in There are numerous approaches to trim an African American guys hair. Additionally there various styles. To honestly trim a dull men's hair, you have to grasp the hair's organization and how it responds to being trimmed. Besides, you review some crucial frameworks in African American barbering, and a little practice, you can give course book quality hairdos to even the most persnickety supporters of your dull demographic.

Hair is a basic element of most of our lives, so to many, hair is a trivial thing. However, the fact that we live in a social climate that routinely rejects aspects of communities of color, hair has come to be an increasingly symbolic piece of our racial identities. This is especially true for the black community in the United States. After generations of countering Eurocentric ideologies surrounding acceptability, members of the black community are beginning to embrace the acceptance of their own images despite cultural messages that continue to promote the opposite. In an article written by Khalea Underwood of Refinery29, she chronicles her experiences with having her hair touched by a white

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.

African Americans’ hair is too coarse compared to European Americans, and it is very had to style and achieve the same look as other European Americans. It is true that African Americans’ hair is hard to style, but this does not mean it is impossible to do. The best way to refute all these stereotypes is through the success stories of all the African American ballet dancers. Louis Johnson was a freelance ballet dancer, and he was short and exiting.

African American hair is the most complex hair in the world to style because of texture. Most Caucasian, Hispanic or Asian salons don’t have the education or experience to style African American hair. Because of that, African American salon professionals will survive any economy due to demand. The creativity of African American hair styling has erupted into a forever changing and growing industry.

When I once decided to take out my protective style and wear my hair in its natural state, I received several negative remarks. As a young black female I was bothered and wondered why. I wondered why I was receiving so many negative remarks especially from my fellow Black women. An individual went as far to tell me “your hair looks nice but do not wear that to a job interview”. Hair and the styling of it has been a staple of the Black community for centuries. In African American culture, an individual’s hair spoke volumes about that person. By looking at a person’s hair, one could tell where that person was from, what tribe he or she was a member of and even the status within that tribe. As time progressed the influence and importance of hair

Over the course of the last few years the volume of information on how to take care of black hair has grown exponentially. Social media has provided us with easy access to this information and in response black hair has become the rave. Having African American hair is an exciting journey. It’s a marathon and not a sprint so no matter how long you’ve had your black hair in its natural state you will continue to learn and mature in the ways you take care of it. Here are the top 5 things you absolutely need to know about caring for black hair.

“You would look so much prettier with your hair straight!” is a comment my sister of mixed descent has been receiving from her classmates since childhood. Straight hair is a Eurocentric beauty standard that has been pushed onto my lighter skinned sister for most of her life. I am of a darker complexion however and therefore am complimented often on my naturally curly hair. This leads to the question; do black beauty standards differ from white ones? The answer to this query is explored in Maxine Craig’s work Ain’t I a Beauty Queen? She claims that in many regards, though not all, the answer is yes. While Craig does a good job of defining the historical moments that lead to black beauty standards today, she lacks an explanation as to why darker skin tones are stigmatized the way they are and neither does she factor in how many people consider personality when determining beauty.