The Black Millennials: The New Revolutionaries Fighting the War on Our Heads

            Hair. Black Women. Say those words, and you will open a conversation the size of the universe. The truth of the matter is that we black women have always had a love-hate relationship with our hair. I know I have. This relationship was passed down from our mothers (bless their hearts) who received it from their mothers. I harbor no animosity or ill feelings about what they did. After all, they did their best to fit in and assimilate in a society to survive. Maybe they did it because they simply did not know how to care for their natural hair, and they felt they had more options by straightening it.  However, it is undeniable that there is a natural black hair movement happening right now.  

More and more, little by little, I see 20-somethings and 30-somethings wearing their natural hair. In schools, I see children of those Millennials wearing their natural hair. Puffs, braids, and twists abound among the students in elementary and high schools, and I love it.  It looks like freedom to me. Freedom from hot combs, dangerous chemicals, and too-tight braids. I have seen kindergarten children with extensions, and it saddens me because it puts the child at risk for hair loss, negates the love of her natural hair, and prevents her from getting to know it. Extensions, weaves, and relaxers offer versatility; however, they bind us in a never-ending cycle of debt and psychological prison. I know. I have spent thousands of dollars on relaxers since I was 14-years-old. My three daughters are prime examples of those stuck in this cycle.

One of my biggest regrets is allowing my then 13-year-old to get micro braids when she was a freshman in high school. She is now in her twenties, and is so dependent on OPH (other people’s hair) that she is uncomfortable without it. Ever. Unfortunately, sisters emulate each other, and now her two younger sisters are stuck in the same cycle. The good news is that we are having conversations about natural hair. Even better news is that I am the first in our family to go natural. It’s been nearly six months since I relaxed my hair – this from a person who faithfully relaxed every 6-8 weeks for decades. 

Does this mean I will not straighten my hair with a flat iron? Well, not yet, but I’m working on it. It does mean that I will no longer put the dangerous chemicals of a relaxer in my hair. Color? That’s another story – not quite ready to go gray yet. If it had not been for the influence of the natural black millennials, I would not have the courage to step out of the cycle. So, to you, I say, Thank you! 

Photo courtesy of Smiley Joy, my youngest daughter