By Shaqwania
I visited a family member recently and I never thought I would have to stand my ground with this particular individual EVER in life. I never thought that I would be arguing about hair. She looked at me and told me that she didn't like my appearance. She told me that my hair was unacceptable and that black people no longer have to walk around looking like hooligans because there are so many different things out there for us to help us keep a more maintained look. I have semi freeform locks. My locks are low maintenance for the most part. I wash my hair and separate them to prevent the merging of my locks into bigger ones. My locks sit on a one to two inch afro. I chose this route once I began my lock journey because it just felt right. Going through a lock process you will encounter what society views as an ugly stage. I beg to differ. I do not think there is an ugly stage. This ugly stage supposedly refers to the time your locks are doing whatever they want and are not in a neat and organized fashion so they could be poking out all over the place. It was not until I began my natural hair journey in 2012 that I understood the amount of damage that has been done to how we view our hair. I shared with my family member how I felt about their views and it deeply saddens me to know that there are people of our own ethnicity who feel like the hair that grows from our scalp is not the hair we should embrace. If there were never a relaxer created would we just hate our looks? Is this truly self love to not love every part of your being? I went from loose natural hair to locks and many have supported my decision and others (like my family member) think I have gone crazy. They think I need to talk to someone. I find this hilarious, literally. I may go talk to someone but it will not be about my decision to lock, it will be about learning some ways to reprogram their thinking process. Being a natural hair video blogger, I have noticed division in the natural hair community. It is unfortunate but it is there: The division lies is all about hair textures. This has resulted in the labelling of hair as being either good hair or bad hair. My hair is far from loose textured but many have come to me for help and without even realizing it they pretty much tell me my hair is bad in so many ways or they say that my hair looks good on me but the texture doesn't look good on everybody. This is merely the mindset (programming) that needs to be unlearned.
I have two daughters whose hair care regimens I also share on my social media platforms.
My oldest daughter went through an episode at five years of age where a fungus began to grow on her scalp. I didn't want to relax her hair but she was on medications for weeks to try and kill this fungus and it was only spreading. It had a terrible odor and she was really embarrassed by it. I decided to apply a relaxer to kill it. The relaxer killed the fungus. Hmmm.....how about that! Relaxers are not healthy but I couldn't sit back and watch my baby go through the fungus ordeal. I do not recommend anyone apply a relaxer to kill fungus as I am not a medical doctor. This does show how strong relaxer chemicals are. It was able to kill a fungus that she was being treated for for weeks with oral meds and medicated shampoos. She has since transitioned back to natural hair and only asks for blow outs as she understands the versatility of natural hair. My youngest daughter doesn't know anything about relaxers. She doesn't complain about her hair and it is just a part of her as it should be. This shows me that it is what is taught to us as to whether or not we just simply embrace what is ours. My daughter doesn't know about anything different so when she requests hair styles she requests natural styles that she picks out from the computer. She doesn't think her hair is bad or too kinky. It is her hair, PERIOD. As a mother my children are always watching. If I complain about my hair they will do the same. If I tell them their hair is bad out of impatience while styling their hair then they will believe it. If I embrace mine and encourage them to do the same they will embrace theirs and encourage others to do the same. What are we teaching those that we love about natural hair? Are we teaching them that it is ugly or bad hair or are we teaching them to love their God-given hair?
Get your FREE ebook on How To Grow Long, Healthy Natural Kinky or Curly Hair. Want to be featured as a Queen of Kinks, Curls & Coil? Here's how to apply.
7 Comments
Summer '16 has been so full of Black Girl Magic and Melanin! It has flooded timelines across all platforms. Yet, there is still one thing that can always cast a shadow over our achievements, and it’s this little thing called hair. For some reason, our gloriously coiled strands cause mass pandemonium in a number of situations. Here are a few examples of what I mean.
A couple weeks ago, I was askee to be the guest on a radio show where we discussed black hair. The big issue was Ms. Gabby Douglas. During the course of the Olympics, we watched Gabby Douglas, for the second time, get vilified over her edges. EDGES ya’ll! Because they were not ‘laid to the gods,’ she was dragged through the mud, by her own people. She is an OLYMPIAN folks; and not once, but twice. And yet, it doesn't seem to matter. Youtuber Karen Constant, better know as Glamfun decides that being natural just wasn't working for her, so she relaxed her hair. She was tired of the hassle of finding the right products, detangling, the salons, etc. She was ready for a break. When she posted her video of her new ‘do’, her followers were not the most sympathetic to her very personal decision. The comments rolling in were so bad, that she removed the video altogether. Alicia Keys decided in March to stop wearing make up because she desired to feel free. Many Black women were not pleased. So when attending the VMA's with no make up AND a cute messy bun, they now thought her hair was just as ‘uncouth’ as her face. It’s as if a bare face and curly hair is a crime now: when did it become a crime to be yourself? With each of these situations, it seems impossible for black women to win. We are always between a rock and a hard place. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. As we struggle to fit into a society that doesn't deem us worthy of protection and love, now we can’t fit in with each other. Where is it safe for black women to be free? We don't need any Relaxed Renegades, Natural Nazis, and Weave Warriors coming for each other about their hair choices. Last I checked, we were all black women and we all had hair. We have enough people out to get us. We have to stick together. Remember ladies, a house divided against itself cannot stand. Gurlish Curls Blog: www.gurlishcurls.com Fan Page: www.facebook.com/GurlishCurls Youtube: Smoothecarmel Twitter: @GurlishCurls Instagram: GurlishCurls 
Get your FREE ebook on How To Grow Long, Healthy Natural Kinky or Curly Hair. Want to be featured as a Queen of Kinks, Curls & Coil? Here's how to apply.
I have a very good detangling and combing session once a week during my weekly wash.
A lot of my friends, even the natural-haired ones, find it very shocking that I don't comb my hair at all during the week I just finger comb. Combing and brushing has been such a "given" part of of our upbringing that removing it from our routine is almost akin to not brushing your teeth! Anyway! These are the three things that I have learnt will break your hair when it comes to combing:
|
I now blog about wealth creation - so if you have any money questions meet me there, you can do all sorts of cool things like leave me a voicemail.
By Heather Katsonga-Woodward
I was a natural hair blogger and mixtress living between London & Chicago from 2012 to 2017. I always thought I was 4C but some say 4B; images below - you decide! Heather xx
Categories
All
Click for free eBook!
Check out the podcast!
Archives
November 2016
|
