HISTORY OF AFRICAN HAIR(HAIRSTORY) ! Understanding Why We Were Forced To Use RELAXER

There is a stigma that Africans rarely can grow their hair longer than shoulder length. Let's get the record straight, both African men and women can grow their hair to whatever length they want and have the most diverse set of elegant and beautiful hairstyles that can mostly be done on African natural hair. The African hair can grow to any length as long as the growth process is not obstructed by natural or manmade factors. Natural factors can include sickness such as cancer (chemotherapy)  while manmade factors consist of the use of chemicals (relaxer) including several straightening and curing tools. therefore, the African or black hair can grow healthy, long and beautiful if well taken care of.

Straightened Natural Hair

Optical illusion (black hair shrinkage)

African King and his daughter Princess

   Historically, African hair is ranked number 1 in terms of diversity when it comes to texture, styling and general creativity. African women were known for their elegant natural and beautiful hair of various styles and length. In the ancient times, various African hairstyles serve as individual status and identity in the society and can still be noticed in most African countries today. An individual hairstyle represents his social status in terms of ethnicity, social rank, power, age, marital status, wealth, fertility, manhood, and region etc. When colonization came to Africa, many African in 1444 were captured by the European as slaves to western countries. Many wore their elaborate hairstyles. Syles foreign to the European white man. Once the slave master discovered the value of the African hair and identity is placed on them, they referred to it negatively as wool, so that they can get rid of it with the value, power, and identity it comes with. This was also a move that allowed the slave traders to maintain power and control of the slaves. They began shaving both the men and women hair including children.

  In 1619, the first set of slaves arrived James town with their captors after sailing the sea in unbearable conditions for three months. The slaves were no longer allowed to speak their native languages, wear there distinctive elegant hairstyles and traditional dances. Therefore, all the African culture and grooming that the slaves had begun to disappear a mission of the slave traders to cut out all the connection of the slaves to their origin. Soon after, the Europeans enforced their standard of beauty on the slaves. Fair skin, straight hair, long straight nose and round face are considered beautiful and attractive while dark skin, kinky hair, broad face, lips, and nose were not considered beautiful hence unattractive. Lighter skin slaves with straighter hair and features similar to the Europeans were auctioned at a high price and vice versa. There were several reports of slave owners raping their slaves (both men and women), the result of this actions are biracial children with features closer to the European standard.

Due to the long period of brainwashing, many slaves believed that the European standard of beauty is the acceptable standard. This mentality tragedy was passed on from one generation to another and the impact can even be seen today in various African and general black populations. As slaves, the Africans could have no time or materials to take care of their hair, hence their hair became damaged and difficult to maintain.

As some slaves began to be free in the 1700's, many freed Africans began to wear beautiful, elegant eye-catching hairstyles which drew the attention of white men and made white women jealous. Because of this jealousy, in 1789, a law was established which required black women to cover their hair with a fabric when in public. However, African women were very creative as they began to wear beautiful fabrics in various elegant elaborate ways to cover their hair making them more classic, beautiful, alluring and attractive. In the 1800's, Africans were put on display in human zoos due to their distinctive features.

In 1865, slavery officially ended but the brainwash was still passed on to this present day. Straight and wavy hair was considered most beautiful and serve as a factor for getting jobs, school, and other official institutions. In 1909, Garrett Morgan invented the hair straightener that uses heat so that black men and women can improve their appearance. In the 1920's, a brave black nationalist began to revolutionize and preached to blacks to embrace their naturally kinky hair and unique body features as well as reclaim their African heritage. The Rastafarian movement began when a new emperor of Negus Ethiopia was crowned in 1930 which gave birth to the hairstyle dreads because the king resisted the Italians who later defeated him and forced him on exile, but the remaining soldiers refused to cut their hair and left it grew into dreads. They were dreaded and feared. This was how the term dreadlock was formed.

Moreover, in the 1940's women continue to wear their hair in a press and curl style with the hot comb hair straightener until in 1954 when George E Johnson launched a permanent hair straightener popularly known today as a relaxer and later women's version was created. In 1962, the beautiful actress Cecily Tyson wore her hair in cornrows on a TV drama, a very brave move at a time when braids were not considered ethical for public display. More women began to show their bravery in the late 1960's as Angela Davis became an icon of black power with her large Afro hair. The Afro became a symbol of black power and pride. Dreadlocks were introduced into pop culture by the international singer Bob Marley. In 1971, a huge controversy started when Milbert Haley was fired from her work because she wore her hair in an Afro. In 1977, a super curly kit was introduced to black market to patronize so that they can change their hair texture and appearance from kinky to curly. This style lasted to the 1980's and can be seen in the era of the super talented king of pop, Micheal Jackson.

In the 1990's, essence magazine introduced the weave hairstyle which is usually long silky straight hair from other race that is sown in on black women hair. A trend that continues to this present day. Soon after, dreads and other forms of African hairstyles began to trend as well. However, a vast majority of women were using the relaxer which continuously thinned and damaged their hair and scalp. 
In the 2000's, more black women began to explore African hair trends popularly known as protective styling. Around the year 2009, a revolutionary number of black women began exploring techniques to keep their natural hair and the protective styling. It is popularly known as the natural hair movement. 

In 2009, Chris rock released the movie good hair which was a kind of documentary to reduce ignorance on the black woman's natural hair. Today many of the natural hairstyles look like the hairstyles black women wore in the 15th century.

The natural hair can grow long if allowed to grow peacefully without the use of chemicals that have the potential of obstructing the natural healthy hair growth or cause thinning and breakage. There are so many tutorials on YouTube on how to grow very long hair and how to take care of it at each stage of growth. The black hair might take a little longer to grow compared to the white hair, however, black hair has been proven to be the strongest type of hair in the root area (no hair loss, only breakage). you can check my YouTube video here on how to grow longer hair.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zE5_Baiuo2Q&index=19&list=PLHh9ixinXuFwVQDRpV8T2ox9jH2bYkBQO&t=544s