Whether it’s activist Angela Davis’s Afro or hip-hop diva Lil’ Kim’s “weave of the week,” black hair has long had the power to set trends and reflect societal attitudes.
Since February is Black History Month — a time to remember important people and events that shaped the lives of African Americans—we thought it was an ideal time to explore how hairstyles have been interwoven into that history. It is a story that continues to evolve. Here is a look back at some of the key events and people who shaped the black hairstory.
1444: Europeans trade on the west coast of Africa with people wearing elaborate hairstyles, including locks, plaits and twists.
1619: First slaves brought to Jamestown; African language, culture and grooming tradition begin to disappear.
1700s: Calling black hair “wool,” many whites dehumanize slaves. The more elaborate African hairstyles cannot be retained.
1800s: Without the combs and herbal treatments used in Africa, slaves rely on bacon grease, butter and kerosene as hair conditioners and cleaners. Lighter-skinned, straight-haired slaves command higher prices at auction than darker, more kinky-haired ones. Internalizing color consciousness, blacks promote the idea that blacks with dark skin and kinky hair are less attractive and worth less.
1865: Slavery ends, but whites look upon black women who style their hair like white women as well-adjusted. “Good” hair becomes a prerequisite for entering certain schools, churches, social groups and business networks.
Madame C.J. Walker1880: Metal hot combs, invented in 1845 by the French, are readily available in the United States. The comb is heated and used to press and temporarily straighten kinky hair.
1900s: Madame C.J. Walker develops a range of hair-care products for black hair. She popularizes the press-and-curl style. Some criticize her for encouraging black women to look white.
1910: Walker is featured in the Guinness Book of Records as the first American female self-made millionaire.
1920s: Marcus Garvey, a black nationalist, urges followers to embrace their natural hair and reclaim an African aesthetic.
1954: George E. Johnson launches the Johnson Products Empire with Ultra Wave Hair Culture, a “permanent” hair straightener for men that can be applied at home. A women’s chemical straightener follows.
This entry was posted on Thursday, February 12th, 2009 at 3:34 pm and is filed under Celebrity, Kinky Hair (Type 4a). You can follow any comments to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment.
February 14th, 2009 at 9:32 pm
This is so great. Thank you so much for posting this! There are so many people out there who don’t understand why black people have so many hair issues and how it differs from the issues all curlies have.
Being bi-racial, I grew up being told that I had bad hair by Hispanic friends and that I had pubic hair by white kids in school. My mom put a relaxer in my hair at 13, and around then black girls would say that I had good hair, because it was “softer” and would grow long. I didn’t like the chemicals and how unhealthy my hair began to look after six years, so I shaved my head. Went bald for three years and then began to grow it in.
I’ve now been natural now for over 15 years. In that time, I was told that my hair was inappropriate for the office. My hair was has always been a concern when preparing for job interviews since its been made clear that my natural hair could label me as an unworthy employee.
Learning to love my hair in this world that outright deemed me ugly or unprofessional was very hard. This history breakdown gives a few factual/tangible examples of what black women have had to deal with over the years and where it originated.
It’s really great to see that people are finally starting to address these issues. It would be great if little girls could grow up just loving who they are and not have the same experiences that I, and many other black women, did.
February 17th, 2009 at 8:20 am
[...] NaturallyCurly.com has a pretty neat article that pinpoints certain main events in African American hair history. It’s pretty neat if you want to take a look. [...]
February 17th, 2009 at 11:35 am
Excellent article, I am so glad to see that people are now more accepting of their natural hair. I am bi-racial and I have large curley hair and I use to perm it and it would damage my hair, Its been 5 years since I re-grew my hair and I wear it out big and curley, it’s who I am and I am proud of the way God made it. I pray that many women of all colors become accepting of who they are and if they want to perm their hair, thats ok too.
March 1st, 2009 at 7:34 am
Impactful, educational and an excellent reminder that we are all wonderfully and beautifully made by our creator and that we, our skin colors and natural hair whether it be straight, kinky, curly or wavy are not mistakes! I remember my elementry school days (dazes) being the ridicule of the other “colored” girls (that’s what we were called back then to late 1960′s) for having long hair, fair skin and freckles! I was a walking target…but you know what after many years I realized I was fine just the way I was, freckles and all! I’ve learned to embrace my freckles and curly hair. I’m so thankful that my college age daughter embraces her 3C,4A beautiful hair. My Grand-Mother’s motto was any hair you have on your head is “Good Hair”!
October 25th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
November 2nd, 2009 at 7:33 am
[...] exactly where that story is going. The idea that black hair is unsightly and unmanageable has been reinforced by the majority culture since slavery. Comparing black women and relaxing with white women and the quest for blondeness, as Rock has [...]
July 2nd, 2010 at 7:11 am
[...] About Afros The Afro Revisited A Look Back at the Black Hair Story Soul Train: Decades of Hair and Style Influence When Is a TWA No Longer a [...]
July 31st, 2010 at 9:06 am
I love this article. It really helped me with learning about how African Americans started to hate their natural hair and change the look of their hair to look like White Americans hair. All of my life, I have always worn my hair pressed, or relaxed out of fear that I would be called names like nappy head and I always had more confidence when it was time for me to get my hair relaxed because I knew that the straighter my hair was the more I would be liked by my family and friends at school because I always got compliments about how my hair is soo pretty whenever I got my hair pressd or relaxed. Well, with a relaxer I have never grown my hair passed shoulder length due to the harsh chemicals, so this pass year I decided to grow out my natural hair to embrace my culture and to finally grow long and natural hair. All of the natural hair blogs like this one has really inspired me to. I also decided to do the same thing with my daughter’s hair. She is 12 years old and when she first started to grow her hair out she got a lot of negative comments at school, like why you won’t put a relaxer in your hair your hair stinks and a friend of hers offered to flat iron her hair for her. I felt really bad for my daughter and I told her that her hair is beautiful and not to worry about what other people say about her, but after months of seeing how sad she was at school by her new hairstyle change, I decided to put a relaxer back in her hair. She is happy with my decision and so am I for the time being because she is to young to deal with all the negative comments. When she is a lot older, she will try to grow out her natural hair again, but for now she likes her hair relaxed. I will continue to model my love for my natural hair to her and one day my daughter will also embrace her natural hair. Until then,I will be glad when African American natural hair is accepted by the media as beautiful hair. I know that it is beautiful or my creator would not have blessed me with this kind of hair, but with all the negative comments that people get from wearing their natural hair it is the reason why most people feel that they have to wear their hair like someone else to be accepted in this world by friends boyfriends, husbands, children and family.
February 22nd, 2011 at 1:15 pm
[...] is natural hair such a big deal? Here is some background for anyone who is completely clueless on the subject and a reminder for those who already know. [...]
March 2nd, 2011 at 10:02 am
[...] is natural hair such a big deal? Here is some background for anyone who is completely clueless on the subject and a reminder for those who already know. [...]
November 17th, 2011 at 2:17 pm
great cliffnotes version of our hair journey and a great article. thanks so much for posting!
December 4th, 2011 at 4:07 pm
Thanks for this article. The issues around black hair are myriad and complex. Why should black women have to change their perfectly beautiful hair to fit a norm that is ridiculous and racist? The sad thing is that black women have believed this nonsense when they would not accept being told to bleach their skin or change their lips! The more women who wear their hair as it is, the more accepting society will have to become. Natural hair is professional and beautiful and only a “statement” because society makes it one. Curly, like m bi-racial hair, or cottony like my kinky haired sisters, it’s all beautiful.
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:55 pm
[...] Found At NaturallyCurly.com [...]
February 23rd, 2012 at 2:12 pm
This article is great. I love the history and that “Good Hair” is included in the timeline because that movie is great. I have had to face a lot of curiousity and confusion about my race and my ethnicity because of my hair, enough that I often identify with the history of the black hair struggle even though I don’t consider myself black(I don’t consider myself white or hispanic either so I’m just a mystery to people). I have often worried how my hair would be perceieved in a job interview or on a date or going out. Great timeline!
April 29th, 2012 at 10:49 am
[...] A Look Back at the Black Hair Story. (2009, February 12). In Naturally Curly. Retrieved February 12, 2012, from http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/kinky-hair-type-4a/a-look-back-at-the-black-hair-story [...]
June 6th, 2012 at 4:58 pm
[...] Another elaborate hairstyle Source [...]
July 28th, 2012 at 1:27 am
[...] http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/kinky-hair-type-4a/a-look-back-at-the-black-hair-story [...]
July 28th, 2012 at 8:49 am
[...] remains in many cases, and especially within the global north, a political statement against the historical degradation of black hair and the coercion to emulate white stands of beauty and ‘presentability’. (In fact, it is not [...]
August 6th, 2012 at 7:00 am
[...] remains in many cases, especially within the global north, a political statement against the historical degradation of black hair and the coercion to emulate white standards of beauty and ‘presentability’. (In fact, it is not [...]
September 5th, 2012 at 2:01 am
[...] selbstbewusste Ablehnung weißer Schönheitsnormen durch Schwarze ist eng verknüpft mit der Entstehung der Schwarzen Bürger_innenrechtsbewegung in den USA, Black Nationalism und Black Power Movements. Bereits in den 1920ern forderte Marcus Garvey, [...]
September 5th, 2012 at 3:38 am
[...] Danke für den Hinweis. Der Link zur Bedeutung von Schwarzen Haaren für das Civil Rights Movement führt (auch) zu einem Trailer von “Good Hair”; den Film finde ich diesbezüglich zwar [...]
September 27th, 2012 at 7:56 pm
[...] This history may come as no surprise to you, but the shocker is that we’ve just gotten to the point where celebrities are also supporting the cause, allowing women to know that there is no shame in having naturally curly hair. The kinks, fluff, coils, poof, and all the other variations of our hair is amazing. It’s also appreciated when these celebrities don’t just jump on the bandwagon, but instead, they are willing to address their own self issues and the pressures to maintain the images forced upon them. This is beyond just wearing magic hair and wigs for fun or a preferred style. This is about hating your own natural hair and those of others. [...]
October 3rd, 2012 at 9:34 pm
It’s important that we teach our kids from a young age that they are beautiful and leaders among their fellow man whether their hair is kinky or not, I’m glad I found out about kyooms.com last week, bought my little girl one of their post card sets with a cute black main character who had kinky curly hair, she loves it
March 8th, 2013 at 11:45 am
[...] Via NaturallyCurly.com [...]