OH MY! I did not know this bit of History about Relaxers...

[Poohbear]

I knew about a lil bit of history about relaxers but not this part, which I came across today...

It was accidently discovered that lye straightened hair... As a punishment, slave owners would dip slaves' heads into buckets of lye solution.

That's scary and horrible! I guess that's why some of those militant nappies have those strong views against relaxers.

Any thoughts?

 

[Mahalialee4]

I had heard or read about this years ago. Interesting bit of history...but typical of civilized 'Christian' slave owners to come up with something unique to control. bonjour

 

[SparklingFlame]

WOW! I had no idea that was how this was discovered. Where did you find this?

ETA: Why did 3 people find this to be a "bad" thread? Whats so bad about it? Sheesh!

OK, back to the regularly scheduled program!

 

[Poohbear]

I had heard or read about this years ago. Interesting bit of history...but typical of civilized 'Christian' slave owners to come up with something unique to control. bonjour

Yeah, that's sad...doesn't sound like those slave owners were very civilized or Christian, and yet, they thought they were.

 

[Poohbear]

WOW! I had no idea that was how this was discovered. Where did you find this?

yeah, me neither...I thought it was discovered during Malcolm X's time...I saw this info on Enchantmnt's website. Her site is pretty neat.

 

[glamazon386]

WOW didn't know that

 

[aileenadq]

Stupid question: They dipped the entire head? Lye WILL blind you, esp. a high % solution.

What an awful, evil thing to do to another human being.

 

[tallnomad]

interesting you posted this. my friend just told me this last week literally. i told him i had put a texturizer in my hair and he asked if i knew the history of relaxers. i knew it must be deep because he is very much into black history. he asked me to stop using chemicals just out of respect for our ancestors.

 

[Cooyah]

slave owners didn't discover this, they stole it from a black man who accidently found out lye str8ened cotton so he tried it on his hair and it str8ened. slave owners did many sick and sadistic things, this just being another. yet another why i *detest* nigg.er

 

[Poohbear]

Stupid question: They dipped the entire head? Lye WILL blind you, esp. a high % solution.

What an awful, evil thing to do to another human being.

Hmmm....I'm not sure if they dipped their whole head, that would really mess them up...I'm assuming they dipped just the top of their heads...

 

[Aubergold]

ok ok I know it's may not be a big deal to some and It is just a styling choice, but if I ever want to get a relaxer again, someone slap me. If not for myself, then for the people who came before me.

 

[MizaniMami]

ooooh lawd, here we go again.

i know better than to fall for this one, this time around .

 

[KhandiB]

Let me in on this...

ooooh lawd, here we go again.

i know better than to fall for this one, this time around .

 

[MizaniMami]

Let me in on this...

Lol.

 

[jasmine26]

OMG, i never knew that! Thanks for that small history check, poohbear

 

[TeeKay21]

slave owners didn't discover this, they stole it from a black man who accidently found out lye str8ened cotton so he tried it on his hair and it str8ened. slave owners did many sick and sadistic things, this just being another. yet another why i *detest* nigg.er

So they just stole his invention. That means WE invented it and it was not something the "man" thought up to punish us or to make us forget our roots....etc, etc....

 

[Aubergold]

So they just stole his invention. That means WE invented it and it was not something the "man" thought up to punish us or to make us forget our roots....etc, etc....

well obviously the white man didn't invent it. He couldnt care less about what the heck our hair looked like as long as we kept on pickin. But before lye was seen as simply a styling choice, we used it to get "better, straighter hair"

 

[Poohbear]

slave owners didn't discover this, they stole it from a black man who accidently found out lye str8ened cotton so he tried it on his hair and it str8ened. slave owners did many sick and sadistic things, this just being another. yet another why i *detest* nigg.er

Oh really? I didn't know that either. I'm not sure who actually discovered it. I just posted this information about the slave owners using it to punish slaves.

 

[TeeKay21]

well obviously the white man didn't invent it. He couldnt care less about what the heck our hair looked like as long as we kept on pickin. But before lye was seen as simply a styling choice, we used it to get "better, straighter hair"

I agree. It's def. always been a styling choice for most people. I can see where others are coming from with the historical info but if we applied that to other stuff we wouldn't be able to own dogs, use horse whips, climb trees, etc., because those things were used to punish slaves. But that's just the way I look at it.

Not trying to get a debate going cause I truly LOVE natural hair, I wore mine natural for a hot minute, but I just wanted to share my 2 cents here.

 

[Aubergold]

I agree. It's def. always been a styling choice for most people. I can see where others are coming from with the historical info but if we applied that to other stuff we wouldn't be able to own dogs, use horse whips, climb trees, etc., because those things were used to punish slaves. But that's just the way I look at it.

Not trying to get a debate going cause I truly LOVE natural hair, I wore mine natural for a hot minute, but I just wanted to share my 2 cents here.

I feel ya!

 

[Enchantmt]

yeah, me neither...I thought it was discovered during Malcolm X's time...I saw this info on Enchantmnt's website. Her site is pretty neat.

LOL...I was about to reply and say I had heard of this before, and then I read a lil further and realized your source. . That is a great site, but it's not mine, just one I came across when I was transitioning to natural.

 

[Peachtree]

I dind't know this either...
it sickens my stomach

 

[Poohbear]

LOL...I was about to reply and say I had heard of this before, and then I read a lil further and realized your source. . That is a great site, but it's not mine, just one I came across when I was transitioning to natural.

Ohhh okay!

 

[Mahalialee4]

Can this be proven that a "slave discovered Lye" FOR THE COTTON. And tell me how a slave was ever able to do anything with the masters' property except under direction? and that's why you hate........rs!!! First we have been accused for slavery to ourselves, and everything else we have endured...blaming the victim....I do not buy this. I am a history scavenger and do not rely only on HIS story or HIS propaganda. bonjour

 

[Cheleigh]

The story about the guy straightening cotton and then using it on his hair is actually the more interesting one...

like, what made him try the lye on his hair? Was it because black natural hair is sometimes called "cotton" and he thought if it straightened cotton, it might straighten cottony hair?????

It would be interesting (to me) to go back in time and ask him his mindset at the time he applied the lye to his hair. Obviously he was curious about the connection-the sign of an inventor. But why?

 

[CurleeDST]

They have done worse to Africans enslaved in America.

Stupid question: They dipped the entire head? Lye WILL blind you, esp. a high % solution.

What an awful, evil thing to do to another human being.

 

[PaperClip]

Ookkaayy... for the sake of balance... let's see... where to start.... hmmm....

1. I thank Poohbear for sharing some historical content about relaxers. We can't know where we're going until we know where we've been.

2. I don't think Poohbear shared this to rehash the natural vs. relaxed dialogue. This topic will always be around. The key is to engage in healthy discourse about it.

3. With regard to the slave owners' usage of the lye, it clearly was used as a form of pain and punishment, not for the sake of straightening the hair (which I'm sure was a violation for our precious ancestors), but for the pain caused by the rinse out and lack of neutralizing solution and helpful products to save the melted strands.

4. As with any item, the key is in its usage. There are many items on the planet that can be used for evil as well as good. Fire can be used for good or evil. So can water, dogs, trees, so on and so forth. In the case of the lye/chemical straighteners and the slaves, it CLEARLY was used for EVIL and not good.

5. And I should add that in my present state of mind (including 20-plus years of relaxers), I cannot say that relaxing is or ever has been good TO ME. But others have found it to be good for them, and that is, to quote Bobby Brown, the King of R & B certainly their "perogative".

 

[Crackers Phinn]

I have nothing to add.

I just thought it was cool that Enchantment quoted me in her siggy.
I'm all blushy now!

 

[punchinella]

The story about the guy straightening cotton and then using it on his hair is actually the more interesting one...

like, what made him try the lye on his hair? Was it because black natural hair is sometimes called "cotton" and he thought if it straightened cotton, it might straighten cottony hair?????

It would be interesting (to me) to go back in time and ask him his mindset at the time he applied the lye to his hair. Obviously he was curious about the connection-the sign of an inventor. But why?

Well I know that back in the day lye was used for many different purposes. My grandmother was not a slave but her grandparents were and they taught her mother how to make soap and other products from lye, so I'm sure they experimented with lye for many reasons.
They washed their hair and bodies with lye soap. I'm not saying that this is how he discovered it but I was thinking maybe they made some lye soap with too much lye in it and when he washed his hair it loosened the curl. So maybe he started experimenting from there. I'm sure they could get their hands on as much lye as they needed because they did all the cleaning and used it for many purposes as I stated before.
As a matter of fact my grandmother still made her own lye soap until the day she died (well not literally that day) but you know what I mean.

 

[firecracker]

I had heard or read about this years ago. Interesting bit of history...but typical of civilized 'Christian' slave owners to come up with something unique to control. bonjour

I never knew this lil tidbit. I agree with the bolded. Definitely not impossible or uncharacteristic of the devil slave massa.