By: NewNaturalista
My mother remembers it fondly. “My brother Larry took me to get my first fro, it had to be the late 60′s,” she reminisces as she goes on about how she kept it up. “We would braid it every night and in the morning we’d spray it with oil sheen, man we loved that oil sheen!” she laughes. When asked why she decided to get a relaxer 5 years later, the tone gets dismissive. “You know, it just wasn’t the style anymore.” This made me think about my twa (teenie weenie afro) and my love for it. Right now as I write this, I don’t ever see myself “going back” – to a relaxer. I’m so in love with my coils, the way they fall and how I look. But as time goes on, will my feelings change?
70's Afro Sheen Ad
I’m gonna say right now, no. There are some key similarities as to why our sisters and brothers back then went natural - although that term for back then is a misnomer, most of them were always “natural” they’d just decided not to press and curl anymore. Going natural is a show of self acceptance and back then it was about being free in every sense of the world, I think the slogan “I’m Black and I’m Proud” says it all! It was, in so many ways political. Today it’s also about being our true authentic selves – but there’s a new component – health.
I went natural back in September because I was just tired. Tired of the chemicals, the long waits at the hair salon, the serious and painful health implications of relaxing my hair every few weeks. It was also about rediscovering what was never shown to me. Unlike our mothers and fathers, most black women my age were “shielded” from our natural hair texture, pressing or relaxing like clockwork in an effort to make our coils manageable.
Natural Hair Gap Ad
Unlike black women back in the day, we also have so many products to choose from…healthy mineral free products, that actually nourish our hair, not change it. In my opinion this resurgence of natural hair is not a fad, but rather black women coming into their own, embracing our true selves without apology or fear of what others may think.
That’s just MY opinion, I thought I’d open up the floor by starting off the conversation with one of my hair idols KCurly, of the great blog newlynatural.com
KCurly: “I do think we are seeing a slight shift towards natural hair. I say slight because I am speaking for my area. I live in the deep South and here you will not find that many natural ladies as compared to the North. I do find that more and more relaxed women are able to see the beauty of natural hair, something that would’ve been unheard of even 10 years ago. I think it’s a trend for some people. Let’s face it: There are those of us who change our hairstyles like we change our underwear. Also, some ladies just don’t view being natural as something that is deep and meaningful. Therefore, going natural is not a lifelong decision for them. I do believe that more and more people are going to go natural in the future, but relaxers will be continue to be king for the majority.”
KCurly newlynatural.com
What do you think?
14 comments
Shauna says:
Feb 27, 2010
I think for some it is a fad and for other it may be a real life change. It seems that in some communities natural hair is accepted but like KCurly said it’s a different story in the south.
Tanisha says:
Mar 3, 2010
This is an interesting topic. I recently went natural and I can say that I have a feeling that women are becoming more educated. Well, let me say a certain segment of women are becoming more educated. We will always want the option of change who knows in a year or two I may want to relax again. I will say I like having choices.
Leese says:
Mar 3, 2010
Well here in Seattle you don’t see that many ladies natural. I was out and about today and ran into my old hairstylist and she said ‘You went natural too’? I said yes, 3 years ago. She said she just cut her hair off and colored it and she can’t wait to rock all these different styles etc.. But I think there may be a fair amount of natural gals in the town except they press their hair. They aren’t unleashing it. Seattle is too conservative. I remember a year ago I ran into my aunt and I was wearing some 2-strand twists and she said to me ‘Girllll what is wrong with your head’? I said nothing. My 7yr olddaughter said Mommy why did she say that to you? I said apparently she didn’t like my hairstyle. My daughter said I like it Mommy. My Aunt (61 yrs),typical Seattle permed slicked back ponytail. I am done rambling Tonya. Love the site!
admin says:
Mar 4, 2010
Hi Leese, you know I both agree and disagree about Seattle. It’s such a progressive area – so I think for the most part those of other races are very accepting…at the same time I think for some in the black community it’s still a “no no.” My grandmother said to me when I went natural, “Why would you do that? That’s why we have relaxers so we don’t have to go through that!?” She laughed afterward but I know that’s how she really felt. Thanks for the compliment and congrats on going natural! I’d love to have a meetup for all of us here in Seattle one day.
Tonya, NewNaturalista
Elaine says:
Mar 6, 2010
We are brainwashed as far as our natural hair. However, it’s so good to have the option to change, the important thing is to know who you are and be proud of ourselves, no matter of our color, shape, size, whatever. In addition, we must know our history. This way, we are FREE to stunt any style. You are so right, other races are ignorant, When I rock my afro, I get comments, like ” how did you get your hair like that?” they are so amazed. The older black generation is stuck on that nappy and short hair thing, some young ones too.
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TraceyJoy says:
May 25, 2010
this is the hair on my head, it’s not a fad. I think for some it may be a fad, for me it’s my way of life. I live right outside Atlanta, so I see women of color are wearing their natural unprocessed hair. It’s not an odd thing to see. However, I still get looks and stares oddly enough from other women of color who wear their hair relaxed. Many think something is wrong, offensive or unappealing to have unprocessed hair. I do run across people who have naturally straight hair and they ask, how did you do that to you hair or I wish my hair would curl like yours… To each his own. I love my hair, I’m proud of my hair and I enjoy taking good care of it. My hope is that all people all over the world embrace who and what they are and do so with dignity and pride. Stop being ashamed of who you are, let no one take that away from you.
Morgy says:
Aug 24, 2010
imo i think it’s a fad for some bc big hair is like “the new black” so to speak and of course when hair is natural it’s bigger! I see more and more ladies shaving their heads (maybe inspired by amber rose – u gotta give to her) which i think makes it easier to go natural bc I remeber when I first cut all of my perm out, about 6 yrs ago, before i knew it, my hair was down my back and I had all this hair on top of my head lol. I’ve permed it since then for abosolutley no reason at all-smh and I think a lot of others will do the same – for absolutely no reason at all (or maybe bc somewhere down the line there is going to be another “new black”).
But I chopped it all off again about 2 yrs ago and decided to stay as a natural this time around simply bc i appreciate the texture of my hair. Whether it’s straightened, in two strands, in a fro or slicked back into a pt.
admin says:
Aug 24, 2010
Morgy, good points. Even though I LOVE my natural hair, I have struggles and influences too. We’ll see, but at this moment I’m going to say for me it’s not a fad. Lol. Thanks for writing.
Tonya, NewNaturalista
Leslie says:
Nov 7, 2010
I did the “big chop” back in September after thinking about it for 4 or 5 years. I had a perm for 36 years. My hair was more manageable but it never curled AND STAYED as I wanted. I wore a pony tail most of the time and I was tired of it. My hair was mid-back length and no one thought I was serious about cutting my hair. The biggest question and point of trepidation was the transition phase. I missed 3 (18 weeks) retouches and couldn’t take the half natural/half perm look and dealing with it so I had it cut off. Needless to say, my transition was not long. 1 year? 2 years? Nooooo! Cut this now please. I was totally ready. I had thought about it and was ready. It’s not a fad for me. I’ve wanted to do this and, now that I have a TWA, I love it! I, too, don’t remember my hair in it’s natural state. I was in charge of my hair at age 7 so, a perm made it easier to comb. I was happy for that but, at age 44, I’m was tired of the retouches and long dryer sits all for a pony tail. I want freedom. I like being able to wash and go and go to bed without a huge hair preparation ritual or weekly washings/dryer/flat iron. I feel I’ve been delivered by my own hair. #teamnatural
admin says:
Nov 12, 2010
@Leslie, “I have been delivered by my own hair” I LOVE IT! We want to see photos of your “big chop!” Please share!
Epiphanie says:
Dec 1, 2010
I’ve been natural for a whole year this month and I’ve been locking since Feb. I can definitely say it was a life changer for me. I’ve been wanting to loc my hair since I was 8 but, it never really happened for me do to other life pressing matters. I’m truly joyful I took that step though. I live in Detroit and there’s definitely a shift going on in the city with natural hair for the men and women. I don’t think there’s a big astigmatism as there was in the past pertaining to NH. A lot of my girlfriends have done the big chop this year and most feel it is a weight lifted off their shoulders. Most say they feel more authentic and free within themselves. I can recall going to a concert this summer and seeing so many NH men and women in attendance I was truly in awe. I had never seen so many ppl in my city or state rocking NH in all my years of living here and the numbers just keep growing. I don’t know to much about it being a fad, but I do know people are starting to make major realizations about there appearance as well as their lifestyle. Sorry to be long winded, I just get excited about conversations pertaining to NH
admin says:
Dec 1, 2010
@Epiphanie thanks for sharing your story and big ups to Detroit! (That’s where I’m from originally.) I was wondering about the natural hair scene there, glad to know it’s growing!
MissWhatever2005 says:
Nov 30, 2011
It is definitely a fad that will stick around for a while. There will be folks that remain naturl and those that do not but it is definitely a fad.