via S2S Magazine
Source
I didn’t think a word could be more overused and annoying than “swagger,” until I heard “natural.”
In case you somehow don’t already know, going “natural” is the latest trend among African-American women who are saying goodbye to relaxers (also known as perms), which chemically straighten their naturally curly or kinky hair.
Going natural was on the rise many years ago, but it virtually exploded into a movement following the 2009 Chris Rock movie, Good Hair. In the movie, Rock highlights the extremes Black women take to achieve so-called “good hair” – be it in the form of weaves or relaxers, which he famously coined “creamy crack.”
For many African-American women, the film was an inspiration to overcome their addiction to relaxers, not just because of the sometimes damaging effects it has on their hair, but also for a sense of African-American pride.
To the latter, I say bullcrap. I never believed in the silly notion that Black women who straighten their hair are trying to resemble their White female counterparts with long, silky smooth tresses. My hair is super thick and gets extra frizzy in the rain. I don’t like that, so I have a perm. Period.
Yet, for some reason it seems there’s this new sense of shame or judgment against women who rock a relaxer or weave. Recently, an Atlanta club promoter even offered discounts to women with natural hair and who don’t wear weaves.
Enough already.
If a relaxer is making your hair fall out, then by all means, get rid of it! But please don’t think you’re making a statement in the process. I’ve been getting relaxers for over 20 years now, and my hair is still healthy and I am still very much Black (gasp!).
It’s called individuality. Do you! Going natural doesn’t make a woman any better or “Blacker” than one rocking a weave down to her behind. If that’s the case, how do you explain when White women wear “extensions” and straighten their naturally curly hair? Who are they trying to be like?
Besides, if we’re talking about going natural, I say go all the way! Get rid of your makeup, nail polish, deodorant… heck, even get rid of your Spanx! But please don’t try to pressure me to do the same.
I’ve always marched to the beat of my own drum, and that won’t change, no matter how many movies Chris Rock makes. If I’m a fiend to the creamy crack, then fine. Call me Pookie.
What do you think? Do you agree that women with straight hair are judged harshly? Do you assume women with natural hair have more Black pride? Leave your comments below.
My name is Tamara L. Floyd. I created Natural Hair Rules.com in 2008 to chronicle 
Be serious, and be honest with yourself.
While mimicking our White counterparts may not be the primary driving factor for you when making your monthly dash to the beauty supply store for your Dark n Lovely fix, you absolutely cannot negate the fact that it most certainly is the underlying cause for its inception . We (Black people) have inhabited this Earth for over 76 trillion years, yet it was not until the post-Slavery era that we began to chemically alter ourselves to achieve social assimilation with our slavemasters. To speak of makeup, deodorants, etc as it relates to this subject is almost assinine. Makeup and deodorant merely accentuate and enhance the features which are naturally present. You speak of White women wearing extensions, yet again, extensions do not chemically alter a person’s appearance. They are not an alteration, rather an enhancement. You’ve never seen a White women adding extensions in hopes of achieving a drastic change in the texture of their hair. A relaxer chemically and physically alters your hair’s composition, forever changing it, making it physiologically different from what it was before. Makeup, deodorant and extensions could never do that. I can understand why you may have felt insulted by the “natural” movement as well as the underlying message of Chris Rock’s movie…but I suggest you do more research and gain more understanding about the origins of what you are defending. Rather than lash out without a foundation.
Of course you are within your rights to do whatever you wish with you hair, but you should at least know, recognize and acknowledge the ideas you are representing without feeling attacked and jumping on the defense. It is what it is, if you love your perm…love it! But dont get mad when someone calls you out!
The desire to chemically alter our hair DID in fact stem from a desire to be like our White counterparts. Of course every woman (or man) makes her (or his) decisions for different reasons, but many a woman has admitted to being enslaved to relaxers because of a Eurocentric ideal of beauty which led to a FEAR of going against the grain and wearing her own natural hair texture. Imagine that, fear of what grows out of your own head… This is based on living in a society where everything Black is seen as ugly or unnacceptable. Whether covertly, or openly. So yes, going natural may just be a hairstyle choice for some, but others, it is in fact a statement. And those who choose to make a statement with their hairstyle should not be judged, just as those who choose not too shouldd not to be judged either. To each her own.
*Gets off of my soapbox*
THANK YOU. very well written and to the point. Asinine indeed to compare removable & temporary accessories, such as contacts, spanx, nail polish and make-up, to corrosive chemicals which permanently alter your unique texture such as perm…..