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Historical black hair disparities in america
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Gabrielle Jones is an average teenager. She is a typical girl that is educated, family oriented, and possesses all criteria that puts her within the American standard, except one detail, her hair. Gabrielle is of African descent and has retained her natural hair texture for almost 12 years. Occasionally, Gabrielle views models in the magazine as a symbol of beauty because they have straight, manageable hair unlike her kinky curls. Eventually, Gabrielle decides to make a drastic decision that would change her hair, she decides to relax her hair. She takes a look in the mirror and but what can she see? She could have kept her curly hair which was associated with her for many years, however she did not recognize herself, she just criticized her features for not being of standard according to society? Although, Gabrielle is a fictional character, however, her story is reality for many girls who have thick, curly hair.
Although, sixty-five percent of African Americans relax their hair (Ebony) there has been a growing movement towards natural hair styling. Through personal research from surveys, books and other forms of documents, I have concluded relaxed hair is no longer a popular choice for African American women for it is has become an attempt to reestablish natural beauty.
I performed a convenient survey of thirty-five women of African American or Caribbean descent ages 16 to 25 on the topic of relaxed hair. Out of the thirty-five I surveyed, 71 percent of the women were relaxed, while 29 percent were all natural. However, through this survey I discovered, 17 percent of those who were natural take 2-3hrs to style their hair, while 31 percent of women who relaxes their hair take 0 to 30 minutes. Yet, 29 percent of those who rela...
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"Healthy Hair = Protein Moisture PH." Organic Hair Color for Salon Professionals Healthy Hair Protein Moisture PH Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2013.
"Madam C.J. Walker Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2013.
"Natural Afro-hair." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 11 Apr. 2013. Web. 16 Nov. 2013.
"RELAXER INSTRUCTIONS." Roots of Nature Relaxer Instructions. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2013.
Ross, Janell. "Natural Or Relaxed, For Black Women, Hair Is Not A Settled Matter." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 04 Aug. 2011. Web. 19 Nov. 2013.
Sherrow, Victoria. Encyclopedia of Hair: A Cultural History. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2006. Print.
"Types of Relaxers." Design Essentials. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2013.
"What You Need to Know About Chemical Hair Relaxers." The Truth About Hair Relaxers. Skin Biology, n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013.
Jablonsky and Chaplin states in their article that when it comes to us not having as much hair, we have looked a...
The author also referred to the hair of Zeena and Mattie quite often. Zeena had only “thin strands of hair”, and she wore a “hard perpendicular bonnet” above her head. The sight imprinted in the reader’s mind is not a pleasant one. Zeena appears to be stern and rigid. On the contrary when Mattie’s hair was described, it is more appealing. Ethan remembers her “smoothed hair and a ribbon at her neck”. A ribbon is more appealing to the reader than a “hard, perpendicular bonnet.” Mattie’s hair was also described as looking like a “drift of mist on the moon”. Unlike Zeena’s uninviting hairstyle, Mattie’s hair had a soft and silky quality to it. Mattie seemed to walk about the house with a halo of light surrounding her, almost like an angel. The conflicting hairstyles of the two women represented an overall difference in personalities. Mattie was a feminine young girl, while Zeena was an old hag who made no attempt to better her appearance.
17 Oct. 2014. The "Kanye West Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. The Web.
It all started when her sister Arielle taught her how to do a cartwheel. Gabrielle then did a perfectly one handed cartwheel at four years old. Her sister Arielle was really impressed with what Gabby could do especially at at young age. Arielle then talked her mother into putting Gabrielle in a gymnastics class and had successfully convinced her. Natalie, Gabrielle’s mother saw the flexibility and coordination in her daughter, and so she enrolled her in a former gymnastics class when she was six years old (bio.com). By the time Gabrielle was eight she had won state championship and made her mother proud (bio.com). Gabrielle Douglas was not content with winning just state championship, she hoped and wanted to participate in the olympics. Her passion for being an Olympic gold medalist was beginning to grow on her.
Some existing Literature on Natural Hair The existing literature on ethnic and racial studies among African-Americans has focused on issues pertaining to beauty and body politics especially on natural hair. Spellers and Moffitt assert that the body politics that one assumes, guides how one relates to a particular political ideology in a particular society. Black natural hair is considered as a way by which the true identity of African women can be understood (Jacobs-Huey). It is a symbol of power among black women; it influences how people are treated by others.
Black women have been the essence of style, originality all while receiving nothing but bad response from critics who secretly envy them. Natural hair tends to be another widespread trend. I think that some do the natural so they can connect with their African roots while I think others just like the look, or maybe it’s easier. No matter what grade of hair society has one marked term for black hair which is “nappy”. Besides pertaining to actions, the word ghetto is used to describe just about every aspect of a black girl's life. "Girl your hair look ghetto" and "You talk/sound ghetto" are two common phrases used around school. Colored hair, weaves, extensions, dyes and relaxers/perms are all things black girls have encountered. If your hair looks "too" nice, it's assumed that you're wearing weave or that you've gotten a fresh
Hair Care is another popular africanism present in America for African americans. For african american woman going for a natural hairstyle is quite common. Dating back to pre-colonial africa a natural afro hair style defined status and identity. Different styles indicated certain qualitie...
African American hair looks gorgeous, attractive and beautiful. Your hair is extremely fragile and needs proper care and gentle touch so that it doesn’t break or get loose. Here are the top African American hair cares FAQs.
The article Straightening My Hair by Bell Hooks makes her argument of finding the reason of why African American women straighten their hair. She first states that Black Americans straighten their hair because it is the stage of transformation; it closes the door of innocence and opens the door to adulthood. Slowly, she starts changing her views. She comes up with the statement that African Americans do not straighten their hair for reasonable reasons, but to imitate the characteristics of white women. She informs that black people repeat this process because they have low self-acceptance of their roots and background, and that they have lost beauty in themselves. My argument against this statement is that it is erroneous to claim that the straightening of African American hair is misinterpreted as their acceptance into the white community; straightening of hair is the symbolism of impending womanhood, closing the door of innocence, and sharing a time to meditate by relaxing your soul.
In the recent past year or two, a woman’s natural hair has become a big thing. Before, African American women, to be specific, were so disgusted by their hair. They would do anything in their power to change the “nappy” aspect of their hair to “beautiful”. They would use relaxers very so often and hot combs.
By the twentieth century, slavery had damaged black pride, and made it known that black features were inferior. When it came to black women and their hair, black women desperately wanted to match the standard of “white” beauty. Walker’s solution to this was to create a look that was Afro-American without trying to imitate whites. Walker spoke about beauty emphasizing that to be beautiful does not refer to the complexion of your skin, or the texture of your hair, but having a beautiful mind, soul, and character.
It is essential to recognize the relative perception of beauty products and hair treatments for different ethnic groups at the time in question. For the white consumer, the use of makeup was the major issue; the disreputable view of the painted lady had to be overcome. The black woman had a more complex situation regarding the products being offered. Hair-straightening and skin-lightening products could be viewed as an attempt to seem more white, and use of these products was thus charged with racial overtones within the black community.
Often, women walk down the beauty aisle of a grocery store and see all types of merchandise, but not many really know what is right for them. They see products that promise to rejuvenate dry, damaged hair, volumize limp, and flat hair, straighten curly hair, and regenerate thinning hair. With my hair being a kinky curly, when I was younger, I would ask my mother if we could buy relaxers and do them at home. She would give me the same answer every time, “This should only be performed by a professional if you do not want to ruin your hair.”
Almost 250 years of slavery and anti-blackness within the United States has created a divide in what type of hair is acceptable. According to Cynthia L. Robinson, “Black hair texture is graded” (Robinson 2011). Precisely, this means that a Black woman has either good hair or bad hair. Good hair has a resemblance of European hair texture, meaning straight and wavy curls. Good hair also diminishes the look of African ancestry. Bad is the complete opposite. The texture is kinky, coiled, and thick, giving the appearance of short hair (Robinson 2011). Hair that bears a resemblance to Eurocentric beauty standards is more beautiful and makes the individual with that hair type more beautiful as well (Robinson
15 Dec. 2013. The "Life & Earth Science" Science Channel. N.p., n.d. Web. The Web. The Web.