How do you feel about white women being a part of the natural hair community?

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Well-Known Member
Her basic framework was this:

Black women are mad at me. Here's why: (posts 1-10 of people bashing her). It's horrible and awful what Black women and girls go through every day of their lives since birth...BUT I'm white and I went through something horrible once with my hair so I deserve to be on a Black hair site because natural is in the dictionary. Anything that's for Black women is surely for me too. When did they get to have something of their own in this country?[/I]

Her complete dismissal and then turning to playing the victim is not eloquent. It's insulting that she even attempted to verbalize her plight as the same as Black girls and women, EVEN after it was clearly spelled out for her. She could just put her hair in one long braid or a bun and magically be accepted again. Not so for Black women.


What does this mean?
 

greenandchic

Well-Known Member
I haven't read all of the responses yet but I agree that their "curly hair struggles" has nothing to do with us. Though I am happy for Curly Nikki's success in the blogosphere, something about her approach rubs me the wrong way and has for quite a while.

White women with black/biracial children (birth or adoption) looking for information on black hair is one thing. Even the one-off white person with 4a hair is all good but the 3a white women has plenty of other places to go. :look: I know there is NaturallyCurly but even NC is not for everyone. :lol:

I quizzed my (white) husband about this and even he wondered the same thing: why was she featured on a black hair site? Curly Nikki's site, I thought, was a spin-off of NC for women with tightly curly/kinky hair.
 

Channy31

New Member
I have a few thoughts, if a black person with 3a hair came here we would be accepting(?), if a white person with 3a hair came here we would not(?) Which seems odd to me.


In the same breath, the white women wouldn't understand a lot of the issues we, as black/mixed race people face when it comes to natural hair imo. I don't explain the natural hair world to my white friends because they won't be able to relate in the same way, whether or not they have as curly/ curlier hair than me.


Idk its a hard one.
 

JaneBond007

New Member
To who ever posted that blog response, thanks. Here's the problem for me and these are not in my words:

  • "No one cares about you being white. People feel that you co-opted something that is inherently black. Black women have been told for centuries that their hair is ugly/nappy/unkempt/unacceptable/unprofessional in it's natural state. They need to fix it to be accepted. They need to damage it for it to be beautiful. For you to come over all chipper and say, 'I just took my hair out of a bun and stopped braiding it. YAY! Natural now!' is a slap in the face to every black woman who has been told (and is still being told) that her hair is ugly/nappy/unkempt/unacceptable/unprofessional simply because it isn't wavy or straight."

And now here is the deflection of the issue and the attempt to sway the opinion because one is excluded:

  • I'm not denying my privilege. And I'm not trying to upstage other women's struggles, or erase the connotations of the natural hair movement with African American women.It 's horrible that little girls are suspended from school because of their hairstyle; it's awful to think that women are told their natural hair is not professional. The military shouldn't have a place in telling women that styles like braids and locs are not permitted. These things all happened, but it doesn't mean other women of other races don't struggle because of their hair as well. But I've been calling my hair natural for years.

    Lots of girls of different races who have looser textures struggle with accepting their natural hair as well. My story is not a story of a large struggle, and I tried not to paint it that way, but I have subscribers who come to me after they've relaxed or straightened their hair for years! It's just as life-changing and uplifting when those girls learn to embrace their natural hair... To me natural hair is about hair, not race or texture. I understand that natural hair is often associated with black women, but other women have a claim to the term as well. The term is not specific to any race.


Well, if she were not trying to deny HERSELF privilege, that would have been the end of the rant, right? Going to a corner and shutting up. I have no problem with this whole thing being multi-ethnic. However, there is a point well-made here about how she is behaving. Without this blog post, I would never have known. And I just don't keep up with all this politics in hair online. But that is suspect and "privilegy" because she doesn't want to concede.
 

bhndbrwneyes

Well-Known Member
I don't quite understand the purpose and reasoning. :look:

Next, we should have a WET tv station I guess. :lachen: or HWCUs (oh but we already have those...they're called regla tv and regla schools).


^^this

I thought I was the only one. I hate going on instagram and searching #naturalhair and a white girl who just got out the shower with somewhat wavy hair is taking a selfie. Of course her hair is natural. Even if she were to have straightened her hair it would be considered natural. But the "natural hair community" has a different meaning to me. To me it means products, styles, tools, and advice for ethnic hair types, a population that is (historically) known to chemically adjust the structure of the hair shaft via relaxers. It is a community of pride and support. Now, I know some white women get perms to make their hair curly...If they spent 20 years on the creamy crack and are just now breaking free and taking pride in their "natural" hair then good for them. But don't taint those hashtags!
 

Subscribe

Well-Known Member
Don't know about you but in the end I want to hear "well done", so I will try to be the bigger person.

Who do you want to hear that from? Cause a lot of black people between 1650 - to 1850 were patted on the back and told "well done".

You think we as a people have gotten this far because we were the bigger person? :nono:
 

Saludable84

Better Late Than Ugly
It strikes me as odd.

I used to hear about curly Nikki being a reference for so many bloggers. I went on her blog one day and I became disinterested that quick. Why? I felt like she was for curly hair and really kinky hair which is what I have. That's how I found other bloggers. That also when I started noticing that even with the natural hair movement, there was still segregation between our own people.

I read through some of the thread yesterday and today and my biggest issue is not with a WW but instead the fact that we never have anything of our own. Granted, black people aren't only natural, but when we rise ourselves up, and the natural hair movement has been a big step in our community even if everyone doesn't contribute by not being natural, it's just sad that somehow the WP take it from us. It's hard for our community to come up and for once we are being seen for who we are and after the struggle we had to make for the hair care business to turn around and support OUR decision, now this happens. At the end of the day, it's just not fair to us that we can have nothing.
 

GoldenRule

Well-Known Member
When she can predict what horrifying event occurs when walking down the boardwalk on a date with your fly press and curl blowing in the wind, 10 blocks away from your automobile when you feel it -- a single fat juicy raindrop. What happens next?

If she answers :roadrunner:, maybe we should welcome her.

If she thinks you just smooth back it into a magic bun, she should K.I.M.
 

GoldenRule

Well-Known Member
If she know what the phrase, "Hold your ear, baby..." refers to maybe we should welcome her.

If the three letters R I O make her hair curl back into the scalp to protect itself, she'll be a great fit I think!

Lastly, the clack clack clack of the curling iron hot off the stove. If she can correctly identify that sound in conjunction with the accompanying sizzle of grease DING DING DING! We have a new member of the natural hair community!!
 

ctosha

Well-Known Member
OT: I happen to see an Article regarding the BET Awards and the press was dissing Nikki Minaj. (I probably spelled her name wrong). But I understood perfectly why Ms. Minaj did what she did and said what she said at the BET Awards about that White Girl (wannabe rapper) Because they try to come in on everything we have and try to take over.
All. Of . THIS

How do I feel about white women being apart of the natural hair movement ? Easy they don't need to be apart of it period. Why is it they always Wanna fas up in our sh*t? Let us be and let us have something for ourselves.
 
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Stormy

Well-Known Member
LHCF was created because we were pretty much kicked off the white womens board. We all used to post on long hair forum and they were really crappy with the black women. Then they suggested we get our own sub-forum, then they didn't want us there either so Beverly created this board for us. Now they want to sing kumbayah? They have zero desire to "understand" our hair other than to assure themselves that theirs is more desirable...lol. nah, they can stay in their lane IMO.

:eek: I had noooo idea! And here I was thinking well I can see both sides.
BUT NOW... having read this AND her response I say :swearing:NOOOOO!
And why now anyway? Especially when she saw the first question didn't even pertain to her. Oh, and as she said "It's just hair." :rolleyes: Probably wanted to jump on board because the natural hair movement is so popular and now getting so much media attention.
 
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Healthb4Length

New Member
LHCF was created because we were pretty much kicked off the white womens board. We all used to post on long hair forum and they were really crappy with the black women. Then they suggested we get our own sub-forum, then they didn't want us there either so Beverly created this board for us. Now they want to sing kumbayah? They have zero desire to "understand" our hair other than to assure themselves that theirs is more desirable...lol. nah, they can stay in their lane IMO.


Yes GoldenRule, I remember quite well. I was a member lurking over on the "other site" prior to LHCF but the info seamed really inadequate. I was also a member of Blackwomenshairandbody (or something like that:lol:) on Yahoo. This was around 1999-00, when LHCF started it was so refreshing to say the least. They had no info over on "other site" and I got the sense that I was NOT welcomed.
 

GoldenRule

Well-Known Member
Yes GoldenRule, I remember quite well. I was a member lurking over on the "other site" prior to LHCF but the info seamed really inadequate. I was also a member of Blackwomenshairandbody (or something like that:lol:) on Yahoo. This was around 1999-00, when LHCF started it was so refreshing to say the least. They had no info over on "other site" and I got the sense that I was NOT welcomed.

Yeah...all they talked about was MONOI oil, what shampoos smelled the best and the cutest scrunchies. I mean, a lot of them already had really long hair. There isn't much you can do to it once it's that long.
 

Kilacurlz

Well-Known Member
My answer depends on whether or not Lorraine Massey was the original person to bring conditioner washing into the natural mainstream.

This really is neither here nor there but I will say that in the early nineties I was reading an article written by a black personal trainer. She started talking about working out, sweating, black women washing their hair everyday with shampoo--not good, etc. She said just wash your hair with conditioner after working out because shampoo was too harsh on the hair. She didn't mention sulfates or cones but from that time I started washing with conditioner.

Fast forward 15 years and it took me FOREVER to figure out what this cowashing business was about! Anyway, I don't know when LM came out with her CG advice but I suspect cowashing didn't originate with her. As far as mainstream, yes, I guess it could have been her.
 

SlimPickinz

Summer where are you?
southerncitygirl my hair is giving me trouble. I'm gonna start using grease on my hair and see if it will do better while curly & bunned.

& I think I have to work on Friday. My employer hasn't closed the site yet :/ but I may head to the beach with my friends & some BBQ's to attend. Nothing major. What about you? Leaving the city???
 

Daernyris

Well-Known Member
Why is it that black folks always have to play nice? Why must we be the bigger person?

^^^ @ this, cause I can assure you ain't nobody playing nice with us. I DON'T CARE HOW HARD THEY GRINNING!!! When we learn and understand this, we will be in a much better place.
 

Healthb4Length

New Member
Yeah...all they talked about was MONOI oil, what shampoos smelled the best and the cutest scrunchies. I mean, a lot of them already had really long hair. There isn't much you can do to it once it's that long.


Uh oh, that and Louise Marie Longhairs and her horn combs. Not gonna lie I did buy :lol: they're sitting in my hair toys junkyard now.
 

curlytwirly06

Well-Known Member
So that woman who started all this controversy is straight up disrespecting black women now. Someone tweeted that they did not know that natural hair was such a sensitive topic and she replied with how she does not understand "those people" and they are "insecure haters" with nothing better to do. She is trolling now on her facebook page and saying how racist and angry black women are. I actually took some time to read through the mess. I cant believe this smh. She has nerve.
 

LaViolette

Newly Natural :)
She knew damn well what she was doing! She started this for kicks and giggles, using her privilege to cause this divisiveness for some petty attention. Smh..

 

Aviah

Well-Known Member
I didn't read the article, but what is racially exclusive about wearing your hair as is? Most people regardless of race alter their hair in some fashion.
 

Honey Bee

Well-Known Member
Who do you want to hear that from? Cause a lot of black people between 1650 - to 1850 were patted on the back and told "well done".

You think we as a people have gotten this far because we were the bigger person? :nono:
Subscribe, It's a reference to a spiritual, iirc. God would be the one saying it, not slave masters and such.
 

MystiqueBabe

New Member
I don't really see a problem with it as long as they respect us. Aren't there even some latina woman in the natural community? Some white woman have kids with hair similar to ours and I don't see anything wrong with them seeking advice or whatever, again as long as they are respectful.

I have just always found it funny that every time there is an event or cause for black or non-white races, white people ALWAYS seem to find their way in there or give there 2 cent. It almost never fails.:lachen:
 
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