Black Hair Cares is a critical visual analysis of an African woman’s relationship with her hair enhancements; the relationship is a contentious one as this young woman equates her wigs with her beauty.
Hair, in this case - Afro-textured hair - can be a particularly sensitive topic for Black women of African descent because of it’s deeply intertwined relationship with beauty and identity. This relationship is made to be even more complex due to the history of racial discrimination and oppression, which has forced many Black women to make changes to their hair in order to assimilate to and appease Western beauty standards.
As a result, little Black girls all over the world look in the mirror and loathe their naturally beautiful curly and kinky hair. These little girls then grow into adults who may, intentionally or not, pass on this internalized oppression to their children and peers. Through no fault of their own, they will then seek out damaging means to tame their hair.
Although, there is a huge natural hair movement encouraging women to accept, respect and enjoy their afro-textured hair, the journey of acquiring this self-love and acceptance can be extremely daunting and complex. Naturally, every woman has to come to this journey at her own time and pace.
Hair, in this case - Afro-textured hair - can be a particularly sensitive topic for Black women of African descent because of it’s deeply intertwined relationship with beauty and identity. This relationship is made to be even more complex due to the history of racial discrimination and oppression, which has forced many Black women to make changes to their hair in order to assimilate to and appease Western beauty standards.
As a result, little Black girls all over the world look in the mirror and loathe their naturally beautiful curly and kinky hair. These little girls then grow into adults who may, intentionally or not, pass on this internalized oppression to their children and peers. Through no fault of their own, they will then seek out damaging means to tame their hair.
Although, there is a huge natural hair movement encouraging women to accept, respect and enjoy their afro-textured hair, the journey of acquiring this self-love and acceptance can be extremely daunting and complex. Naturally, every woman has to come to this journey at her own time and pace.