I Confronted Sudden Pressures Inside the Pure Hair Neighborhood—Here is What I Realized
Once I first set out on my pure hair journey, I didn’t even understand it was taking place. Fact be advised, my mother stopped making my hair appointments, and I used to be just too lazy and too frugal to go to one other salon for relaxer. As I transitioned from highschool to varsity, my pure curls changed my fried, relaxed ends. I shall be ceaselessly grateful about this joyful accident—because it led me to the place I’m right this moment, loving and embracing my pure texture as a Black girl. Though, it admittedly took a really very long time to get to this place.
As I started to embrace my pure hair, I used to be amazed on the unimaginable neighborhood of assist and wealth of knowledge on-line, totally on YouTube channels devoted to all issues pure hair. I discovered the right way to take care of my hair, and that there was a complete neighborhood of Black and Brown ladies on the same journey. Initially, I discovered the pure hair neighborhood extraordinarily accepting, encouraging, and informative. However beneath the floor, I start to uncover the extra adverse facet of my web analysis.
Whereas movies of individuals washing, styling, and studying about their pure hair gained infinite constructive feedback, reward, and acceptance within the pure hair neighborhood—I alternatively discovered an unimaginable quantity of negativity on movies of Black ladies who selected to maintain their hair relaxed, texturized, or in every other state aside from pure virgin hair. Initially, I noticed feedback discouraging individuals from altering their hair texture or suggesting they break free from the “creamy crack.” I shortly realized this was a a lot deeper difficulty.
Hate feedback, bashing, and even violent threats are dished out on-line within the identify of the pure hair from those that imagine it is their place to inform others the right way to stay. Personally, I like styling my curls, however I nonetheless like to put on my hair straight as properly. Some extremists even discover this short-term change (i.e. straightening my hair with a flat iron) as “harmful” and insulting to the neighborhood. Whereas I imagine the pure hair motion is unimaginable and lengthy overdue on this nation, I additionally imagine in respecting everybody’s capacity to make their very own decisions.
To ladies rocking pure curls, altered hair textures, totally different colours, weaves, wigs and every other styling selection: Please know the pure hair neighborhood helps and appreciates you, no matter your coiffure.
Then, I seen the delicate messaging portrayed by mainstream media. Whereas trolls on-line believed going pure was the one and solely possibility, commercials, tv exhibits, and magazines had a special tackle the difficulty. These mediums typically reinforce the great thing about carrying your pure curly hair, however nearly utterly excluded kinky, tighter textures from this narrative.
Though ladies of coloration began appearing in hair commercials with their lengthy, curly hair—ladies with kind 4 hair textures stay excluded. At the same time as bigger corporations attempt to cater to curly women, the pictures are of ladies with unfastened curl patterns and lengthy hair. Many naturals, like myself, really feel excluded because the media continues to lean closely into European requirements of magnificence. The message was loud and clear: Curly hair is praised, however nappy hair is condemned.
These realities solely skim the floor of the numerous complexities of Black hair. Whereas I’ve discovered about my coils (and myself) with the assistance of the pure hair neighborhood, I’ll all the time push in opposition to unrealistic magnificence requirements. The size of my hair reaches my mid-back, however my tight curl sample shrinks my hair to a couple inches above my shoulders. And the stress to stretch, lengthen, and loosen my texture can nonetheless really feel overwhelming at occasions. This stress to adapt shouldn’t exist, looming over naturals like a darkish cloud. That is very true when these with tighter hair textures perceive extra shrinkage is an efficient factor, displaying my hair’s elasticity and the power my curls must “bounce again.” In the long run, wholesome, joyful hair is a significantly better purpose than conformity.
To start with of my pure hair journey, it felt just like the trolls and the media have been talking on to me. Personally, I struggled to like my pure hair texture and correctly model it for years, which led to infinite frustration and doubt. I felt like I might be seen as a failure if I relaxed my hair—which, fact be advised, was simpler to handle. I used to be pressured to remind myself my hair is simply mine, and different feedback on what I ought to do are utterly irrelevant. To ladies rocking pure curls, altered hair textures, totally different colours, weaves, wigs and every other styling selection: Please know the pure hair neighborhood helps and appreciates you, no matter your coiffure.
