The Importance of Appreciating Our Hair
Tara ALexander
Self Portrait By Findingpaola on instagram
MY JOuRNEY OF HAIR
"Growing up, I never really understood the importance of my appearance-- more specifically, my hair. I always saw it more of a nuisance, or a burden. I didn't understand why my hair was the way it was. It was extremely frizzy , thick, and difficult. Back when I was a child, I didn't realize the...not only beauty, but power that I had with my hair. Now that I"m a little bit older, I'm starting to understand why my hair is so significant and how it can define a person like me.
As a person of color, growing up with my type of hair was very hard. It was hard especially with the lack of hair product I had in my house. I also would compare myself to other kids. I wanted my hair to be straightened like my friends, because I believed it was prettier than the huge afro I usually wore to school. When I finally straightened (and by straightened, I mean relaxed) my hair, I wasn't aware of the damage I had made. After relaxing my hair, I didn't have an afro for seven years. My hair remained straight and heat damaged and I hated every second of it. The problem wasn't the fact that my hair was straight, it was the fact that I hated my natural hair so much, that I wanted to change it and permanently damage my hair. While I had my straight hair, I learned many things about hair: how it can be powerful, how it can be artistic. On Instagram, many artists use hair and photography to display a message, start a movement, or make art. Hair can say so much about a person, an idea, a group of people, a culture, and more. Hair should never be a burden to anyone, because it's part of who we are. It's something that should be admired and loved. Hair is just another medium of art that we do everyday." |
WHAT IS A RELAXER? A relaxer is when a lotion / serum is put hair to make it easier to straighten. It chemically "relaxes" the curls. Relaxers can damage hair, burn scalps, and lead to hair loss.
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Interviews With Hair Lovers
QUESTIONS:
1)What is the importance of hair?
2)How can hair define a person?
3)What is your hair journey?
4) What is something you'd say to someone who doesn't appreciate their hair?
5) How can hair be seen as art?
1)What is the importance of hair?
2)How can hair define a person?
3)What is your hair journey?
4) What is something you'd say to someone who doesn't appreciate their hair?
5) How can hair be seen as art?
Aaliyah Guthrie , Grade 10
1) Importance of our hair (as black women) is very drastic. Hair, most significantly shows out heritage. Where we have come from and how far our people have come. Hair just has a thicker meaning than “hair” in the black community.
2) Hair has previously, and currently, played a tremendous role in femininity, many even consider their hair as their “crowned jewels”. Black Women, for many years have gone through struggles into believing that their natural hair was beautiful. I think many can attest to the “good hair” movement at which many women were forced to assimilate into the European hair standards as “black” hair may not have seemed beautiful, attractive, or even professional.
3) My hair journey started off rough. I, as many little black girls did, went to the salon every two weeks to get my hair pressed so that it was straight. When I got to the age of ten, my beautician realized that my hair had been much to damaged in order to continue getting my hair pressed every two weeks.So I received a body wave treatment which was a texturizer that gave my hair a wavy texture that I would have to get revived every couple of months or so. After about a year, I’d gone through extreme breakage and damage due to the chemical processing. So then, as I was at an age to have made a decision about my own hair, I told my family that I wanted to just go natural and cut allll my hair off. So every month or so, I would chop off a few inches to allow the new hair to grow in until there was no more damaged hair. In the meantime, this was my first experience with protective styles. I wore cornrows mostly until I got a little older and my mom let me get Box braids. So about 2 years into my natural hair journey, my hair was completely healthy. I wore box braids in my hair mostly until I learned how to love and embrace my natural 4b/4c curls!
4) For someone, anyone no matter the race or age, I would tell them to embrace whatever GOD has given them. He has made you in his image and you must LOVE yourself! Because when your hair is gone, that’s when you will miss it the most.
5) Art is defined as “something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful” Afros, cornrows, braids, knots, buns, ponytails, twists. These are alllll works of art that require skill, craft, and a beautiful woman (or man) to rock them!
1) Importance of our hair (as black women) is very drastic. Hair, most significantly shows out heritage. Where we have come from and how far our people have come. Hair just has a thicker meaning than “hair” in the black community.
2) Hair has previously, and currently, played a tremendous role in femininity, many even consider their hair as their “crowned jewels”. Black Women, for many years have gone through struggles into believing that their natural hair was beautiful. I think many can attest to the “good hair” movement at which many women were forced to assimilate into the European hair standards as “black” hair may not have seemed beautiful, attractive, or even professional.
3) My hair journey started off rough. I, as many little black girls did, went to the salon every two weeks to get my hair pressed so that it was straight. When I got to the age of ten, my beautician realized that my hair had been much to damaged in order to continue getting my hair pressed every two weeks.So I received a body wave treatment which was a texturizer that gave my hair a wavy texture that I would have to get revived every couple of months or so. After about a year, I’d gone through extreme breakage and damage due to the chemical processing. So then, as I was at an age to have made a decision about my own hair, I told my family that I wanted to just go natural and cut allll my hair off. So every month or so, I would chop off a few inches to allow the new hair to grow in until there was no more damaged hair. In the meantime, this was my first experience with protective styles. I wore cornrows mostly until I got a little older and my mom let me get Box braids. So about 2 years into my natural hair journey, my hair was completely healthy. I wore box braids in my hair mostly until I learned how to love and embrace my natural 4b/4c curls!
4) For someone, anyone no matter the race or age, I would tell them to embrace whatever GOD has given them. He has made you in his image and you must LOVE yourself! Because when your hair is gone, that’s when you will miss it the most.
5) Art is defined as “something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful” Afros, cornrows, braids, knots, buns, ponytails, twists. These are alllll works of art that require skill, craft, and a beautiful woman (or man) to rock them!
Naziah Grandberry, Grade 10
1) Well I guess back then we couldn’t have the type of hair other had, so we decided to create our own style.
2)For me my hair doesn’t define me at all, because I don’t personally feel like I need to do something to my hair to be this way or that way.
3)I don’t really have a journey, my mom always took care of my hair when I was younger, so like nothing really major happened.
4)Well it isn’t my place to but in, but if I have too I will. I would probably say that his/her hair is beyond beautiful, and you shouldn’t fee don’t wan of how different your hair looks, because everyone's hair is different.
5) There are multiple ways . You can create unique types of styles that no one has seen before.
1) Well I guess back then we couldn’t have the type of hair other had, so we decided to create our own style.
2)For me my hair doesn’t define me at all, because I don’t personally feel like I need to do something to my hair to be this way or that way.
3)I don’t really have a journey, my mom always took care of my hair when I was younger, so like nothing really major happened.
4)Well it isn’t my place to but in, but if I have too I will. I would probably say that his/her hair is beyond beautiful, and you shouldn’t fee don’t wan of how different your hair looks, because everyone's hair is different.
5) There are multiple ways . You can create unique types of styles that no one has seen before.