I hate the stereotype, but do you agree?

dwsplaymate

New Member
My scanner's broken, I was gonna wait to make this post till I got the new one installed so I could post my pics, but oh well, you all will still get the point. This isn't another one of those mixed threads, god knows I hate those threads, so please if anyone has a response to this let's not make it one of those 'I'm bragging about what I'm mixed with' threads. Anyhow, I am a black female who is mixed with Caucasion. My hair is of African-American texture but I am a natural blonde. I've gotten slacked about my hair color all of my life, growing up 'albino' was my most common nickname. But now that I'm older the comments have changed. I wear hair extensions from time to time, and whenever I do I get a lot of negative comments about it. Now, I just ask people what their problem is. I've found out that a lot of people don't like the idea that black women wear 'blonde weave'. I guess I understand this but I never saw it like that because my hair color is natural, so that makes a difference right, or does it, I guess it just depends on how strongly people feel about 'the blonding of Black America'. I think wearing a 'blonde weave' is fine, ONLY if the person is wearing it because it looks good on them, not because they are trying 'to look more Caucasion'. As much as I hate to say it, I guess I can't fault people for making comments (although they shouldn't judge me), but really, I think deep down we all know that a lot of black women dye their hair blonde and wear blonde weave to look less ethnic and deny their roots. Lighter is not always better, I sure wish Beyonce would understand that, and go back to her natural black hair. Also, I must say, that I think the black women in the entertainment industry have taken the blonde hair too far. What's your opinion? And also, I do hope this thread isn't offensive but this is something that I have wanted to address. thank you.
 

dwsplaymate

New Member
lollll, sorry I was in a hurry as usual, lol, so sorry if I wasn't clear. What is your opinion on 'the blonding of Black America'? (as the article was called that was posted here a long time ago).
 

mermaid

Well-Known Member
Girl, I'd love to see your pics, I'll bet you look fabulous.
I love looking at the little kids with that dusky blonde hair that is from being mixed. I am well known for dying my hair blonde and also for blonde braids. I don't care if people get uppity about "the blonding of black america" whose business is it anyways, why they gotta hate??
I don't color my hair to look more "white" I am just as much white as I am black, so that argument don't wash for me, don't care to hear it. I go blonde because I like the way it looks, I like to stand out and I like the way it deepens my skin tone.
I have been wearing my hair light YEARSSS before Beyonce came along, and now everyone has to make useless comments about me "trying to look like Beyonce", child, please. My hair was blonde before you knew who she was.
I don't think if anyone black wants to be blonde, it's anyone's biz what their reasons are. The same as any other ethnic group. If 90% of the white celebs went with their natural hair color, you wouldn't be seeing all the blondes all over the T.V.
Weren't you asking for Blu Cantrell's blonde color number a while back? Were you trying to darken your color? Don't let the negative comments on blacks with blonde hair make you feel like you need to do anything like that, if you are happy with your color, then just stick with it!!
 

lsubabiedee

New Member
i kinda agree to...but i like a lot of different colors of hair too....i think unless someone has an "addiction" and has to color their hair, that it's ok
 

LuvLiLocks

New Member
Well I say if that is your natural color and you are comfortable with it, just be true to yourself and don't let people get to you. It is true that some people change their hair, etc. to look less ethnic. It is also true that some people make those changes because they think it compliments them. My natural hair color is a dusty brown that is too close to my skin color IMO, so as soon as I was old enough, I rinsed it jet black. Worked for me.
Also, some people really don't know, or care to acknowledge that black people have very diverse skin/hair colors and tones/textures. I almost fainited when I found strawberry blondish-aburnish highlights in my daughters hair
. But then again I know black people(not bi-racial) with grey eyes, red hair, etc.
All this too say, if it is truely you and you like it, be you, if you don't like it, well do what ya gatta do. My only problem comes when people just over kill with the fakeness and look plastic.
 

adrienne0914

Well-Known Member
oh... i guess i don't really have an opinion about it. people need to get up out of other folks' heads, assuming they know their motivation... the same with relaxers. if it's not hurting me, whatever floats your boat...
 

LuvLiLocks

New Member
Come to think of it, I had a phase when I was experimenting with lots of hair color.
I had a short style and my hair was bleached/streaked. Jazzing was my best friend. I had red hot, spice cogniac, honey blond..... and that was around 1995, almost a decade ago.
I wasn't trying to look white either, I just felt like my style really showed up with color.
 

dwsplaymate

New Member
thank you for all of your comments. I agree, it's the motive behind it. My scanner is actually working, I scanned some pics it's just that I don't know how to post them.
 

blue_flower

Well-Known Member
I used to believe that lighter hair was prettier than darker hair and I'm glad that I don't believe that any longer. When I was a college freshman I noticed that all the guys were interested in the girls with blonde/orange hair. Then when I quickly realized that these guys weren't worth a dime and when my hair was damaged from all of the dyeing, I had a change of heart. If I ever decide to have blond/orange hair again it will probably be just to do something different, not to attract anyone. It won't be anytime soon though. I have no problem with anyone bleaching their hair, but when I see so many ethnic women (Shakira, Christina Milian, Beyonce, Regan Gomez Preston, MJB)in the entertainment change to blond hair I think it sends a certain message.
 

Tracy

New Member
what message does someone choosing to wear their hair a certain color send??? What message could haircolor send? And to whom?
 

i12sitonmyhair

Chero-Khoi American
I like the fact that we can do a lot of different things with our hair. In fact, I've experimented with a bunch of different colors myself. There were times when my new hair color looked GOOD (light brown w/blonde highlights)!! But other times...well, I don't even want to talk about those times (tangerine).
 

TBird

Well-Known Member
I believe that some women may just like lighter hair, it may flatter them. Mary J. looks great with all colors of hair to me, but we don't consider her any less 'black' because this week she may be blonde. Some like lil Kim and Jennifer Lopez who may have some image issues lighten in efforts to in some ways deny their ethnicity and who they are. But no hair color can do that. I'm a fan of dark hair. But that's me. I don't go around saying 'ooohh she trying to be white with that blonde weave, who she think she is'. To each his own. There is only one JUDGE and ain't none of us Him. DWSPlaymate, your blonde hair is who you are, never deny that and never ever let other people make you feel you have to. I know your beautiful. People are always going to have something to say and the ones that do are simply this--HATERS!!! And that means they aren't worth your time or thoughts anyway.
 

Dolce_Dawn

New Member
[ QUOTE ]
mermaid said:
Girl, I'd love to see your pics, I'll bet you look fabulous.
I love looking at the little kids with that dusky blonde hair that is from being mixed. I am well known for dying my hair blonde and also for blonde braids. I don't care if people get uppity about "the blonding of black america" whose business is it anyways, why they gotta hate??
I don't color my hair to look more "white" I am just as much white as I am black, so that argument don't wash for me, don't care to hear it. I go blonde because I like the way it looks, I like to stand out and I like the way it deepens my skin tone.
I have been wearing my hair light YEARSSS before Beyonce came along, and now everyone has to make useless comments about me "trying to look like Beyonce", child, please. My hair was blonde before you knew who she was.
I don't think if anyone black wants to be blonde, it's anyone's biz what their reasons are. The same as any other ethnic group. If 90% of the white celebs went with their natural hair color, you wouldn't be seeing all the blondes all over the T.V.
Weren't you asking for Blu Cantrell's blonde color number a while back? Were you trying to darken your color? Don't let the negative comments on blacks with blonde hair make you feel like you need to do anything like that, if you are happy with your color, then just stick with it!!


[/ QUOTE ]

ITA
 

Dolce_Dawn

New Member
[ QUOTE ]
adrienne0914 said:
oh... i guess i don't really have an opinion about it. people need to get up out of other folks' heads, assuming they know their motivation... the same with relaxers. if it's not hurting me, whatever floats your boat...


[/ QUOTE ]



Because our images have been so maligned over the years, we as blk folk tend to over-analyze things too much (as a whole). There's no way someone can tell me that Big Black Bertha who lives in the ghetto of anywhere USA dyed her hair blonde (complemented by thick finger waves) because she's trying to downplay her ethinicity or be white. She would never be able to get away w/fooling anyone. Black women have been BLESSED w/the type of hair that we can do just about anything with. Why shouldn't we? Who cares what a few narrow-minded, oft opinionated think? As long as the chick sporting the color/style is black, it is a blk HAIRSTYLE as far as I'm concerned. There are Aborigines that are natural blondes. I've seen lil blk girls w/red hair! Our hair comes in all shades just like our skin. I'm not going to allow the few to dictate what goes on with my head and then question my actions! PULEEZE!
 

aqualung

New Member
Did the article address blonding as a function of social class? I'll ignore entertainers who must look outrageous to create trends.

Professional black women can't/won't run around looking like Nisi in B*A*P*S, while women who don't work in professional environments can get away with it. I see more blacks with dyed hair in some neighborhoods in/near Boston than in others. Condoleezza Rice won't be blonding any time soon because she wants to be taken seriously.
 

Karonica

New Member
[ QUOTE ]
adrienne0914 said:
oh... i guess i don't really have an opinion about it. people need to get up out of other folks' heads, assuming they know their motivation...


[/ QUOTE ]

Thank you.
 

CharUK

"Honestly, Truly"
I've had blonde braids, I always saw it as a 'dance hall queen' type of thing.

I didn't really give it much thought, I won't be doing it again though, but it worked at the time.

 

sassygirl125

Professional PJ
Black women and weaves and blonde hair don't bother me. Sometimes it looks nice to me, sometimes it doesn't.
But what someone does to their own head and why they do it is their own business, IMO.
 

AJamericanDiva

Well-Known Member
Cute pic, Char... I don't think hair color matters as long as it compliments your features. Heck! White women are dying their own hair blond as well. What's the big deal? As far as my hair goes, if I choose to color or fry it... ain't nobody's business if I do. <sing along>
 

msniq

Member
I have 3 kids all blond so I can understand your thing with being naturally blond and black. I am mixed too so don't be mad at me. You h ave to be happy with you. I went through a whole hair thing when I was younger I wanted long hair. I had and it and cut it. Now I am older and I just cut my hair again but I made a BIG mistake by relaxing it again. Now I am trying to figure out what I am going to do. Do I get a weave or what? I like braids but I know that where I am in life braids are not the best image, if you know what I mean. So I am either whole head weave or perm for the rest of my days!
Be happy with you and do what makes you happy. I am tired of seeing blond artist and the like but not because they are black and blond but because everyone is starting to look the same and that sucks!
 

model_chick717

New Member
It bothers me that there is this thought that if a black woman dyes her hair blond--that mean she is trying to look white. How silly is that. If anything--she just looks like a black woman with blond hair. I mean look at MJB or Janice Combs (Puffy's mom)--NO ONE could say that either of them is looking "whiter" with all that blond hair.
It's just a style.

I think light hair in some ways, enhances a style. Like for me. My hair is always kind of wild and big, and when my hair was black, sometimes it looked like I needed to do something with my head. haha
But when I died my hair a reddish-auburn color, it created a "look". I could leave the house with my hair bushy as ever--but it looked more like a style because the color gave it a "look"....does this make any sense? Any lighten-haired ladies know what I'm talking about?
 

LuvLiLocks

New Member
[ QUOTE ]
model_chick717 said:
It bothers me that there is this thought that if a black woman dyes her hair blond--that mean she is trying to look white. How silly is that. If anything--she just looks like a black woman with blond hair. I mean look at MJB or Janice Combs (Puffy's mom)--NO ONE could say that either of them is looking "whiter" with all that blond hair.
It's just a style.

I think light hair in some ways, enhances a style. Like for me. My hair is always kind of wild and big, and when my hair was black, sometimes it looked like I needed to do something with my head. haha
But when I died my hair a reddish-auburn color, it created a "look". I could leave the house with my hair bushy as ever--but it looked more like a style because the color gave it a "look"....does this make any sense? Any lighten-haired ladies know what I'm talking about?

[/ QUOTE ]
Thats what I said Model. My short cut styles seemed to come alive when I had "colour" in my hair.
 

buffalosoldier

New Member
Your hair sounds really lovely dwsplaymate
Be proud of it cos it is a part of you and what God gave you.
I used to dye mine honey blonde and golden bronze and why ? Because I wanted to..I always wanted to try black but I cant carry off really dark hair colours at all. I look sick.
As for the 'blonding of black america'..give me a break !!! Absolute B.S.
 

buffalosoldier

New Member
[ QUOTE ]
CharUK said:
I've had blonde braids, I always saw it as a 'dance hall queen' type of thing.

I didn't really give it much thought, I won't be doing it again though, but it worked at the time.



[/ QUOTE ]


Go on Char !!!!
"She a dancehall queen for life..And she looks like dynamite"
 

iCandey

New Member
i think that lighter hair on people can bring out their face more but too light like Serena and MJB at times is tacky...but in general I have never equated it with trying to be white...just a fashion choice ...I think some people may be taking hair a bit too seriously...
 

kitkat3ny

New Member
I think everyone should have the right to do what they want to do. The problem w/ people not liking black women to have blonde weavesor hair is because they are judging them. Thinking that they are trying to be something that they are not. Once people stop judging and let others be, the world would be a happier place.

Also, I feel some are threaten to see a black women w/ blonde died hair, esp if she's really light skinned. What are they afraid of? Beats me, but it just is.

Why do African American women have to always be so different from our sisters of other race and colors. We are just as good as anyone, and I refuse to be put into this "but you are black, you can't do that" box.

Kat
 

Sascha

Stay at home Mommy
I really feel people should do whatever they want to their hair. natural, relaxed, blue, blond...whatever. I was born blonde, have been blonde all my life. I have never dyed my hair (my mom would kill me) but it has gotten darker as I have gotten older, stopped using chemicals, and stay inside more often. I have recieved comments all my life about not really being black. When I was younger and I would go to the salon to get my hair touched up I would always get asked "your hair is a beautiful color! What number is it" when they would find out it was natural there was always a snippity comment to follow. I have learned to just be me and not think about what people think about me. You can't help whats growing out of your head so why care what other people think just be you


and just to add, I always wanted my hair to be darker because my hair doesn't reflect light...o well....
 
Top