.png)
Since the introduction of slavery, slave masters have found multiple ways to divide the slaves brought from different parts of Africa. The most commonly known way is colorism, discrimination against individuals with a darker skin tone typically from the same racial group. Although many Americans are aware of this form of prejudice, they are often unaware that colorism plays into another form of discrimination called texturism. Because texturism is so prominent in our society, many young black and brown women dislike their natural hair and oftentimes make jokes about being unable to do certain hairstyles that can be incredibly damaging to their natural coils.
Texturism is the discrimination faced by those with coarser and more afro-textured hair (Asare, 2022). To understand texturism on a greater and more expansive level, we must first understand the division created during slavery’s prime. There was a strict caste system based on European beauty standards that was created to separate slaves by skin tone and hair texture to determine which slaves were better than the others. Slaves with lighter skin and looser hair textures were in closer approximation to the masters that held them. This gave them better treatment than those on the bottom of the system hence the early beginning of texturism and colorism.
The derogatory attitudes towards Black hair continued after the abolition of slavery and many Black people, mainly women, began to use hot combs and chemicals to straighten their hair chemically. This is what the self-made billionaire Madame CJ Walker built her entire empire on. There were also barriers such as “The Pencil Test” to determine whether or not a person could be considered White or Black. Black South Africans were forced to participate in this test to see if their hair could hold a pencil. If the pencil fell out, then they would be classified as white but if it stayed inside, they were classified as Black.
After many years of hair discrimination, Black folks around the world have found different ways to beat the system and grow more love for the way Black hair naturally grows. In the early 2000s, the natural hair movement was created. This movement focused on encouraging Black people to celebrate their curls and coils and attempted to denormalize the usage of relaxers. Although the natural hair movement was designed for all hair textures, over the years people with looser hair textures have been seen at the forefront perpetuating the ideal that looser curls were better. Because of this, many women with coarser hair textures have coined the term hair depression as a way to express their feelings toward their tighter curl patterns.
Kiera Bradshaw, a part-time hairstylist and senior at the University of Missouri, speaks about the mental health impacts of hair and hair depression in the Black community. She explains that from a young age, she has always felt incredibly miserable and disliked her 4C hair and the shrinkage that came along with it. Because of this shrinkage, she was often called bald and other derogatory names. This negative mindset eventually grew with her. She states that whenever her hair was undone, she didn’t feel as beautiful. Bradshaw recalled that she attached so many feelings to her hair that it often determined her mood for the day. Bradshaw quotes, “...I think hair depression is a really big problem in the Black community because we weren’t told that our hair is beautiful”.
Understanding texturism and colorism is one step closer to creating a better version of the Black community. Allowing yourself to be free of European beauty standards not only benefits your mental health but also those around you. We must break the beauty standards that continue to hold us in the same shackles as our ancestors and create a more accepting and kind word for our future Black children.
Hodge, Dominique. “'Hair depression is a really big problem in the Black community because we weren't told that our hair was beautiful.'” KBIA, 14 April 2023, https://www.kbia.org/podcast/missouri-health-talks/2023-04-14/hair-depression-is-a-really-big-problem-in-the-black-community-because-we-werent-told-that-our-hair-was-beautiful. Accessed 30 June 2024.
Comments