Over 10 years ago, the natural hair movement was blowing up the scene. It was a quiet storm that quickly picked up steam and became a huge thing. So huge that product manufacturers took notice and figured out ways to capitalize on the goldmine. The natural hair movement also proved to be profitable for the small mom and pop stores or street vendors who made their own natural hair products out of their kitchens like shea butter for your skin and hair, organic hair oil mixes, all natural shampoos and conditioners, hair masks and gels. Back then, the goal was for black women to leave the relaxers and chemicals alone and have healthier hair using all natural products. These all natural products were not readily available in stores, so we relied on the small vendors and businesses to get these things. We learned how to use them and make them through early how-to Youtube videos.
We also learned about protective styling (Myth 1.) which entails the use of braids, wigs, or weaves. We were told protective styling would protect our natural hair from over manipulation and help grow our hair. This works for some, but for many not so much. As manufacturers figured out how to get a piece of the natural hair movement pie, they developed products (Myth 2.) catered to black women using images of biracial or racially ambiguous women in their advertisements. They promised that if you use their line of products your hair will curl up and bounce the same way as the biracial woman with 3C hair does. Of course, that was nothing but a big fat lie. In the midst of all of this, wig culture grew tremendously as did the hair braiding shops. Everybody found a way to make money off the natural hair movement and have been winning ever since. But there’s been one consistent loser: Black women.
For centuries, black women have been told that their natural hair is ugly, unkempt, and unprofessional. We were forced to either cover up our hair or bend to European standards of beauty by straightening our hair. This brainwashing has stayed within our culture ever since, being passed down from one generation to the next. We invented straightening combs, came up with a dangerous formula called Conk that later became the standard relaxer to straighten our natural hair in order to be “accepted” by whites.
In the 60’s and 70’s when black pride took over, many black women embraced their natural hair and wore their afros and corn rows proudly. And then the relaxers came back and the Jheri Curl craze took over and chemically altering our hair became the norm again. Fast forward a few decades and black women finally realize the natural beauty of their hair. With the help of doctors and science, they see the damaging effects of chemical relaxers and decide to go back to their natural roots. Instead of being supported, they are fleeced.
If there’s one thing black women will do, it is invest in our hair. Companies know this and they’ve found ways to profit off of it by selling us products that do not help our hair. But we can’t just blame companies and manufacturers. We must blame ourselves for being greedy as well. Protective styling is a myth. It’s game. It’s a way to make money. The idea that we have to give our hair a break is a joke. How do you give your hair a break when you manipulate and put stress on your hair and your scalp by braiding, weaving or crocheting cheap synthetic or human hair into your natural hair? Not to mention the harmful chemicals used in synthetic braiding hair and wigs that causes sometimes severe allergic reactions in a lot of women. Nine times out of ten people are braiding or weaving this hair incorrectly and way too tight which causes traction alopecia or hair loss. There are women who swear protective styling grows their hair or has helped them retain hair length, and this may be true for some. But what does protective styling do for a woman that has issues with wearing her natural hair out?
Nothing.
Once it’s time to take the protective style down, most women will either get it done over again as soon as possible, usually too soon, or they will put a wig on. Do you know how many women are claiming to be natural but never show their natural hair because it’s tucked away under wigs or they keep going to the braid shops getting knotless braids? The wig industry is booming. You can go on Youtube and learn how to make your own wig. You can buy wigs online or at any hair supply store in black neighborhoods that are owned and run by Asians. (And the Asians have a choke hold on hair weave and black hair supplies. But that’s another story for a different day.) My point is, black women are being sold lies from all angles. Lies about the need to protective style, lies about the need to buy a whole line of products that won’t work for our kinky, coily hair. At one time I believed those lies. I kept protective styling, and my hair and scalp continued to suffer. I changed the type of hair I used, I changed who I allowed to do my hair and at the end of the day, after a lot of damage was done to my hair, I finally woke up and realized that protective styles were the problem.
I stopped wearing protective styles and rocked my natural afro until I decided to loc up my hair. I was never a product junkie so that was never an issue for me. But for so many others, they continue to believe the hype. They want their hair to curl up and bounce so bad like these biracial women who are promoting these products in the advertisements instead of accepting and loving their own hair and seeing the beauty in their natural hair. Wearing wigs and weaves may be easier because of the line of work you’re in, but what about when you’re not working? What about when you’re home, or out and about? It’s so easy to rely on wigs and weaves as an accessory that you can’t live without, or as something to hide behind because you are too scared to show the world your beautiful, natural hair as it grows out of your scalp. This is why the natural hair community needs a reckoning.
We have done a serious disservice to black women. There’s no education. There needs to be self love education where we get to the root of why so many of us don’t love our hair or ourselves. Then we need to take actionable steps to change that. There needs to be an education on the history of black hair and the different ways our ancestors wore their hair and took care of their hair and the meaning behind various styles and why we should be proud of our kinky coils. There needs to be product education that teaches people how to read product labels and know which ingredients are bad for our hair and which are good and to know that just because a bottle or box says “Natural” or “For Natural Hair” doesn’t mean it is. Just because the model on the box has big beautiful ringlets doesn’t mean you will get the same. And finally, there needs to be hair education on the different types of natural hair and how to identify your hair qualities and what natural ingredients will work for your hair.
Black women, we must be willing to put in the work when we decide to go natural. You cannot just jump in with unrealistic expectations and think you’re going to get the same results as the person you follow on Youtube with long 3c curly hair. STOP HIDING YOUR NATURAL BEAUTY black women! You have so much to offer and to show your daughters, nieces, nephews, sisters, aunts, mothers, grandmothers, and friends. Trust me, they are all watching you and will be inspired by you. Find that boldness and confidence within yourself to rock your natural hair proudly! Don’t let the opinions of others stop you, get you down or cause you to shrink into yourself. Your natural is beautiful, and you need to keep telling yourself this until you believe it. And be encouraging to each other, lift each other up, compliment one another and be a source of information, a safe place to to ask questions and vent or just celebrate our hair.
Finally, to the black owned natural hair companies who build enough wealth to sell to the likes of Proctor & Gamble who ultimately change your formula to cater to white women: be honest about your reasons for selling. Don’t pee on us and say it’s raining. You were offered millions for your blood, sweat and tears and you took it. It’s business, yes. But it’s also very personal to millions of black women who supported you when you were just a vendor on the street or a small mom and pop store. You catered to OUR HAIR and we loved you for it. But you can’t get mad at us for being mad at you for taking away another black centered brand from black women. Shea Moisture, Carol’s Daughters and others have all sold to P&G and P&G changed the formulas (watered them down) and they no longer work for most black hair. Mielle is the latest to sell to P&G and we know the fate of their products will be the same. You say you’re taking the money to grow more businesses in black neighborhoods and put money back into the black community. That’s your intention and that’s great, but don’t get mad at us when we give you the side eye because we’ve yet to see it happen.
Black women, I know we all have different textured hair which means we all have different needs. One size does not fit all, but at some point we have to stop being so reliant on so many products for our hair. Narrow down your products to just a few if possible, and learn how to care for your hair using natural ingredients that you can buy and make for yourself or look for small black owned businesses in your community that you can buy ingredients or products from. Our ancestors used locally sourced ingredients for centuries and created their own hair products, and many in different countries still do. Less is more. There are so many things we are using on our hair that our hair don’t even need! But because we believe the marketing hype that we need to buy or have an entire line of products in order for our hair to grow, have body, shine, or be moisturized, we continue to waste money buying things that are actually ruining our hair and irritating our scalps.
The reckoning starts with us, in our own community. The natural hair movement has been stagnant for years. There has been no movement and that’s not good. Our lack of mobility has led to the regression of women with natural hair getting relaxers again or women with locs combing out or cutting off their locs and getting relaxers. I don’t know what purpose this serves or how any of this even makes sense, but it’s happening. We need to get the natural hair movement out of the social media phase and into real life, and that starts with honest conversations with ourselves and education. Social media has proven that many will do anything for clicks and likes or to go viral. This is not a good thing for the natural hair community. And while I’m all for people doing whatever they want with their hair, putting a negative light on natural hair as if it’s bad is not the messaging the natural hair community needs. If you’ve noticed on social media, there are tons of advertisements for class action lawsuits against hair relaxers that have proven to cause cancer and other major health issues for black women. I hope that will help convince more black women to leave relaxers alone and grow out their natural hair.
It’s past time that the natural hair community take a long look at itself. We have a lot of work to do and a lot of educating needs to take place.
Going Back to my Natural Roots 