Essay On Good Hair

When I was fifteen years old I remember sitting on a bed in a hotel room with my brother and sister watching the documentary, Good Hair, with Chris Rock. Ironically this was just after I had gotten my last relaxer, a creamy product that chemically processes hair to make it permanently straight, which left me with a burn on my head. I was in Virginia to visit my dad’s side of the family. My siblings and I stayed with my sister and she insisted that she was going to take us to the hair salon to get a relaxer. I was worried, I did not want a relaxer I was growing out my old one and I wanted to keep my naturally curly hair. My 27 year old sister told me that my curly hair did not look good, it was nappy and dry. I almost argued with her but something inside me thought that she was probably right and that I would prettier with a relaxer instead. After being burned by the chemicals I vowed that I would never get …show more content…
Afros directly challenged the traditional ideal of beauty that devalued natural black features. Afros and Black power contradicted the more acceptable straightened styles that black women had been conditioned to wear for decades. Because this white aesthetic historically represented the norm for beautiful hair, afros represented its direct opposite. And because hair is something that can be seen and read immediately, especially if it does not meet mainstream standards, afros brought the politics of hair to the forefront, conspicuously proclaiming the value of natural black hair and thereby denying the primacy of white features over natural black features. (Bell, 2008) Exposed were the ways white supremacy assaulted self-concept and self-esteem, leaders during the black power movement demanded that black folks see themselves differently and see self-love as a radical political agenda. (Hooks,