It feels as though black women are still explaining that it is not a miracle to have different hair lengths and styles. In fact, it’s not unusual for black women to have long hair, especially long natural hair. Between wigs, sew-ins, box braids, and dread locs, most hairstyles like these cannot be done unless there is a decent amount of hair on the head. It’s astounding how little society outside of the black community still knows about black hair.
Whether the lack of education is the blissful ignorance of neighboring communities, or the system is structured so even information as simple as hairstyles and hair care has been isolated within minority communities, we need more education and exposure.
We are at a point where parts of America think racism is over, while the government itself has elected officials who still struggle to sign legislation saying black people cannot be discriminated against because of their hair in the workplace. This is what makes The Crown Act so important. Black women and their hair need to be protected.
Most black women experience some shrinkage due to texture, and it often goes unseen when we have long hair. We have hair that defies gravity and grows up and out rather than down to the ground. There are many unique attributes about our hair, and all black women deserve to be taught from a young age that their hair is perfect. They deserve to love themselves and evolve without navigating a system that teaches them natural parts of themselves are unacceptable. We celebrate the Crown Act and hope that this is the springboard of our continued hair-a-tude.
