Why do Black Women Straighten their Hair?
Written by Samara on May 13, 2009This is a question that I’ve been pondering over for the last few weeks. As I go out day to day on my way to work I observe my surroundings and what catches my eye is what I have a passion for: African American hair. I noticed how many women wore weaves and wigs, but what disturbed me the most was the amount of women that have selected to wear chemicals in their hair to alter the natural curl pattern. Have we lost sight of who we are? Are we disgusted by our natural hair texture so much that we can’t live without the use of chemicals? Why do we feel our natural hair is unacceptable to society? Where did this whole idea come from?
As I pondered on these thoughts of the history of our hair, the first thing that came to mind was the straightening comb. Even before that I read the history of black slaves and how they used lard and other painful ways to make their hair straighter (Please read this Black women it’s a must!). This is why the straightening comb was invented. Years later came the chemical relaxer. With all this information gathered, I began to wonder what gave black women the notion that we had to have straight hair? We weren’t born with straight hair and when Africans were in Africa before slavery this practice was never used. In conclusion I came to the idea that we were and still are trying to mimic the texture of Caucasian women. Black women will actually put chemicals in their hair to alter the natural curl pattern and even damage their hair so it will look like that of another race. This revelation alarms me! Even I was one of those women that followed suit in this practice
Some women claim they rely on a relaxer for manageablity of their hair, but I believe that this is a sad excuse and a quick fix for not researching and learning how to care for your natural curls. If black women will educate themselves on the care of their “natural” hair, then the use of chemicals will be eliminated from their hair regimen. Our hair is beautiful just the way it is, but society has lead us to believe that natural black hair is unacceptable. Even the hair care industry caters to the use of relaxers. There are tons of products on the market today conveniently located in local stores that focus on the so-called care of chemically treated hair, but I rarely see hair products in these same stores that cater to the care of African American hair in it’s natural state.
I am not saying that all women should give up a relaxer or texturizer and cut off their chemically treated hair. In the end it is your choice what you decide to do with your hair, but let it be just that. Your “choice”, and not the choice of society.
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8 Responses to Why do Black Women Straighten their Hair?
I actually straightened my hair about six months afterut I went natural. I was cute for a few days, then started to look a little frizzy. So, I decided to wash it to get my curls back. All of my hair curled back up except one section in the back. It stayed straight because mt hairdresser used too much heat! I waited and washed for about two weeks, but my hair never curled back up, so I decided to cut it off. After this experience, I vowed to never straighen my hair again!
Yes, using heat in the hair that is higher than 200 degrees will more than likely cause heat damage. If you ever decide to straighten your hair again, use a heat protectant first and make sure you use a flat iron or curling iron that has a temperature gauge on it.
how can you eliminate frizz when braiding hair, braiding natural hair that has never been processed?
Try using a gel or natural pomade. Apply a small amount of gel(alcohol free such as It’s a Black Thang Shining & Conditioning Gel) or pomade(Carols Daughter, Kinky-Curly or CURLS) to your hair from root to end before braiding and tie your hair down every night to prevent frizz.
Okay…so if you don’t clip your ends then your hair will break right? I’ve always been told that its best to clip once every 6 weeks with your relaxer and i’ve also experienced breakage bc I didn’t trim. Is this based on your own hair?
This fact is not based on my own hair, but common sense. Your hair doesn’t break off because you don’t clip your ends. It breaks because of lack of daily moisture, conditioning, and using chemicals. Relaxed hair is dry and damaged and it needs to be conditioned weekly and moisturized daily. Our hair grows an average of 1/2 inch per month so if you clip your ends as often as every 6 weeks you will never gain any length.
i have very thick hair. it usred to be very long and now it’s so short. almost every day i straighten it so i won’t be lauged at during school, it gets so frizzy. how do i keep it fom getting frizzy without a flat iron?
If you oil your hair and wrap it nightly, followed by a satin scarf nightly, your hair will be smooth and full of bounce the following day. Using a flat iron that often will cause your hair to break off constantly and you will never gain any length.