The Natural Hair Movement

[longhairlover]

**Disclaimer: these are just my thoughts I wanted to share not dissing anyone for how they wear their hair**

I found this article about the history of black hair and hair care. Now I guess i'm ignorant because I never thought of relaxers or wearing your hair straight was a way to imitate or mimic white folks (silly me I know). I just thought relaxers were a way to help us deal with variety of textures and make it more manageable but maybe I was wrong .

Excerpt from what I was reading online:

"Many blacks argue that imitating European standards of beauty and grooming was necessary for blacks to be accepted by white culture, especially by potential white masters and employers. For generations hairstyles have reflected the history of American race relations and the way blacks wore their hair reflected the dominant white culture. African-American hair was straightened, combed, or parted to mimic Western coiffures. In response to the propaganda in black communities to accept the European standards of beauty, the black hair care market expanded.

Madam C.J. Walker is one of the pioneers in the black hair care market with her Walker System. However over the years African Americans have thrown away the European standards of beauty. During the 1960's the “Afro” debuted and with it the concept of Black is Beautiful. During the 80's and the 90's West African traditional hairstyles began to resurface in the black community. Many people were getting braids with the traditional West African patterns. There are many beauty shops that are designed to create only West African traditional hairstyles.

Near the end of the twentieth century, relaxed hair became popular again in a wide range of short and long styles, while the new jheri curl used a different chemical to create loose, wet curls for both men and women. Women and men chose dreadlocks, twist, corkscrews, fades, and other styles that used the benefits of black hair's natural texture. Despite the economic depression in many black neighborhoods, hair salons remain among the most successful Black business in urban communities, and even African Americans who move to predominantly white suburbs often return to black urban neighborhoods to get their hair done.

Still, blacks are losing control over the black hair care market. Business by business, mergers and acquisitions are taking apart black-owned hair care endeavours. A moment of truth came when L'Oreal acquired Carson. The result was the top two-black owned hair care companies (Johnson Products and Soft Sheen) were joined under L'Oreal’s ownership. Many white business people know what kind of money black people put into their hair care and want a part of that market. "

source: http://www.aaregistry.com/african_american_history/2395/Black_hair_care_and_culture_a_story


So after research online and some heavy reading I found out (sure many of you know this) that relaxers were only created for AA's to take on europeans and to blend in better with our "masters" and white employers. And the point of relaxers were not to make our hair more manageable as I originally thought. This pretty much enrages me and makes me want to go into every local bss and set their relaxers on ablaze!!!!! oh and bkt is another way to keep us caught up in the straight hair debacles!

So i'm sitting here a bit enraged because why would I want to mimic "them" when I love being AA our various looks, beauty, complexions and talent that no one else on this earth can imitate.

So kudos to the ladies on the natural hair movement, i'm in my six month stretch but who knows maybe I will buy an afro pic and nubian it up for the long term lmao!

I love all hair as I posted in another thread, I like relaxed hair as well but when I look at the reasoning behind straight hair for AA's it makes me mad .

When I relax there has never been a thought in my mind to try and imitate a white person it's just something that I do and I like the way my hair looks relaxed OR am I just trained?

Thoughts ladies......................

 

[natura87]

I think it is just a "trained" way of thinking. If you have been relaxed/texlaxed from a young age you might not know any better. If everybody and their momma is relaxed one might want to fit in with the crowd. I dont think there is anything wrong with being relaxed, I just know it isnt for me because I do not want to for that to myself. If you now what is in it, what it can do and why you are doing it and are okay with the risks, fine by me. I just dont like it when people are naive to what the chemicals can actually do.

 

[longhairlover]

^ true, I just don't like the true meaning behind relaxers now that i've done some reading up on the matter. I don't want anyone to think i'm trying to mimic whites.

I don't always relax I don't like nor do I want to be dependant on any chemicals or anything in general (besides shopping for clothes, hair products , I personally haven't had relaxer damage as some women have but it's the history behind why relaxers were created for AA's that saddens me

 

[illuminatiamerica]

^ true, I just don't like the true meaning behind relaxers now that i've done some reading up on the matter. I don't want anyone to think i'm trying to mimic whites.

I don't always relax I don't like nor do I want to be dependant on any chemicals or anything in general (besides shopping for clothes, hair products , I personally haven't had relaxer damage as some women have but it's the history behind why relaxers were created for AA's that saddens me

thanks for posting this, longhairlover. it hurts to think that we relax our hair because we think "nappy" hair is ugly, but its the underlying reason. ask any woman why she doesnt wear her hair natural and she'll say its more manageable with a relaxer. its bad when you are programmed and dont know it. thanks again.

 

[illuminatiamerica]

they gave us jesus and the straightening comb. truth is truth.

 

[BlackMasterPiece]

Wow longhairlover I wasn't expecting this kinda thread from you to be fully real.....

I'm really glad you looked into the history of the relaxer and why it was created. In many ways the relaxer was the outward sign of european dominion over black minds and their notions of beauty historically.

Knowlege is truly power.

My mother is a professor so there was school during the day and there was one on one "know your history" school for me and my brother at night hair was one of the most eye-opening facets of it.

Its so amazing to see how many facets of slavery still dictate the mentalities of blacks today. Most Blacks still think of their hair as "bad" or "a problem that needs to be resolved" or some kind of nagetive connotation.....it all comes from the same source.

I'm really proud of you for doing the research and making yourself that much more educated.....thats awesome

 

[LadyRaider]

I was reading some theory from Ogbu. He and Fordham of course are the ones known for the concept of "the burden of acting white."

He points out that a lot of what we do as black folks is in REjECTION of white/european standards.

That's where you hear the call of kids being accused of "acting white." It's a rejection of the supposed white standard of reading and working hard at school.

Now this is often misunderstood. Acting white doesn't mean being successful in school, it basically means working hard at school. If you could get the good grades without any seeming effort, than that was cool.

Calls for people to wear natural hair, use African American Vernacular English, etc. are a part of this. All those things that have been denigrated because they were "ours."

So all of that to say: people may have relaxed to fit in with European standards, but other people have gone natural specifically to reject the European standards.

Both can be bad motivations, if you think about it.

So my advice is to relax your hair if you want, or don't if you don't want to. Acting to appeal to whites or to deliberately reject white standards can be the same trap.

 

[LadyRaider]

they gave us jesus and the straightening comb. truth is truth.

You know, I didn't remember this when I first saw Roots. But in the movie Kunte Kinte is bowing to Mecca in honor of his Muslim religion.

 

[illuminatiamerica]

You know, I didn't remember this when I first saw Roots. But in the movie Kunte Kinte is bowing to Mecca in honor of his Muslim religion.

even more mind control babygirl. replace jesus with another fictitional character. the madness never ends.

im glad i divorced the creamy crack and the religions though. i'se free!

 

[Enyo]

im glad i divorced the creamy crack and the religions though. i'se free!

"As my ancestors are free from slavery, I am free from the slavery of religion.” - Butterfly McQueen

 

[Aviah]

Christianity was actually an "Eastern Religion" before it was adopted by the West.
http://history-world.org/origins_of_christianity.htm

In any case, this thread wasn't meant to be about religion. So about the topic at hand:
To me, it is whatever people want it to be. Some people just want straight hair. Some people do feel white is right, some people as mentioned before, know no better. The original intent does not negate the intent of the person choosing to relax their hair. Its sad the roots of relaxers but they need not still have those connotations today. All about the individual, who may, or may not be under "mind control".

 

[beans4reezy]

OP, thanks for the article, but in reality, you aren't stating anything new. On top of hearing this theory constantly debated on here, I have done research on the topic as well; so yes, most of us are aware of the origins of a relaxer.

That still does not negate the fact that we are living in a country where we are free to choose to do what we want and whether our choices are a product of being programmed or not, guess what, we're still entitled to them.

You may reject most of the European standards handed down to us; but you cannot possibly reject all as you are living in a society heavily shaped by those same standards. So yes, they gave us a straightening comb and Jesus- and I glady accept them both. Just as I accept the white picket fence, the 2.5 kids, the corporate job and every other American ideal that pleases me. And you can call it programmed thought- but these are my choices and I am entitled to them.

Lastly, OP was this thread opened to intentionally attack other folks' religions and belief systems? Silly me, I thought it was just hair.

 

[MonPetite]

To me, it is whatever people want it to be. Some people just want straight hair. Some people do feel white is right, some people as mentioned before, know no better. The original intent does not negate the intent of the person choosing to relax their hair. Its sad the roots of relaxers but they need not still those connotations today. All about the individual, who may, or may not be under "mind control".

Very true.

I would go so far as to say that going natural ONLY to REJECT European beauty ideals rather than simply EMBRACING YOURSELF, is as unhealthy as REJECTING YOURSELF to EMBRACE European ideals.

It's like being on opposite ends of the SAME curve of unhealthy motivation.

Relaxing or not relaxing today, for many complex socio-economic reasons is purely a matter of what you want to do with your hair.

Some may make it about their insecurities (whether they express them with Anti-Napp-Girl-Get-A-Perm sentiments or being "Natural Nazi's"), but at the end of the day: It's HAIR.

How you wear should be of little importance.

WHY you wear it the way you do, may be worth a blog post or two, however.

For example, I've been straightening my hair (I'm natural) via a flatiron while gaining employment overseas in East Asia. Once people get to know me, my afro becomes: "So awesome, yah! Verah cool, yah!". Before they get to know me, they assume I'll pull a .45 Colt Revoler out of it and lay waste to their city.

I don't straighten out of shame of my hair, it's out of awareness of other's ignorance...that I will carefully, strategically change (not forever bow down to). My flat-iron has ironically become a powerful tool of inter-cultural integration.

Other women disagree (and are well within their right to do) and feel I need to rock it from the get go. I'm concerned with the long term results of navigating cultural exchanges, particular to those I'm working with currently. I've found a method that works extremely well. Executing it requires the use of Shock and Awe: straight in...Afro on the way out, changing frowns to smiles the whole way.

Now, I've gotten bitten by the color bug. Don't ask me what having a burgundy afro is supposed to be for, other than looking cute.

 

[30something]

To be honest I'm sick of this conversation

I understand looking into the past is important and all, I should know I too voluntary took many AA history/AA discussion classes. I learn soooo much from every intelligent instructors, i think the most important message they tried to communicate to us is that we can not be consumed by our history. What is the past is the past, I'm sick of being ashamed of our history or being spiteful of it and the society we live in.

You know they use to feed us slave scraps, the food the master didn't want to, yes it was unfortunate but.. I love my ox tail and scraps. I'm not going to stop eating it just because someone tells me the story behind it.

 

[BlackMasterPiece]

/\ Oh honey, if you studied Black history and the only thing you gleamed from it was shame and tragedy then with all due respect, you didn't go as in depth as you should have.

One of the biggest lessons you should gain is that we were intentionally taught that we are tragic sad and disadvantaged.

When the fact of the matter is, we come from great kings, queens and empires bursting with innovation, beauty and riches.

 

[Solitude]

To be honest I'm sick of this conversation

I understand looking into the past is important and all, I should know I too voluntary took many AA history/AA discussion classes. I learn soooo much from every intelligent instructors, i think the most important message they tried to communicate to us is that we can not be consumed by our history. What is the past is the past, I'm sick of being ashamed of our history or being spiteful of it and the society we live in.

You know they use to feed us slave scraps, the food the master didn't want to, yes it was unfortunate but.. I love my ox tail and scraps. I'm not going to stop eating it just because someone tells me the story behind it.

I completely agree. I've read every great African-American author and most great European works. I know all about the African Diaspora, our roots, our history, all the theories and so forth.

I'm free. I can wear my hair however I want. IMO, to be truly free is to be unconfined. I refuse to become a slave to my hair, feeling as if I either have to relax to fit in or I have to wear my hair natural to make a political statement. I choose not to put that burden on myself.

As far as representing as an African-American, I use my life as the example, not my hair.

 

[beans4reezy]

As far as representing as an African-American, I use my life as the example, not my hair.

This couldn't have been stated any more eloquently. Thank you.

 

[Solitude]

---------------------

 

[Minty]

I've had afreaking nough already. There is absolutely nothing enlightening about this and the conversations that continue to pursue.

I know that I'm wasting my typing and I hate to be so sarcastic about it all, but really - if its like that, go to napp. - the other board and "give us free"

I'm sorry for those that do not know the history of the United States.

 

[BlackMasterPiece]

/\

 

[Kimdionneca]

I am with you I never thought anything of it. I just thought it helped with managing the hair, I went natural, because I wanted to be healthy. I still go back and forth thinking I should telax or relax, because I haven't mastered taking care of my natural hair, but after reading that I am glad I am natural right now.

 

[JuiceMobsta]

**Disclaimer: these are just my thoughts I wanted to share not dissing anyone for how they wear their hair**

When I relax there has never been a thought in my mind to try and imitate a white person it's just something that I do and I like the way my hair looks relaxed OR am I just trained?

Thoughts ladies......................

Well I have been natural for just about all of my life and will be for the rest of it..but I do think that the whole relaxers/texture softeners/texlaxing/bkt used for making hair more manageable is just a trained way of thinking. Over the generations we have just chosen to lose sight of the original reason and have been taught or have tried to justify relaxing by saying that it is just merely for manageability, because ppl would be ashamed at the real truth behind it. So now in this day and age we just think of relaxers,etc as just like any other regular hair product...I know when I used to see relaxers in hair stores I never thought twice about them...they just seemed so "normal" to me, something I could try that would make my wild hair tone it down a notch. Even now I still don't see relaxers as being that bad, despite the original purpose. I think ppl should still use them for the manageability if they want to because hey, we are in a new day and age. If you are actually trying to fit into some sort of standard, who cares...and if you are just trying to tame the wild mane, I dont blame ya!!

Just look at old fashioned photos of some black families. Most women had pressed hair or relaxed hair and that's when I definetely noticed that back then it was something done just to fit in.

Like at Walmart or any drugstore, why are there a bunch of relaxers and whatnot in the so called "Ethnic" section? It's like they want you to relax your hair...:scratchch...and I think that for those that are relaxed and choose to stay relaxed, part of the reason is because they are not sure of how society might percieve them as a natural head...being natural in our community is alot harder than any other ethnicity. We are the only ones that make such a big deal about how our hair grows out of our head. Even when ppl are natural, you still cant be entirely comfortable with your natural hair, you wear TWA's with the cute headbands, you wear a perfectly picked out juiced up afro, you wear braids,dreads, or twists, and you wear bantu knot/braid/twist outs and even rollersets. No one just hops up out of the bed with a dry crunchy lopsided half shrunken afro and thinks it looks good... Well, I hope not!

 

[CurlTalk]

Chelz, I couldn't agree more. You took the words right out of my mouth.

 

[chrisanddonniesmommy]

I'm sick of this topic. It's tired.

Black is black. We're not some monolithic group. I'm a beautiful black woman, regardless of my:

Relaxed hair
Fair skin
M.Ed
Speech pattern (I speak as though I'm educated; therefore, I am)
My mildly thick frame
My love for rock and roll
My former love interests that were white
and so on...

I'm no less black than anyone. I do not seek to "act white". I seek to be me 24-7 until the day I die. If you don't like it, that's your issue.

You can be relaxed or natural until the cows come home, but if the mind, spirit, and body isn't right, you're not right.

Get over it. Natural hair is not a movement. It's an option.

 

[BlackMasterPiece]

/\ Well the OP is relaxed so clearly she wasn't making blanket statements about all relaxed people being of a singular mindset....she simply said she looked into the inception of relaxers and why it was used over generations and felt disurbed....thats it

she was talking about her own personal path to historical discovery....nothing more nothing less

 

[chrisanddonniesmommy]

/\ Well the OP is relaxed so clearly she wasn't making blanket statements about all relaxed people being of a singular mindset....she simply said she looked into the inception of relaxers and why it was used over generations and felt disurbed....thats it

she was talking about her own personal path to historical discovery....nothing more nothing less

That's what blogs are for. There's a direct approach to getting a message across and the back door way . I vote that this was the latter.

 

[otegwu]

I don't see what the big deal is about this, but I think its because I was raised in African and visit my country quite regularly. Back there people relax if they want to or don't if they don't want to, its not about trying to fitting into the society or not, as everyone mainly is African, the people are beautiful whether they wear afros, weaves or relaxers, its about style choice. Its important to know history but what about today? its really not that big of an issue, societies change, Tudors, Victorian's Edwardian's, they all looked different styles where different, times change. Its only in western societies we make it this big issue, but back home they really couldn't care less if your natural or relaxed, or bald, just have a 'fattie' hehe.

 

[BlackMasterPiece]

/\ Excellent points otegwu

However, there is also something to be said for knowing your history and the overall implications that buying a particular item can have. Many black people walk around carrying vestiges from slavery around with them without even knowing it....here in America one very apparent sign of that is the n-word....both of them. People use the epithet to reference other Black people as easily as they would say hello and many of them are surprised to learn of its origins.

The other n-word....nappy....I've hear escape young black girls mouths on the regular in high school...it as the opposite of what you wanted to be....you wanted to have long silky flowy hair....that was what was beautiful...that was what all the girls of color would perpetually chase....knowing the tradition of where these beauty standards derive is vastly important.

I'd love to say well hair is just hair....it doesn't really impact my community....but the fact of the matter is....it does.

Most companies that sell relaxers are massive multi-national corporations that are frankly run by whites and many of those companies are the same ones that sell skin bleaching systems in our communities as well. One has to stop and ask themselves if they honestly believe that this is a coincidence.

When you hear about the all natural organic well made products with quality ingredients who owns them? They're typically by a black owned company...oyin handmade, Kinky-curly, miss-jessies, afroveda, hydra-therma naturals, growth-specifics etc

I think its very important to step outside of the daily hustle, be still with one-self and question the status quo once in a while....it can be a very eye-opening experience.

 

[Chaosbutterfly]

I don't think people need to be up in arms about anything at this point...reading this, I see a history lesson.
I'm shocked that people still need a history lesson about this in this day and age, because come on son....I learned this in like fifth grade. Many black people back then were not proud of their hair, skin or looks and tried to make all these things closer to what European people had, because they thought that white people were prettier. Relaxer was one measure that people took to achieve this end, along with trying to bleach the skin. Full stop.
Momma Chaos teaches science, Papa Chaos is a psychiatrist. Both are Nigerian, immigrated here long after the Civil Rights movement, and don't even feel all that connected to African-American history, so we weren't discussing such thangs in the home. Everything I knew, I learned from my school and books. And I went to a broke down, overcrowded, South Bronx school soo...there's no excuse for other grown people to not know this.
Unless they purposefully don't want to know.

People should understand the history behind what they do, but what people should also understand is that history in some cases is just that...history. Not everything that happened in the past is necessarily a reflection upon your individual present. So relaxers came from a desire to look white. Newsflash, doesn't mean that everyone who relaxes NOW wants to look white too. If you know that you relax for reasons other than hating your natural texture, then no need to be upset by some of the insinuated accusations flying around in here.

And this isn't to say that all people today relax because they just want to. Obviously, natural, tightly coiled hair is still stigmatized in today's society, and there are many people who bonelax or buy silky straight Indian Remy out of a desire to look more Caucasian. However, these people are usually also the ones wearing purple contact lenses, getting nose jobs, and bleaching their skin within an inch of its life. And if they aren't doing all that, you can certainly tell how they feel from the way that they talk.

How someone wears their hair does not indicate how they view their race, and it's stupid to reduce it to just that.

Oh yeah, and they keep the relaxers in the ethnic isle, because the ethnic people are the ones relaxing their hair. In general, white people don't relax their hair, so there's no reason to keep the relaxer between the Nexxus and Herbal Essences. If black people stopped using relaxers, and white people started, the relaxer would be moved to the "white product" isle. I don't think anyone is telling us to do anything.

 

[BlackMasterPiece]

/\ Love your post chaos! every little bit of it

dont be so hard on the people that took a lil longer to know their history lol....people come to things at different times and not everyone has the benefit of the kinds of parents we had lol