Slaves and their hair

India Arie couldn't have said it any better!

How do I feel?

Women should love themselves no matter what kind of texture of hair they have. Don't get me wrong, I love getting my hair done. Getting extensions, or even having to get a relaxer to make my hair straight; but i know how my hair is natural and I accept it. The way I wear my hair is the way I express myself, just how some people wear certain clothes to express themselves. My hair does not define who I am as a person. I AM NOT MY HAIR.

Women and how they feel

Little girls and their opinions

Good Hair

Men and Hair

In today's society, European hair is more accepted. It's not only affecting our women but also our men. Men  would watch television or read magazines and fantasize or want the women that they see. Most likely the women would have long hair, or curly soft hair. In return, African American men would shun their own women for women of other races. This is another reason why women would spend hundreds of dollars to make their hair look more like " the white woman".

Wool

When Africans were forced to come to America, they had to shave their hair off. The slave masters wanted them to lose a sense of their identity. While they did hard labor in the fields, they were forced to cover their hair Secunia it was offensive to the slave masters. The slave masters thought the hair on the slaves head should be called wool instead of hair because it was completely different from the European Caucasian hair.

African Hairstyles Before Slavery

These are the different hairstyles the slaves wore in Africa. Each tribe had a different hairstyle that described their culture. Hair for men and women in Africa was symbolic to their tribe, and was also a way to make them closer to their god.

Little girls these days...

During childhood, kids usually have bad experiences with getting made fun of because of their hair. Mother's are usually the ones who put the idea of their kids not having good hair. Their are many mothers in the African-American community who try to "fix" theirs daughters hair, just because it is not accepted in black society. Many little girls don't like the process of getting their hair done, like getting the relaxer. When getting the relaxer, when its on the scalp and its starts to burn; that is a sign that the relaxer is working. After getting a relaxer, if the chemical stayed in too long there can be a result of scabs in the scalp.

What looks better?

In the African-American community, women with thick coarse hair are judged often. Women with this kind of hair are usually ridiculed and the hair that is on their head is usually called "bad hair". 
















In the African-American community, women with soft,curly,long hair are said to have "good hair". "good hair" is easier to manage than "bad hair". Women in the African-American community will spend a large amount of money to have hair like this, or put chemicals in their hair to make it seem like their hair is like the hair the this picture.