As a busy mom of two I know doing hair can sometimes be the last resort. Sometimes even getting an appointment in for those “touch ups” can be few and far in between due to cost and time. Let’s face it! Our hair takes time! Even I have resorted to spending Sunday evenings “plaitin” up my daughter’s hair to last for the week. For some of us knowing how to do hair is a no go. So what do we do? We call that auntie, cousin or friend that can hook it up real quick! As a result some of us don’t know how to do our own hair let alone our daughter’s hair (if you have only sons, you’re in the clear). I remember as a child learning how to plait hair by doing my great grandma’s hair then moving on to Barbies (before Barbie was really diverse). For some reason though I never learned how to cornrow until a few years ago. As I mentioned, coming to Houston allowed me to reconnect to things that are important. One of them being loving my hair and teaching my daughter to love hers!
Here’s my recent “do”. If anybody wants a tutorial, I’d be more than happy to do one.
Black hair has always been the center of our culture and as we know, it dates back to Africa. Tribes used cornrows and braids to distinguish tribes, royalty and status. During slavery, it is said that braids were used as a way to guide slaves to freedom. Either way, it is our culture. Our heritage. Something we definitely need to hold onto dearly and to teach the next generation the importance of it.
Post slavery, black hair also has been the root of division. If you have seen the movie “School Daze” by Spike Lee (If you haven’t, you should!) the one thing he brings to our attention is how we view hair texture. Good hair! Bad hair! Even going as far as claiming Native American to justify “good hair” or mixing with other races so that the offspring will have “better hair”. Disclaimer: I’m not against interracial couples or marriages (seeing as how all of us are made up of multiple races) I’m making a point of what I’ve heard some people say is their motivation for being in an interracial relationship.
Now I see a new revolution where curls are celebrated, wiping away some of that “slave” mentality! I’m happy to know that there are more resources to combat that thinking, and that my daughter doesn’t have to go through what I went through as a child. To this day I have not straightened (pressed) my daughter’s hair nor has she asked (Whew!).
One thing I learned from a workshop years ago is that our hair and skin serve a purpose. Biologically speaking our hair and skin were meant for dry, arid climates. Even our noses and lips were created for that particular climate. And I’m fully aware of the damage slavery has caused, the brown paper bag test, along with the Jim Crow era (minstrel shows), advertisements, Hollywood (pushing one skin tone over another, which also stems from slavery) and the media. Then you have cultural appropriation. Those that have made money on the very culture that was once frowned upon and made fun of. And of course there’s the macro culture who fails to understand that black pride and empowerment has nothing to do with them, but everything to do with us and the demons of low self esteem that we deal with everyday. So with that being said….
Keep being proud, Village Mamas!
I highly recommend reading these two books! These are my daughter’s favorites. She told me she wants “bomb braids” when she gets older. 🙂
BlackTeachingMama2 