Good Hair

I finally had the opportunity to watch Chris Rock's good hair. Other than being a little confused as to how a hair show was more dancing and drama than hair styling, I though the documentary was pretty good. I realize why I had been so insecure about myself growing up. Indian women give up their hair willingly at a temple because they believe in a higher power. They believe this sacrifice will give them good fortune. They shave themselves bald. Then someone comes and gathers up all that long 14 inch hair; cleans it, packages it, and ships it off across the world for insecure women such as my former self to spend thousands of dollars to give themselves a more European look. And why wouldn't black women want to go through the angst and hell of relaxing their hair? Or sitting for 2-3 hours to have a head of someone else's hair sewn into their own in order for it to flow down their back? Black women are told that they are not beautiful. That their hair is not good hair. That no one wants " that kind of hair". Chris rock took what looked like African kinky hair to a few hair stores to sell. The store owners who were of Asian (Chinese or Korean) descent told him that was not good hair and that no one would want it. Women want to look beautiful and you can not look beautiful with that kind of hair. People ask me why I decided to go natural. The reason is this....I no longer want to sit for 6 hours having hair sewn or braided into my own. I no longer want to spend $200.00 a month to have my hair straitened and blow dried, and curled then style only to not be able to go swimming or exercise or get caught in the rain for fear my hair style will fall. Who wants to be victim to their hair? It's just hair! Little girls want to look like images they see on TV. They are being told that the hair that comes out of their head that God blessed them with is not pretty because it does not flow and it does not shake and it does not reach the middle of their back. This has to stop. We have to love ourselves and accept ourselves for who we are. We as black women need to embrace ourselves. Isn't it more strange to alter your appearance than to be who you naturally are? I'm just saying. The first time I decided to grow my hair out, I did so for 5 years. Something different. I think I was going through an identity crisis. I want to be someone outside the norm. Yet when I went for job interviews or tried new relationships, people weren't all that receptive. Who said that the westernized standard of beauty is acceptable? Why can I not lock my hair and receive the same amount of respect? Why are some black men turned off by natural hair? I would prefer a head of natural hair than to run my fingers through someones hair and feel a bunch of tracks and thread. This is 2010 and we are still concerned about who has good hair/ bad hair. We still tell our daughters than long, silly, curly hair is pretty and kinky hair is nappy. I promise that if I am ever blessed to have a child of my own, I will tell her that she is beautiful. She will be intelligent and creative. She will be talented. She will have so much love that her hair will be the least of her concerns. I just hate that it took me almost 30 years to understand that myself.

Peace and Love-ism