Just as I promised last week, today we are going to discuss why different hairstyles, such as cornrows and braids, are considered cultural appropriation. These hairstyles are very popular in the hip-hop and rap scenes, and over the years, there have been many white and non-black people who have taken these hairstyles to appear edgy or cool, including Miley Cyrus. Once again, I am not black, so I will using sources to get the opinions of the people this affects, and they will all be cited below. However, I do have more working knowledge on this subject than the last, so at points, I will simply provide opportunities for further reading.
Even before getting into why these hairstyles are considered cultural appropriation, we must consider that black hairstyles are legitimately not meant for non-black people or people without kinky/coily hair. These hairstyles are known as protective hairstyles because they are extremely tight and rigid (in how the hair is held not the hair itself) which serves to keep the thicker, but also more fragile and drier, curly hair from breaking. Kinky/coily hair has different needs in terms of washing and care, and it lends itself naturally to protective hairstyles, which means that proper care can still be completed even when it is tightly bound.
On the flip side, protective hairstyles are inherently harmful to those without thick, coarse hair because of the pressure from the styles and the extra products needed to create the hairstyle for a hair that cannot naturally form it, as well as the difference in the care each type of hair needs, can lead to hair loss and hygiene issues.
For more information on protective styles and some examples, click here.
However, the question of “whose hair is it meant for,” doesn’t answer the question of “why is it cultural appropriation. To answer that question, let’s once again break down the definition: are black people a marginalized group, has there been discrimination due to these hairstyles, and are these hairstyles culturally significant?” The first part of that question is extremely simple to answer. In a word—yes. Black people have faced countless atrocities and continue to be the victims of a host of racist and intolerant policies and actions.
Their hair is part of the discrimination that they face, and it adds to why it is so harmful that when a white person wears it, it is seen as cool or edgy. The fact of the matter is, when a black person wears their hair in either a natural or protective style, it is seen as “unclean” and “ghetto.” Chastity Jones lost a job offer because she refused to cut off her dreadlocks. In fact, a black woman is “50% more likely to be sent home from work because of their hairstyle” and “80% more likely to change their hair… to be accepted by peers.”
It is also not a recent development, as this stemmed as far back as the reconstruction days, where black women were banned from wearing their hair in traditional styles through the Trigon Laws as it was too “extravagant.” They adapted and instead adorned themselves with silk headwraps and scarves, but even that is looked down upon.
Lastly, is the hair culturally significant? I reached out to one of my best friends to get her opinion, as I thought it would be nice to hear from a peer about how it has affected her. She says that to her, “box braids, or locs as I myself have, and many other black hairstyles are a symbol of black beauty and our resilience which is why it is offensive when other people, white or not, wear them. There is history in our hair.”
There is a lot of history in their hairstyles. These hairstyles have roots in many African tribes and were symbols of one’s tribe and heritage. The hairstyles were so important, that when black people were brought over as slaves, one of the first things done was their heads were shaven—it was a symbol of removing their culture and who they were. Additionally, black hairstyles have even been known to hide maps of escape routes during slave times, so it is clear that these hairstyles have played a huge part in black history.
However, the biggest thing to consider when examining why black hair is so culturally significant is the fact that so much of the rest of their culture was stripped away. When they were brought over as slaves, they were thought of as objects and as less than human. Any parts of their tradition and culture were ripped away from them to dehumanize them. Their hairstyles are one of the few things that remain to connect them to their roots. To quote my friend again, “As a black woman descended from the slaves, immigrants from Cuba, and Native Americans, any culture that I have has been ravaged or destroyed. Therefore, however shallow it may seem, hair is all I have.”
It is clear that these are not just hairstyles, but something so much more. They are protective of not only their hair but also the past, making sure that the hardships they have faced are not forgotten. If this blog interested you, please look below for more info, or check out the sources I cited. Come back next week for a history of Japanese geisha garb.
For a fantastic article that answers some frequently asked questions and further breaks down this issue, click here, and for another amazing article that breaks down why these hairstyles mean so much to black people, click here.
I really enjoyed reading this blog post. One thing that I noticed a black person is that there so much emphasis is put on our hair and appearance; we must always have it done or else it would be looked at as ratchet, ghetto or unprofessional. When I say done, most of the time it has to do with tucking it away in a bun or striaghtening it. I am very appreciative of my kinky hair but I fear that as i get older that I will be influenced by beauty standards and try to hide my natural pattern.
I was really interested to find out how much meaning these hairstyles truly have to the black community and culture. I always assumed they were just surface level meanings such as protective styling and styling that was easier than straightening their hair. I believe I was a little naive to the true meaning of their hairstyles and now I have a better understanding.
This is a topic that I have had, in the past, a hard time understanding, so it’s really great to hear you talk about it. What I find most important about every single one of your posts is that you’re never aggressive, but instead nicely explanatory of why people could and should be insulted by certain usages of their own cultures.