, a popular African American hairstyle.">Cornrows, a popular African American hairstyle.
African-American hair refers to
Afro-textured hair
Afro-textured hair, or kinky hair, is a human hair texture originating from sub-Saharan Africa. Each strand of this hair type grows in a tiny, angle-like helix shape. The overall effect is such that, contrasted with straight, wavy, or curly hai ...
types, textures, and styles that are linked to
African-American culture
African-American culture refers to the contributions of African Americans to the culture of the United States, either as part of or distinct from mainstream American culture. The culture is both distinct and enormously influential on Ame ...
, often drawing inspiration from African hair culture. It plays a major role in the identity and politics of Black culture in the United States and across the diaspora.
African-American hair often has a kinky hairy texture, appearing tightly coiled and packed. Black hair has a complex history culture, and cultural impact, including its relationship with racism.
Color and texture
Color
Black hair is the product of a genetic trait inherited by parents at birth. The most studied black hair gene is
MC1R
The melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R), also known as melanocyte-stimulating hormone receptor (MSHR), melanin-activating peptide receptor, or melanotropin receptor, is a G protein–coupled receptor that binds to a class of pituitary peptide hormones ...
which causes the body to produce a protein called
melanocortin
The melanocortins are a family of neuropeptide hormones which are the ligands of the melanocortin receptorsEricson, M.D., et al., ''Bench-top to clinical therapies: A review of melanocortin ligands from 1954 to 2016.'' Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Basi ...
.
This protein causes
hair follicles
The hair follicle is an organ found in mammalian skin. It resides in the dermal layer of the skin and is made up of 20 different cell types, each with distinct functions. The hair follicle regulates hair growth via a complex interaction between h ...
to produce a type of melanin pigmentation called
eumelanin
Melanin (; from el, μέλας, melas, black, dark) is a broad term for a group of natural pigments found in most organisms. Eumelanin is produced through a multistage chemical process known as melanogenesis, where the oxidation of the amin ...
.
Black hair has the highest concentration of this pigmentation with brown, blonde and red hair following behind.
In old age, hair comes to turn grey due to the inability of the
hair follicle
The hair follicle is an organ found in mammalian skin. It resides in the dermal layer of the skin and is made up of 20 different cell types, each with distinct functions. The hair follicle regulates hair growth via a complex interaction between h ...
to produce
eumelanin
Melanin (; from el, μέλας, melas, black, dark) is a broad term for a group of natural pigments found in most organisms. Eumelanin is produced through a multistage chemical process known as melanogenesis, where the oxidation of the amin ...
.
This inability happens after the pigmentation cells in hair follicles die off.
Texture
![Hair texture cross section diagram](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Hair_texture_cross_section_diagram.svg)
African-American hair comes in a range of textures, but the most common hair type is curly with lots of volume.
This curly quality is the product of the shape of the
hair follicles
The hair follicle is an organ found in mammalian skin. It resides in the dermal layer of the skin and is made up of 20 different cell types, each with distinct functions. The hair follicle regulates hair growth via a complex interaction between h ...
.
More circular-shaped follicles cause hair to grow straighter, while more curly hair is caused by more elongated, oval-shaped hair follicles.
Hair follicles can also affect the thickness of hair strands.
African hair is seen to be much thicker and more dense meaning that the hair follicles are larger.
Density represents the amount of hairs that grow from the head, with denser hair resulting from more hairs growing closer together from the scalp.
An individual with high-density hair creates a fuller appearance of curls.
A protective oil called
sebum
A sebaceous gland is a microscopic exocrine gland in the skin that opens into a hair follicle to secrete an oily or waxy matter, called sebum, which lubricates the hair and skin of mammals. In humans, sebaceous glands occur in the greatest nu ...
is produced from the scalp to strengthen hair follicles, which helps to keep hair from becoming dry and brittle.
A significant amount of oils are produced but with the curly quality of the hair the oils can not be distributed from root to end easily.
Without proper moisturizing, hair can become brittle and result in breakage.
History
African origins
Since the beginning of African civilizations, hairstyles have been used to convey messages to a greater society. Before boundaries divided Africa into states and countries through colonization, the continent was divided into kingdoms and clans. Within these kingdoms and clans, different hairstyles could "indicate a person's marital status, age, religion, ethnic identity, wealth, rank," surname, health status, geographic origin and the clan to which they belonged.
A Wolof man's braided beard could indicate that he was preparing for war. In the
Himba tribe,
dreadlocks
Dreadlocks, also known as locs or dreads, are rope-like strands of hair formed by locking or braiding hair.
Origins
Some of the earliest depictions of dreadlocks date back as far as 1600–1500 BCE in the Minoan Civilization, one of Europe' ...
worn down in front of a female's face was a sign that she was going through puberty, while dreadlocks tied at the back of the head were worn by women seeking marriage.
Erembe headdresses signified new mothers and married women.
In
Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...
culture, people braided their hair to send messages to the gods.
As the most elevated part of the body, hair was considered a portal for spirits to pass through to the soul. According to a 20th-century study, the Yoruba often shaved the heads of newborns as a marker of each individual arising from the spirit world. A person's head was shaved again at death to signal the individual's return to the spirit world.
Hair maintenance in traditional Africa was a time-consuming process that aimed at creating a sense of beauty and honoring its spiritual power. According to author Sylvia Arden Boone,
Hair was considered divine due to its position at the top of the head, and to allow someone to touch it meant you could trust them.
Therefore, hair maintenance was only entrusted to relatives and hairdressers for fear of enemies bringing ill-will to the person in need of hair care. The hair maintenance process could last anywhere from hours to days and involves “washing, combing, oiling, braiding, twisting, and/or decorating the hair.” The
Himba people
The Himba (singular: OmuHimba, plural: OvaHimba) are an indigenous people with an estimated population of about 50,000 people living in northern Namibia, in the Kunene Region (formerly Kaokoland) and on the other side of the Kunene River in sout ...
, for example, styled dreadlocks using ground ochre, goat hair, butter and hair extensions.
Hair that was clean and neatly braided or arranged with adornments such as beads or shells was a sign of vitality, whereas unkempt and dirty hair signified affliction.
Black Hair during slavery and a historical view of afro-textured hair
Due to
North America's Indigenous population being decimated by European colonists' extreme labor conditions, insufficient diet, violence and diseases, British Europeans began
forcibly transporting Africans to British North America in the early 1600s. Before transporting them, captors and traders shaved the heads of all African adults and children taken captive.
The claimed purpose for this action was to prepare for the unsanitary conditions of the
slave ship
Slave ships were large cargo ships specially built or converted from the 17th to the 19th century for transporting slaves. Such ships were also known as "Guineamen" because the trade involved human trafficking to and from the Guinea coast ...
s. Due to the cultural and spiritual importance of hair for Africans, the practice of having their heads involuntarily shaved before being sold as enslaved people was in itself a dehumanizing act. In ''Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America'', Byrd and Tharps write:
Once their hair began to grow back, many enslaved people did not have the time or the tools to properly maintain their hair, and it became tangled and matted as a result. Enslaved people worked every day of the week, lived in poor conditions and faced the risk of head lice and ringworm. To protect themselves from the sun, dirt, and scalp afflictions, women repurposed unwanted fabrics into hair scarves or kerchiefs (especially if they worked outdoors), while men who worked outdoors wore sun-hats with their hair cut short or completely shaved off.
In describing runaway enslaved people in
wanted ads, slaveowners proved that many enslaved people were able to style and maintain their hair after it grew back.
Men and women were often given similar clothing to wear and labor tasks to complete, so to achieve a more feminine appearance and differentiate themselves from the men, some women ironed their hair to make it sleek.
They also wrapped their hair by brushing it and binding small sections of it with a material such as thread or cotton to prevent knotting.
This technique, known as "wrapping" or "threading", shaped the hair into a curl pattern that women kept protected under a scarf or kerchief while working, and took down for special occasions such as church service or weddings.
Plaits,
braid
A braid (also referred to as a plait) is a complex structure or pattern formed by interlacing two or more strands of flexible material such as textile yarns, wire, or hair.
The simplest and most common version is a flat, solid, three-strande ...
s and
cornrows
Cornrows are a traditional style of braids in which the hair is braided very close to the scalp, using an underhand, upward motion to make a continuous, raised row. Cornrows are often done in simple, straight lines, as the term implies, but they ...
were the most convenient hairstyles to keep their hair neat and maintained for a week. Enslaved people who worked indoors were forced to wear their hair in one of those styles or a style similar to that of their slaveowner if they did not cover their hair with a scarf, kerchief or
wig
A wig is a head or hair accessory made from human hair, animal hair, or synthetic fiber. The word wig is short for periwig, which makes its earliest known appearance in the English language in William Shakespeare's ''The Two Gentlemen of Verona' ...
. By the early 19th century, Sunday was legally declared a day of rest and religious observation, and on Sundays, enslaved people braided each other's hair using the grease or oil they had available, such as butter or goose grease. They used wool carding tools to detangle their hair, kerosene, and cornmeal to cleanse the scalp. Fats, oils and eggs were used as conditioner. Enslaved people in North America named cornrows for their resemblance to rows of corn in a field.
(In Central and South America and the Caribbean, enslaved people called the style "canerows" because of its resemblance to sugarcane fields.
) Braid patterns became symbols for freedom, and different styles and patterns were used as guides to plantations, resembling roads and paths to travel or avoid.
Racial attitudes among White people in 17th and 18th century America held a negative connotation of the
afro-textured hair
Afro-textured hair, or kinky hair, is a human hair texture originating from sub-Saharan Africa. Each strand of this hair type grows in a tiny, angle-like helix shape. The overall effect is such that, contrasted with straight, wavy, or curly hai ...
of enslaved Africans and African-Americans. They called afro-textured hair "wool" in an effort to deem it inferior to the texture of their own hair. Since the onset of the enslavement of Africans in British America, the slurs "kinky" and "nappy" were also used by White people to express disapproval of afro-textured hair. It was also mocked through caricatured stereotypes of Africans and African-Americans in the media, which motivated women especially to keep their hair covered. Although the practice of wearing head scarves
was forced upon women by law or by slaveowners, the type of head covering worn came to symbolize respectability, and could distinguish a married woman from an unmarried woman or a fieldworker from a houseworker.
After slavery
After slavery was abolished in the United States, negative attitudes about the appearance of Black Americans and derogatory terms for afro-textured hair persisted into the
Reconstruction
Reconstruction may refer to:
Politics, history, and sociology
*Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company
*'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...
and
Jim Crow
The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States. Other areas of the United States were affected by formal and informal policies of segregation as well, but many states outside the Sout ...
eras because Black people were still considered inferior to White people.
During this time, wig manufacturers were the only companies that advertised a Black standard of beauty.
Afro-textured hair worn in its natural state was still considered undesirable,
and media promoted a
Eurocentric
Eurocentrism (also Eurocentricity or Western-centrism)
is a worldview that is centered on Western civilization or a biased view that favors it over non-Western civilizations. The exact scope of Eurocentrism varies from the entire Western world ...
beauty ideal that included straight hair. In her article "Hairitage: Women Writing Race in Children's Literature", literary critic Dianne Johnson notes an early 20th-century advertisement:
One of
Winold Reiss
F. Winold Reiss (September 16, 1886 – August 23, 1953) was a German-born American artist and graphic designer. He was born in Karlsruhe, Germany, the second son of Fritz Reiss (1857–1914) and his wife. He grew up surrounded by art, as his fa ...
's ''Brown Madonna''(1925) most famous works, reimagines Black women as
maternal and spiritual figures with straight hair.
The image serves as the
frontispiece of ''
The New Negro
''The New Negro: An Interpretation'' (1925) is an anthology of fiction, poetry, and essays on African and African-American art and literature edited by Alain Locke, who lived in Washington, DC, and taught at Howard University during the Harlem ...
'', a text written to counter negative Black stereotypes and redefine Black people during the
New Negro Movement
The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics and scholarship centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s and 1930s. At the t ...
.
For some African Americans, the notion of
assimilation in to White American society was ideal, because it held a perceived promise of better
socioeconomic
Socioeconomics (also known as social economics) is the social science that studies how economic activity affects and is shaped by social processes. In general it analyzes how modern societies progress, stagnate, or regress because of their local ...
status.
One way they attempted to assimilate was by
straightening their hair to fit the White American beauty ideal.
To straighten their hair, African-American women used a hair product and wide-bristled
pressing or hot comb, a metal tool that was heated in an oven or on a stove before it was passed through the hair.
It later would be massed produced in a more simple, self-heating form It could take hours to complete the straightening process, and because of the high temperature of the hot comb, burning and damaging the hair or skin were always high-risk.
Because it easily absorbs moisture, afro-textured hair straightened with a hot comb can quickly return to its tightly coiled state if exposed to too much moisture, such as rain or humidity.
African-American men typically wore their hair relatively short, and they avoided passing a hot comb through their hair, because it was more difficult and dangerous to do so.
From the early to mid-20th century,
conk
The conk was a hairstyle popular among African-American men from the 1920s up to early-mid 1960s. This hairstyle called for a man with naturally "kinky" hair to have it chemically straightened using a relaxer called congolene, an initiall ...
ing was a popular style for African-American men, and required the use of a chemical treatment known as a
relaxer or perm, which achieved longer-lasting straightening results.
The practice of using a relaxer began during slavery, when enslaved men covered their hair in axle grease to straighten and dye it. Before the late 1960s, there were no publications that explained how to straighten afro-textured hair with chemicals. The earliest chemical straighteners caused severe hair breakage and dyed the hair red,
so it was not until the mid-20th century that relaxers became a popular and longer-lasting alternative to hot combs for African-American women. Both men and women coated their hair with a strong acid that stripped the outer layer and altered the shape of the hair shaft, causing it to "relax" or straighten,
and the longer the chemical was left on the hair, the straighter the hair would become. If left on the hair too long, the relaxer could burn the scalp and cause sores to form.
Civil Rights era
![Jill Scott 2012](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/Jill_Scott_2012.jpg)
The
Afro
The afro is a hair type created by natural growth of kinky hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" ''Ebony'', February 1973. ...
, which hit its stride in the 1960s, was an expression of pride, connection, power, revolution and differentiation. The Afro first gained popularity with performers, artists, activists, youth and nationalists.
[Sieber, Roy, and Frank Herreman, eds. ''Hair in African Art and Culture''. New York: Museum for African Art and Prestel, 2000. Print.]
Young people who did not adopt this trend were for the first time judged and subject to "blacker-than-thou" policing by their peers.
African- Americans began to use their hair as a way to showcase a link to their African ancestors and Blacks throughout the diaspora.
The Afro, in conjunction with the Civil Rights Movement, was helping to define black identity.
[Byrd, Ayana D., and Lori L. Tharps. ''Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America''. New York: St. Martin's, 2001. Print.]
Some artists used their actual hair as an expression of art.
In David Hammons's American Costume, he pressed his own body onto paper to create an image of what being African-American means and looks like.
He crafted the hair on the work by applying fingerprints to the paper.
Young Black Americans were ‘froing their hair in great numbers as a way to emulate the style of the Black Panthers and convey their racial pride.
Although the Afro started in New York, it was
Angela Davis
Angela Yvonne Davis (born January 26, 1944) is an American political activist, philosopher, academic, scholar, and author. She is a professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz. A feminist and a Marxist, Davis was a longtime member of ...
, a college professor at
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
and an associate of the Black Panther Party, who pioneered the Afro as a political statement.
In embracing naturalism, she glorified the Black aesthetic and facilitated its power to connect Black people to the Civil Rights Movement.
Her Afro became especially notorious because of its presence in her "Wanted" ad, as it was her most prominent identifier.
It became a way to celebrate African-ness and embrace heritage while politically rejecting European ideals.
Men and women in Chicago and beyond wore it as a way to support a proud way of carrying oneself in the world and occupying space.
In relation to hair, the time between the 1970s and the 1990s could be described as open and experimental. "Despite occasional political flare-ups, individual choice would increasingly dictate African-American hairstyles in this era"
Trendy styles like
braids
A braid (also referred to as a plait) is a complex structure or pattern formed by interlacing two or more strands of flexible material such as textile yarns, wire, or hair.
The simplest and most common version is a flat, solid, three-strande ...
were even adopted by whites, especially after white actress Bo Derek wore them in the movie ''10''. Although braids,
cornrows
Cornrows are a traditional style of braids in which the hair is braided very close to the scalp, using an underhand, upward motion to make a continuous, raised row. Cornrows are often done in simple, straight lines, as the term implies, but they ...
and
dreadlocks
Dreadlocks, also known as locs or dreads, are rope-like strands of hair formed by locking or braiding hair.
Origins
Some of the earliest depictions of dreadlocks date back as far as 1600–1500 BCE in the Minoan Civilization, one of Europe' ...
were becoming mainstream, they stirred up controversy and continue to when worn in the professional sphere.
Popular culture
Natural Hair Movement
African-American culture has increasingly embraced natural hair through the
natural hair movement
The natural hair movement is a movement which aims to encourage women and men of African descent to embrace their natural, afro-textured hair. It originated in the United States during the 1960s, with its most recent iteration occurring in the 200 ...
. It includes people with
afro-textured hair
Afro-textured hair, or kinky hair, is a human hair texture originating from sub-Saharan Africa. Each strand of this hair type grows in a tiny, angle-like helix shape. The overall effect is such that, contrasted with straight, wavy, or curly hai ...
who resist the images used to represent them and abstain from the use of chemical hair products in favor of products that will promote healthy natural hair. The initial emergence of the natural hair movement occurred in the 1960's with activist such as Marcus Garvey and Angela Davis supporting the movement.
In the late 1970's-1980s, the natural hair movement began to slow down due to the social pressures placed on African- Americans to assimilate to European Beauty Standards.
It wasn't until the 2000s that the second wave of the natural hair movement emerged.
The movement has since been greatly influenced by society and media, ranging from the work and appearance of textile artist
Sonya Clark
Sonya Clark (born 1967, Washington, D.C.) is an American artist of Afro-Caribbean heritage. Clark is a fiber artist known for using a variety of materials including human hair and combs to address race, culture, class, and history. Her beaded he ...
, singer
Solange Knowles
Solange Piaget Knowles (; born June 24, 1986) is an American singer, songwriter, performance artist, and actress. Expressing an interest in music from an early age, Knowles had several temporary stints as a backup dancer for Destiny's Child, wh ...
, poet
Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou ( ; born Marguerite Annie Johnson; April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014) was an American memoirist, popular poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and ...
and actress
Lupita Nyong'o
Lupita Amondi Nyong'o (, ; ; born 1 March 1983) is a Kenyan-Mexican actress. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Lupita Nyong'o, several accolades, including an Academy Awards, Academy Award, and nominations for ...
to an uprising of natural hair-focused YouTube channels and blogs. The movement seeks to continue to encourage African American women to embrace their natural hair despite negative stereotypes about black natural hair that arose from European Beauty standards. More recently, the natural hair movement has found momentum online with various Vloggers documenting their natural hair journey to encourage other African American women and men to participate in the movement, educate the public, and create positive images of black hair in media.The movements popularity has also encouraged corporations and government agencies to create policies that are inclusive of natural black hair.
"Good hair"
"Good hair" is a phrase used in some Black communities to describe the perceived prestige of straight or loosely curled hair, (especially when genetically influenced by non-African ancestry) in contrast to
afro-textured hair
Afro-textured hair, or kinky hair, is a human hair texture originating from sub-Saharan Africa. Each strand of this hair type grows in a tiny, angle-like helix shape. The overall effect is such that, contrasted with straight, wavy, or curly hai ...
.
"Good hair" is also used to refer to hair that is strong, thick and soft to the touch. Although many hair stylists or beauticians would define "good hair" as "healthy hair", the phrase is rarely used in this manner in informal African-American circles.
Instead, it is used metaphorically to characterize beauty and acceptance. These standards vary for African-American men and women.
["What is Good Hair?". ''Perception Institute''. Retrieved 2022-04-11.]
The term's circulation within the Black community in the North America has an uncertain origin. Artist
India.Arie
India Arie Simpson (born October 3, 1975), also known as India Arie (sometimes styled as india.arie), is an American singer and songwriter. She has sold over five million records in the US and ten million worldwide. She has won four Grammy Awards ...
's song "
I Am Not My Hair
"I Am Not My Hair" is a song by American soul and R&B singer–songwriter India.Arie from her third studio album, '' Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship'' (2006). Written by Arie, Shannon Sanders, and Drew Ramsey, it was released as the album' ...
" speaks specifically to the usage of the term "good hair" in the African-American community and in broader contexts. Comedian
Chris Rock
Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and filmmaker. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best come ...
's 2009 documentary ''
Good Hair
''Good Hair'' is a 2009 American documentary film directed by Jeff Stilson and produced by Chris Rock Productions and HBO Films, starring and narrated by comedian Chris Rock. Premiering at the Sundance Film Festival on January 18, 2009, ''Go ...
'' made a wider audience aware of the importance of the term within the Black community.
In the documentary, Rock explores the role of hair in the lives of African-Americans. He interviews Reverend
Al Sharpton
Alfred Charles Sharpton Jr. (born October 3, 1954) is an American civil rights activist, Baptist minister, talk show host and politician. Sharpton is the founder of the National Action Network. In 2004, he was a candidate for the Democratic ...
, who asserts, "My relaxed hair is just as African-based as an Afro because it all came out of black culture."
[''Good Hair''. Dir. Jeff Stilson. Perf. Chris Rock. HBO Films, 2009, film.]
Facial hair
Maintaining facial hair is more prevalent among African-American men than in other male populations in the U.S. In fact, the
soul patch is so named because African-American men, particularly jazz musicians, popularized the style. The preference for facial hair among African-American men is due partly to personal taste, but also because they are more prone than other ethnic groups to develop a condition known as ''
pseudofolliculitis barbae
Pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB) is a persistent irritation caused by shaving. It was first described in 1956.
Signs and symptoms Related conditions
Razor burn is a less serious condition caused by shaving, characterized by mild to moderate rednes ...
.'' The condition is commonly referred to as razor bumps, and due to the condition, many prefer not to shave.
Styles
Popular African-American Hairstyles in pop-culture include:
*
Afro
The afro is a hair type created by natural growth of kinky hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" ''Ebony'', February 1973. ...
s
*
Cornrows
Cornrows are a traditional style of braids in which the hair is braided very close to the scalp, using an underhand, upward motion to make a continuous, raised row. Cornrows are often done in simple, straight lines, as the term implies, but they ...
*
Bantu knots
Afro-textured hair, or kinky hair, is a human hair texture originating from sub-Saharan Africa. Each strand of this hair type grows in a tiny, angle-like helix shape. The overall effect is such that, contrasted with straight, wavy, or curly ha ...
*
Box braids
Box braids are a type of hair-braiding style that is predominantly popular among African people and the African diaspora. This type of hairstyle is a "protective style" (a style which can be worn for a long period of time to let natural hair gro ...
*
Dreadlocks
Dreadlocks, also known as locs or dreads, are rope-like strands of hair formed by locking or braiding hair.
Origins
Some of the earliest depictions of dreadlocks date back as far as 1600–1500 BCE in the Minoan Civilization, one of Europe' ...
*
Twists
Discrimination related to Black hairstyles
In
''Rogers v. American Airlines'' (1981), Renee Rogers, a Black female flight attendant, sued her employer
American Airlines
American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...
for prohibiting her from wearing
cornrows
Cornrows are a traditional style of braids in which the hair is braided very close to the scalp, using an underhand, upward motion to make a continuous, raised row. Cornrows are often done in simple, straight lines, as the term implies, but they ...
and
braids
A braid (also referred to as a plait) is a complex structure or pattern formed by interlacing two or more strands of flexible material such as textile yarns, wire, or hair.
The simplest and most common version is a flat, solid, three-strande ...
at work.
The court dismissed Rogers' arguments that the ban was discriminatory based on race and sex, and ruled in favor of American Airlines.
The ban prohibited braids and
dreadlock
Dreadlocks, also known as locs or dreads, are rope-like strands of hair formed by locking or braiding hair.
Origins
Some of the earliest depictions of dreadlocks date back as far as 1600–1500 BCE in the Minoan Civilization, one of Europe ...
s in favor of a
bun style, which can be a challenge to achieve with
afro-textured hair
Afro-textured hair, or kinky hair, is a human hair texture originating from sub-Saharan Africa. Each strand of this hair type grows in a tiny, angle-like helix shape. The overall effect is such that, contrasted with straight, wavy, or curly hai ...
that has not been straightened with heat or chemicals.
Since the late 20th century, many restrictions have been loosened, and professional African-American women now wear a wider variety of hairstyles.
Discrimination of black hair, although less likely than women, also affected African American men in their workplace. In the case of Thornton V Encore Global,
Jeffery Thornton, a Black male sued his former employer Encore Global denying him a job as a technical supervisor after working for the company for four years.
An unnamed hiring manager at Encore told Thornton that he needed to first trim his locks off his ears, eyes and shoulders to land the gig, court documents state.
This case was monumental because it was the first time someone has accused an employer of violating California's CROWN Act since the legislation took effect in January 2020.
In 2014, the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
implemented a ban on predominantly Black hairstyles.
The ban includes dreadlocks, large cornrows and twists.
The rationale for this decision is that the aforementioned hairstyles look unkempt, with kempt hair being implicitly defined as straight hair.
African-American women in the Army may be forced to choose between small cornrows and chemically processing their hair, if their natural hair is not long enough to fit a permitted hairstyle.
Discrimination in schools
It is not uncommon for an African American student to be discriminated against because of their hair in school. African American students are disciplined at a significant higher rate than their ethnic counter-parts, and are disciplined because their natural hair styles are deemed not appropriate or distracting by their schools dress code.
African-American Students are also discriminated against while participating in school sanctioned sports. In 2018, African American wrestler Andrew Johnson was told by his white referee, Alan Mahoney, that he needed to cut his dreads or forfeit his match.
That same night videos and pictures began to surface online of Andrew having his dreads cut off with a pair of scissors.
This sparked public outrage online, with some people questioning why Johnson was able to play in matches prior to this one and not have any problems.
People began to question Mahoney's call during the match; some saying that the ultimatum was derived from racism.
In 2016, Mahoney was accused of calling his fellow referee a racial slur.
Since this incident Mahoney was suspended from
officiating for two years, and the New Jersey Interscholastic Athletic Association and the states attorney general's office's civil rights division have opened investigations into the incident.
Crown Act
On March 18, 2022, the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
passed the
CROWN (Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair) Act, an act aiming to protect individuals from hair based discrimination in the workplace.
The bill forbids race-based hair discrimination at the federal level, notably when the hair style or hair texture being discriminated against is particularly tied to a culture or race.
The act states that:
In a society in which hair has historically been one of many determining factors of a person’s race, and whether they were a second class citizen, hair today remains a proxy for race. Therefore, hair discrimination targeting hairstyles associated with race is racial discrimination.
This protects workers from discrimination related to popular African-American styles such as afros, cornrows, Bantu knots, and Dreadlocks
Similar acts had already been introduced and passed in several U.S. states including California,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
,
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
,
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
,
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
, and,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
.
See also
*
Black is Beautiful
Black is beautiful is a cultural movement that was started in the United States in the 1960s by African Americans. It later spread beyond the United States, most prominently in the writings of the Black Consciousness Movement of Steve Biko in ...
*
Brown Paper Bag Test
"The Brown Paper Bag Test" is a term in African-American oral history used to describe a colorist discriminatory practice within the African-American community in the 20th century, in which an individual's skin tone is compared to the color of a ...
*
Colorism
Discrimination based on skin color, also known as colorism, or shadeism, is a form of prejudice and/or discrimination in which people who share similar ethnicity traits or perceived race are treated differently based on the social implications th ...
*
Discrimination based on hair texture in the United States
In the United States, discrimination based on hair texture is a form of social injustice that has been predominantly experienced by African Americans and predates the founding of the country.
In the 21st century, multiple states and local gover ...
*
High yellow
High yellow, occasionally simply yellow (dialect: yaller, yella), is a term used to describe a light-skinned person of white and black ancestry. It is also used as a slang for those thought to have "yellow undertones". The term was in common use ...
*
Passing (racial identity)
Racial passing occurs when a person classified as a member of a racial group is accepted or perceived ("passes") as a member of another. Historically, the term has been used primarily in the United States to describe a black or brown person ...
*
Pencil test
*
Plaçage
Plaçage was a recognized extralegal system in French and Spanish slave colonies of North America (including the Caribbean) by which ethnic European men entered into civil unions with non-Europeans of African, Native American and mixed-race descen ...
*
Protective hairstyle
A protective hairstyle (a term generally used with reference to Afro-textured hair) is a hairstyle that keeps the hair tucked away with minimum manipulation from the weather. Both cold and hot weather can pose as a threat to healthy hair with fr ...
References
Citations
General and cited sources
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{{Human hair
Hairdressing
Hairstyles
Human hair