Backlash against relaxed hair?

[LadyRaider]

Thought this was interesting. Whoopie has an interesting point. Why are we STILL after the long flowing hair? I think the answer is easy. It is what we see in the media. Beyonce, Tyra, etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQFvtd61ew8

 

[Dragone]

I think it is a little bit. Before you heard all the time about how fragile and impossible to style and dry natural hair was, which is not necessarily true. Now you are starting to hear how people relax their hair with caustic chemicals, destroy their hair, etc etc. Even here you'll see people turning up their noses at blow-outs/relaxers gone wrong saying 'what did you expect? blah blah blah'. People are swinging between the two extremes when really relaxing/naturals can coexist because it's a style choice. But people make it too serious sometimes.

 

[nikolite]

I love The View and I'm happy they're talking about it!

 

[Crackers Phinn]

I would like for what grows out of our scalp to be considered normal. The longer we see relaxers as the default way of life for black women, the more we are going to see toddlers with broken off relaxed hair and missing edges. Relaxing should be seen for what it is...a style choice for adult women who want to wear straight hair. And there's nothing wrong with that.

I agree with you at the bolded. But I think that the second part regarding broken off relaxed hair is based in black folks basing their hair care practices on folklore instead of science. The same people with broken off relaxed hair who believe that "dirt makes their hair grow" and rubber bands being adquate pony tail holders would have the same amount of breakage and busted-ivity in a relaxer free world.
~~~~~~~~~~

Not necessarily directed at SB, but the missing part of the puzzle is letting people know how to work with what they have instead of trying to push an agenda on them that they may not have.

As a relaxed sista, I'm kinda about that. I'm not saying that we shouldn't celebrate natural hair . . . indeed, we should. It's quite revolutionary that it's becoming more mainstream after years of being viewed a choice that is "radical" or "political." It's just hair, people. So, given that I recognize that, why must we do a seeming 180 degree flip to excluding relaxed locks from the discussion of African American haircare? No, it's not me "wanting to be white" or denying my heritage. Again, it's just. hair. Sheesh.

Because we as a group are used to being discussed as a monolith. Everything is either or with no room for both. This is why the arguement becomes based in either "relaxing due to self hatred" or "not relaxing because of self love". What about not relaxing just cuz you're tired of relaxing? There's no room in the discussion for people who may be part of the group that don't also subscribe to the popular agenda.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just a rant,


And yes, it is within the realm of possibility for ones natural hair to not be complimentary to a persons face. Can we stop acting like it ain't a whole lot of faces in the world that need all the help they can get and hair that grows out and away from the face is not going to be their friend?

I find it frustrating that this is dismissed. If you put the exact same Afro, twistout or braid out wig on 10 chicks, some will look fierce and some will look foolish, with the rest being varying levels in between and the outcome depends on the head it's placed on. Wearing your hair the way it sprouts outta your head does not automatically make you magically delicious.

 

[Carrie A]

So what's the alternative Glib, all the naturals should fall back into the shadows? If your reasons for not relaxing are based on feelings against chemical processing or heaven forbid political /social they shouldn't be expressed openly. Every discussion has to be stepford?

 

[EccentricRed]

I could see it...2009/2010 has seen Black hair episodes on Oprah, Tyra, and even on The View! Chris Rocks "Good Hair" really pushed this into the limelight...My last relaxer was in 2008, and I didn't feel like anyone viewed me negatively, but I see it more now as a natural. I think it is more even now.

The one thing I will say is that in commercials it seems like 8 in 10 black women in commercials are natural. I thought I was being crazy, so I asked a couple of my friends to check it out, and they agreed.

 

[Mystic]

God.., how I wish some people would just grow up and find enlightening, empowering and uplifting things to talk about. Enough about hair, G.. dern it. (This is at the dividers/haters).

OP, there is a new revolutionary movement going on in the hair community (as there always is), and today, the trend is natural hair. Once it was BTK, relaxed hair was the hit thing, jeri curls, it goes on and on. Trust and believe, something new and revolutionary will come around soon, and that will be the hit thing. The sad part about these changes as it relates to hair is that, there will always be haters, excluders, and those who believe what they have is superior to what others have. I am so sick of it. Is it so hard for us accept other people's preferences???? Why are we so innately quick to judge and separate others who are different, over something that is DEAD - hair!!! geeze.

 

[LadyRaider]

The one thing I will say is that in commercials it seems like 8 in 10 black women in commercials are natural. I thought I was being crazy, so I asked a couple of my friends to check it out, and they agreed.

I think it's great. We already know how beautiful black women are with relaxed hair. Now we get to see our beauty with natural hair.

Awesome.

 

[NIN4eva]

Thought this was interesting. Whoopie has an interesting point. Why are we STILL after the long flowing hair? I think the answer is easy. It is what we see in the media. Beyonce, Tyra, etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQFvtd61ew8

Because it looks REALLY good on me...

 

[darlingdiva]

I haven't read through the thread yet, but here are my thoughts:

You are not being paranoid, OP. I too have noticed the progressive exclusion of relaxers & relaxed hair in relation to hair care. A lot of it seriously makes me give many of these publications and hair companies the side eye. Either this month's or last month's issue of Essence was talking how natural hair is "in." That makes wearing one's natural hair seem like a trend or a fad.

I am also giving the serious side eye to Pantene. That natural and relaxed line does not faze me one bit. Hair has been a major issue for women of African descent for years, but Pantene has just started paying attention to us. I think that relaxed and natural line is nothing but the regular line + oil. I also think that these companies are just riding the natural-hair-is-beautiful "bandwagon" to line their pockets with the green stuff (btw, I don't think natural hair is a bandwagon; I think it is truly beautiful.).

However, I must disagree with "it's just hair" statements. It should be just hair, but unfortunately, it is not. Our hair, like everything else about us, has been overly politicized because it represents our uniqueness and that is what the ruling culture seeks to destroy.

 

[SweetTea]

I'd say there's definitely a backlash, but that's always how it is when there's an argument in the black community, unfortunately. We complain dark-skinned girls don't get enough attention, so people respond with hatred against light-skinned girls. Someone points out the fact that a lot of black women are obese, and insecure black women go on and on about how we're not built like white women, thin black women are all skinny ho's etc. We are always so divided.

I think it's great that more black women are embracing their natural hair. I think out of all the black women I know, only 3 or 4 are still relaxed. That is HUGE. What I don't like is the misinformation about relaxers now and people being given semi-false hope that natural=longer hair for them. Relaxed black women have short hair because they abused their relaxers. They left them on too long, "moisturized" with grease, and flat-ironed the hell out of hair that was already straight. I still see a lot of natural women whose hair "doesn't grow." It's not your relaxer breaking your hair, it's you.

 

[Junebug D]

God.., how I wish some people would just grow up and find enlightening, empowering and uplifting things to talk about. Enough about hair, G.. dern it. (This is at the dividers/haters).

OP, there is a new revolutionary movement going on in the hair community (as there always is), and today, the trend is natural hair. Once it was BTK, relaxed hair was the hit thing, jeri curls, it goes on and on. Trust and believe, something new and revolutionary will come around soon, and that will be the hit thing. The sad part about these changes as it relates to hair is that, there will always be haters, excluders, and those who believe what they have is superior to what others have. I am so sick of it. Is it so hard for us accept other people's preferences???? Why are we so innately quick to judge and separate others who are different, over something that is DEAD - hair!!! geeze.

Going really off topic (but so what, it's the more interesting subject to me)...

It's here already-- it's hi-tech weave & lacefronts and it's done by ALL women-- relaxed & natural, bad haircare AND good haircare. Weave is kinda like the uniting factor of black haircare right now. Some people are shaving their heads (going "natural") just to wear the weave better. Some people are natural only because hi-tech weave exists. It reminds me of that recent Korean BSS thread in OT. People were all like "It's relaxed women making Koreans rich!" No, it's the weave business that's making these people rich. If there was one thing to take from the Chris Rock movie, it was that. What do so many of our suddenly-so-enlightened big choppers and transitioners HERE do? They go buy weave or a wig to cover it with. And no, your "afro kinky weave" isn't coming from Africa or enriching Blacks either.

I haven't read through the thread yet, but here are my thoughts:

You are not being paranoid, OP. I too have noticed the progressive exclusion of relaxers & relaxed hair in relation to hair care. A lot of it seriously makes me give many of these publications and hair companies the side eye. Either this month's or last month's issue of Essence was talking how natural hair is "in." That makes wearing one's natural hair seem like a trend or a fad.

I am also giving the serious side eye to Pantene. That natural and relaxed line does not faze me one bit. Hair has been a major issue for women of African descent for years, but Pantene has just started paying attention to us. I think that relaxed and natural line is nothing but the regular line + oil. I also think that these companies are just riding the natural-hair-is-beautiful "bandwagon" to line their pockets with the green stuff (btw, I don't think natural hair is a bandwagon; I think it is truly beautiful.).

I agree here. This also reminds me of another recent thread that was in HF. About American Apparel or one of those little "trailer chic" stores. And folks were acting like the company was actually interested in promoting the beauty of black natural hair. And folks were still acting like it even after someone actually went to the website and posted the pictures of the alleged "beautiful black nappy-headed women" they were interested in having represent the brand. Hook, line, and sinker.

 

[nikolite]

And yes, it is within the realm of possibility for ones natural hair to not be complimentary to a persons face. Can we stop acting like it ain't a whole lot of faces in the world that need all the help they can get and hair that grows out and away from the face is not going to be their friend?

I find it frustrating that this is dismissed. If you put the exact same Afro, twistout or braid out wig on 10 chicks, some will look fierce and some will look foolish, with the rest being varying levels in between and the outcome depends on the head it's placed on. Wearing your hair the way it sprouts outta your head does not automatically make you magically delicious.

Neither does wearing your hair straight down up against the face, but that has rarely been seen as un-doable to many black women. That's the problem. I think its sad that a woman can't embrace who she is naturally. I've seen plenty of women of all races who look perfectly fine how they are. Without the nose jobs, without the hair color, or the relaxers. Just because you may think someone looks foolish doesn't mean that they do.

Imagine if you said "Wearing your skin color the way it came does not automatically make you magically delicious" or "Wearing your nose the way it came does not automatically make you magically delicious". That would be wrong right? At least mean. No ones saying everyone looks good with an Afro, but with the multitude of style options that are out there, anyone can look good as their natural selves. They can choose to relax, but they won't be ugly if they decide not to.

Wearing the hair straight should be optional for everyone, not a requirement for anyone.

 

[Foxglove]

Ironically I just referred a relaxed family friend to this site. She asked me a regimen question and it took me over 3 searches to find an answer for her lol. When I began I didn't even have to search the answer was in the first few pages

 

[nikolite]

I am also giving the serious side eye to Pantene. That natural and relaxed line does not faze me one bit. Hair has been a major issue for women of African descent for years, but Pantene has just started paying attention to us. I think that relaxed and natural line is nothing but the regular line + oil. I also think that these companies are just riding the natural-hair-is-beautiful "bandwagon" to line their pockets with the green stuff (btw, I don't think natural hair is a bandwagon; I think it is truly beautiful.).

So true. That's why I don't pay those commercials and products any mind. They saw a sector of the population they could get money from and they went for it, thinking some cocoa brown bottles will get us to come pouring in our dollars. If its a good product, so be it, but I'll pass.

 

[PopLife]

Neither does wearing your hair straight down up against the face, but that has rarely been seen as un-doable to many black women. That's the problem. I think its sad that a woman can't embrace who she is naturally. I've seen plenty of women of all races who look perfectly fine how they are. Without the nose jobs, without the hair color, or the relaxers. Just because you may think someone looks foolish doesn't mean that they do.

Imagine if you said "Wearing your skin color the way it came does not automatically make you magically delicious" or "Wearing your nose the way it came does not automatically make you magically delicious". That would be wrong right? At least mean. No ones saying everyone looks good with an Afro, but with the multitude of style options that are out there, anyone can look good as their natural selves. They can choose to relax, but they won't be ugly if they decide not to.

Wearing the hair straight should be optional for everyone, not a requirement for anyone.

Tell it like it is!

I see the media has really done a number on us...

 

[French Rouge]

Let me preface what I am going to say, by stating that I am transitioning to natural. I don't mind articles in essence or any other magazine focusing on natural hair. What I have noticed is the change in this board.

When I first joined this board all hair choices were embraced both natural and relaxed. Ooh and aah's were plentiful for both sides. What I don't like are the militant naturals who seem to be more plentiful on this board now days. It kinda reminds of the first board I happened upon I think its called Nappynutrality ( I may be wrong). Don't try to force things down folks throats. Some people eloquently give reasons to go natural, others try to convince people that you hate yourself if you are relaxed. The later I SMH at daily.

One last thing, I agree with Southernbella I wish folks saw relaxers as a style option and not a necessity. I think most relaxed heads on this board get that notion, but IRL I have to explain all to often why I am going natural. My go to response now is because it grows out of my head that way.

 

[jennboo]

God.., how I wish some people would just grow up and find enlightening, empowering and uplifting things to talk about. Enough about hair, G.. dern it. (This is at the dividers/haters).

OP, there is a new revolutionary movement going on in the hair community (as there always is), and today, the trend is natural hair. Once it was BTK, relaxed hair was the hit thing, jeri curls, it goes on and on. Trust and believe, something new and revolutionary will come around soon, and that will be the hit thing. The sad part about these changes as it relates to hair is that, there will always be haters, excluders, and those who believe what they have is superior to what others have. I am so sick of it. Is it so hard for us accept other people's preferences???? Why are we so innately quick to judge and separate others who are different, over something that is DEAD - hair!!! geeze.

First bolded: This is a public forum geared toward hair care.

Second bolded: What comes out of your scalp should not be seen as a trend, that is the point.

Third bolded: What grows out of your scalp naturally isnt new or revolutionary.

Fourth bolded: Imma just say it, i believe chemically unaltered (natural) hair is superior when compared to the chemically degraded version of it. More black people need to share that sentiment.

Fifth bolded: Acceptance? Chemicalized hair has been accepted as the default.

 

[nikolite]

Let me preface what I am going to say, by stating that I am transitioning to natural. I don't mind articles in essence or any other magazine focusing on natural hair. What I have noticed is the change in this board.

When I first joined this board all hair choices were embraced both natural and relaxed. Ooh and aah's were plentiful for both sides. What I don't like are the militant naturals who seem to be more plentiful on this board now days. It kinda reminds of the first board I happened upon I think its called Nappynutrality ( I may be wrong). Don't try to force things down folks throats. Some people eloquently give reasons to go natural, others try to convince people that you hate yourself if you are relaxed. The later I SMH at daily.

One last thing, I agree with Southernbella I wish folks saw relaxers as a style option and not a necessity. I think most relaxed heads on this board get that notion, but IRL I have to explain all to often why I am going natural. My go to response now is because it grows out of my head that way.

You mean, Nappturality, but that is a site that is staunchly pro-natural and all about natural hair care only. Very, very different from LHCF.

 

[jennboo]

I think most of these relaxed vs natural disses are more rude than real. I don't care for character judgements soley based on hair. I don't care for "brand new naturals" who deem themselves experts on the issue of self-hatred. When a person has a really strong opinion about one or the other I will listen. However, if the only reason you are natural is because relaxed hair fell out or broke off due to her inability to take care of it I bypass the "deep consciousness" that follows.

I don't care to make my hair a deep conscious thing. For the naturals who do, when the hair decision is a deep thing I appreciate the consciousness being consistent not an excuse to the real reason after the fact.

ITA with the bolded. I find that there are folks who 'fall back' on the hair that grows naturally from their own head only when their chemicalized hair starts to look like crap. I find this reasoning and line of thinking in regards to natch hair backwards and in a weird way asserts the notions that natural hair is still viewed as second class to chemicalized hair.

 

[HoneyDew]

natural or relaxed I LOVE seeing black women wear their OWN hair.

That's what we need to hate on.....weave dependence.

BTW, I must be living under a rock, because I have not noticed anything....swings my shiny thick healthy relaxed hair.

 

[Meridian]

No ones saying everyone looks good with an Afro, but with the multitude of style options that are out there, anyone can look good as their natural selves.

Can't say I agree on that one. I've seen myself without relaxed hair and I can say without a doubt that I look better with RELAXED hair.

Why are we STILL after the long flowing hair? I think the answer is easy. It is what we see in the media. Beyonce, Tyra, etc.

I don't want to look like either one of those fools.

The one thing I will say is that in commercials it seems like 8 in 10 black women in commercials are natural.

I don't know about those statistics, but I have noticed that the naturals tend to be curly haired women, not those deep into the 4a/4b category with kinky hair, but I guess some is better than none.

Wearing the hair straight should be optional for everyone, not a requirement for anyone.

Wearing your hair "naturally" should be an option for everyone, not a requirement.

The one good thing about getting relaxers is if you decide you want to wear your hair naturally, YOU CAN & vice versa. I don't get why folks always turn it into "you hate yourself" arguments when that isn't the case (with most folks I hope). My 2nd oldest sister KNOWS she looks better with relaxed hair and my oldest sister knows she looks better with natural hair. Neither one hates on the other for it. I don't get why people care how and what others do to their OWN hair.....erplexed

And for those that use the "I was born this way" argument, does that mean that someone BORN with a cleft palate/lip shouldn't do anything about it because they were born with it...

 

[HairBarbie]

I think its eerie that many black women are offended that natural hair is being praised recently. Calling it a phase and the "in" thing, seriously? Its like people are threatened by it, you'd think that their hair naturally grows straight like that.

I think you're being paranoid, people are more pro natural now and its freaking out a lot of black women. Don't know why though, there are very very very few people that are anti-relaxed hair.

 

[LaFemmeNaturelle]

Wow, Meridian, did you just compare a deformity to natural hair?

 

[HairBarbie]

Wow did you just compare a deformity to natural hair?

Many see natural hair as an ugly thing, a huge beauty sin, a mark that must be removed at all cost not much different from a deformity. Others seeing the beauty in it, challenges their mindset hence the offense and imaginary attack against relaxed hair.

 

[havilland]

I guess it's just me. I don't want natural and relaxed hair to be seen as equal.

I want natural hair to be seen as the default and relaxed hair to be seen a style choice.

i had to highlight this one stance because it was new to me and i found it interesting, unique and refreshing. thanks southernbella

as for me, i am not anti anything. i'm pro choice and i am relaxed.

i will say this, i have enjoyed seeing natural ladies in a variety of mainstream media situations recently when this did not used to be the case. my son is 2 and one of his little kid shows has a african american host. she was relaxed and recently did a big chop. i didnt care about her style choice, so much that i cared that she was allowed by her bosses at Sprout Channel to do so. i know for a fact, having worked in tv, that she had to discuss her hairstyle with her producers before she made the change. i was very impressed with them and her. she is rocking the TWA and it looks great. i also liked her relaxed hair.

what can i say......to me it's only hair. do what works best for you.

 

[shocol]

To be honest I've come to the conclusion that this debate isn't really and never will be as simple as people try to make it.

Truth is we're all different, we can try to lump each other together under the guise of we're all black but it just doesn't work that way because half of the comments the natural posters just don't resonate with me.

I was never made to feel negatively about my natural hair and never had damaged horrifically cared for relaxed hair. My mom nurtured my hair and loved it when it was both natural and relaxed. I didn't have white people twist their faces at me or my nieces, nephews, aunts, and uncles point and laugh at me while chanting "She ain't got that good hair". Nope. Just wasn't my lifestyle. In fact no one gave a damn about my hair outside of the occasional "Oh it looks so pretty." Hair was just hair. Shocking I know. But it wasn't half as important as getting a good education or being a better person. I didn't have to be natural to know about my ancestors and my history because that was about knowledge not about what I did to my hair. I didn't have to be natural to be a proud representation of an African woman, that was about demeanor, confidence, and spirit. I was never made to feel awful for doing anything to my hair so no I don't have any negative feelings towards natural hair or bitterness about relaxed hair.

So no I don't go through life seeing sweet babies with chewed up relaxed hair victims to their momma's dependance on relaxers on a daily basis and even on the occasion I do see one, guess what? I tend to believe that a mother who wants to care for a child finds ways. If your momma isn't caring for your relaxed hair then I don't think for a second she'd do any better with natural. You'd look a HAM regardless.

Also my hair may grow from my head this way but not for one second does that mean to me that is my ONLY option of what to do with my hair. It is the 21st century and the year 2010 and I am a creative woman who loves to express herself. My eyelashes also grow out of my head with a certain appearance but on a daily basis I curl them and color them with mascara. Shockingly even mascara that DOESN'T match my natural color such as blue or green. My nails grow out of my body with a certain appearance but when I'm bored I paint them different shades and even try to draw a heart or two on a pinkie. My eyebrows were have their own natural appearance and i alter that every few weeks for the sake of style. Oh and my armpit and leg hair....girrrrl.

So in short I'm doing a lot of altering on my body with no regrets or shame, it's just hair: eyelash hair, armpit hair, leg-hair, and head-hair. I do different things with each area and I would do them all because I'm no more natural with my head-hair than I am with another part of my body. I mask my natural scent with perfume as well because that's what I like.

To some women their hair may be a representation of so many deeper things and I'm fine with that. But it isn't for me. What you feel and do about your hair doesn't involve me. If you want to be natural then I'm in total support but stop taking whatever issues you've had with women in the past be they your family or another race and pushing it on women who never met you. I don't have a negative word or view for natural women and neither do a lot of the posters on these boards. Some of us never had a moment where we can relate to the hardship but that doesn't mean we support it. We're all just looking for equal representation and attentiveness to our needs. We don't write black hair magazines, we're the consumer and we pretty much get whatever they want to shovel onto us too - and just because some woman with stick straight hair is on the cover doesn't mean the tips being offered are anymore beneficial to us.

Sometimes it's just 79 pages of pretty pictures with 0 real hair relevance.

Now chill people, live and let live. No more insinuations or snide comments.

I find it ironic that on LongHairCareForum that we continue to have these relaxed vs. natural conversations. Anybody who's been here long enough understands that hair care is a science. Chemical reactions, bonds broken temporarily or permanently, moisture content, mechanical wear and tear, environmental stressors, etc. Yet these things are rarely mentioned in these types of threads. It's how I know that the main purpose of these threads is to belittle others and shove a social agenda/ideology down others' throats.

IDEOLOGY - HAIR CARE KNOWLEDGE = A JACKED UP HEAD OF HAIR. It's absolutely worthless. Without the knowledge, whether relaxed or natural, your hair is going to be a mess.

 

[Kash]

Wow, Meridian, did you just compare a deformity to natural hair?

oMg...you beat me to punch! I read that and spit out my apple juice. Some flolks may need to back away from the caustic chemicals...it's killing brain cells!

 

[nikolite]

Responses are in blue.

Can't say I agree on that one. I've seen myself without relaxed hair and I can say without a doubt that I look better with RELAXED hair.

Alright then, continue to relax your hair. Do whatever it is you need to do to feel beautiful. If that should include a tummy tuck or rhinoplasty for someone then so be it. But I don't condone comments that try to make someone else feel like they have to do the same just because another person thinks they look "foolish" the way they are.

Wearing your hair "naturally" should be an option for everyone, not a requirement.

But has anyone said otherwise here? Don't try to put words on the screen and create confusion/division. Most of us seem to be in agreement at the base, lets not take things to the extreme. Another poster stated that not everyone looked good natural, implying that straight hair for many black women is a requirement for them to be beautiful. My response did not even imply that natural hair is a requirement, but it sure as hell should be the default. Why? Because it is. Anything different from that is an option and an individual choice which many natural and relaxed have stated already.

The one good thing about getting relaxers is if you decide you want to wear your hair naturally, YOU CAN & vice versa. I don't get why folks always turn it into "you hate yourself" arguments when that isn't the case (with most folks I hope). My 2nd oldest sister KNOWS she looks better with relaxed hair and my oldest sister knows she looks better with natural hair. Neither one hates on the other for it. I don't get why people care how and what others do to their OWN hair.....erplexed

Not one natural has said "you hate yourself" or anything like it on this thread. Again, internal thoughts are being inferred from some of the posts here. I'm not even sure why I'm responding to that anymore. (But obviously, if your reasons for relaxing is because you believe you look foolish or ugly without a relaxer then you may not hate yourself, but you sure as hell don't like your hair). And going back to natural by transitioning for months/years or cutting off all of your hair is not nearly as easy as slapping on a relaxer.

And to the bold: Why do people keep saying that in a forum about hair and a thread about black women's hair in general?!! If you don't care then why are you posting here?

And for those that use the "I was born this way" argument, does that mean that someone BORN with a cleft palate/lip shouldn't do anything about it because they were born with it...

What? A cleft palate is a BIRTH DEFECT that causes all kinds of problems. You can't possibly think natural hair is a defect so why would you even compare it to that?

 

[Meridian]

Wow, Meridian, did you just compare a deformity to natural hair?

People say that we all should just love the hair we were born with because God gave it to us. My point is, people are born with deformities and other disorders that cause them to look a certain way, but they shouldn't just give in to it because God made them that way.

How about this, plenty of small chested women get surgery to get bigger ones because it makes them feel better and plenty of larger chested women have surgery to reduce them because it makes them feel better. I wasn't hating on natural hair. I've got no problem with it. Just saying what's wrong with change if it makes someone feel better. You may not agree with it, but in the end it's their choice.

And to the bold: Why do people keep saying that in a forum about hair and a thread about black women's hair in general?!! If you don't care then why are you posting here?

This forum is to help people learn how to grow healthy hair, not to come hate on others who do things you don't agree with...or maybe it is.

Another poster stated that not everyone looked good natural, implying that straight hair for many black women is a requirement for them to be beautiful.

Natural doesn't look good on everyone, but I don't think she meant that many bw need a relaxer to look good. It's a simple fact, some look good with straight hair, some don't. Some women look beautiful with big curly or kinky hair, others don't. What I got from her comment was that those who chose to go for a relaxer shouldn't be hated on BECAUSE they chose the route that made them the happiest & feel the best about themselves.

oMg...you beat me to punch! I read that and spit out my apple juice. Some flolks may need to back away from the caustic chemicals...it's killing brain cells!

Yes, some people definitely do...