OMG - Natural Hair Revolution "Beauty Lies" Documentary!!

[CocoGlow]

Hey Ladies!

You all have got to check out parts 1 & 2 of this fabulous documentary ... it reminds me of that wonderful thread that was unfortunately closed recently about "why most Black women like straight hair" ...

I feel like this documentary provides a very balanced view of this issue (from Black men & women) and does not demonize the relaxer or put anyone down nor does it insinuate that Naturals are more "enlightened", but it discusses this issue in a way that I find very refreshing ...

No matter what your personal take on the issue, I think it's important for us as Black people to have this discussion....sometimes watching a film like this can help one to be more open to the ideas & questions presented without taking personal offense....at least that is what I hope

I personally find this film very powerful & thought provoking so I just had to share!!

I've never seen the Chris Rock documentary on "Good Hair" but many people are calling this documentary better......What do yall think???

I Highly Recommended y'all Check out both parts

Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22OtYlxLWdA&feature=player_embedded

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u04fXcTTys8&feature=related

 

[JFemme]

Sounds interesting ---errybody's got a story, angle, reasoning...

let and let live, I say...

I.am.just.too.tired.tonight..erplexed

(thanks for sharing, though)

 

[drappedup]

Hmm.....sounds interesting. I may watch tonight. Cliiiiiiick.

 

[EccentricRed]

I watched it and it was cool. I hear "Good Hair" didn't really go into "going/being natural." But I still haven't seen it yet!

 

[lsw29]

I will take a look at this tonight.

 

[Amber_moon]

Interesting, but as soon as the narrator said "oriental woman" my face was like this erplexed

How are you going to do a doccumentary about race relations and call an asian person "oriental".... seriously?

 

[HauteHippie]

Slightly off-topic, but does Oriental have some sort of negative connotation? I thought it came from the place: the Orient aka Asia. Like Persian as a name for a race of people, even though Persia is modern-day Iraq. Please school me!

 

[Amber_moon]

Slightly off-topic, but does Oriental have some sort of negative connotation? I thought it came from the place: the Orient aka Asia. Like Persian as a name for a race of people, even though Persia is modern-day Iraq. Please school me!

Oriental just refers to something from the east. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orient Just like occidental refers to something from the west. However, it refers only to THINGS not PEOPLE... to call a PERSON oriental is considered pejorative and slightly racist as it brings up the idea of the European Orientalist fantasy and has colonialist origins. Orientalism is why to this very day some ignorant people in the west still think that Indians are Arabs and China and Japan are similar countries.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orientalism

Long story short... its just derogatory and you shouldnt use it. If you are refering to a person of Asian origin you should say Asian. You should never ever use the word "oriental" to describe anything but a rug or a vase.

Also p.s. The Orient is NOT Asia. Asia is Oriental, but then so is Russia, and the middle east.

 

[justicefighter1913]

Interesting....I'll give it a look see

 

[LadyRaider]

Wouldn't oriental be an equal faux pas to "colored" or worse, "pickaninny?"

Thanks, OP. I'll check out the link.

 

[Austro-Afrikana]

I know this is OT but I always refer to east Asians as Oriental and Indians, Pakistanis etc as Asian. I don't see anything wrong with it.

 

[Chameleonchick]

I will watch this later, but I have seen/heard many Asian women refer to themselves as oriental. So I don't know, how to take something like that.

 

[Amber_moon]

I know this is OT but I always refer to east Asians as Oriental and Indians, Pakistanis etc as Asian. I don't see anything wrong with it.

erplexed

oh man.... well I certianly hope you never ever say that to anyones face because it would be akin to some white lady calling you a "darkie" or a "spook" or a "coon" and then telling her friends she doesn't see anything wrong with it because "thats the way shes always referred to them".


I think its important to remember sometimes who's language you are speaking. We are conversing right now in English. Which is a European language, forced on us by... yup.. colonialist Europeans.

Which means that some of the ways we say things... are hold overs from when Europeans conquered enslaved and raped other nations of people. So just because you learned to say something a certain way from someone who speaks a European language doesnt mean... it isnt offensive to someone else not from that culture. 50 years ago it was perfectly acceptable to call a black person a n*gger... it was in the dictionary. doesn't mean its right.

 

[Kurlee]

good video

 

[mrsjohnson75]

I'll check it out. thanks

 

[30something]

I don't think I'm going to finish watching it

 

[LadyRaider]

Amber Moon,
Thank you. I knew it was worse than "colored" but not quite as bad as our "N" word. "Darkie" is probably the most equivalent word. Now people can make choices now that they know the connotation of the word, "Oriental." It is an archaic and widely disgraced word.

 

[Freespirit02]

Interesting, but as soon as the narrator said "oriental woman" my face was like this erplexed

How are you going to do a doccumentary about race relations and call an asian person "oriental".... seriously?

You can be Asian and Oriental...(Chinese..Japanese...)

 

[Minty]

Thank you Amber_moon.

 

[Amber_moon]

Amber Moon,
Thank you. I knew it was worse than "colored" but not quite as bad as our "N" word. "Darkie" is probably the most equivalent word. Now people can make choices now that they know the connotation of the word, "Oriental." It is an archaic and widely disgraced word.

No its definitely not as bad as the n word.. but I was just making a point when I was saying that some words, just because they are taught to us, are not necessarily correct. Making the excuse "thats what I was taught and thats what Ive always said" is no excuse to use a word that is offensive to a persons race, age, sex, nationality etc etc...

 

[Amber_moon]

You can be Asian and Oriental...(Chinese..Japanese...)

strongly suggest you take a look at post #8 in this thread.

 

[cinnespice]

I will watch it later my job blocks youtube

 

[Loves Harmony]

Thanks for sharing.

 

[andromeda]

I think Professor Walcott's (he sounds like he's bajan) interview snippets are worth the proverbial price of admission. His statement about the contradiction and need to negotiate freedom of expression (black people have a particular penchant for adornment and expression) with racial aesthetic integrity/self-acceptance hits on a significant reason why some people are taken aback by the "why you wear your hair straight" discussion.

The filmmaker looked ravishing with her baldie; she has really nice features.

I found the mens' comments about weave interesting.

I also think the historical insight about the dynamic that resulted from slave women being made to cut their hair off, while the mistress of the plantation got to have long, well-groomed hair hits on the point I made in the other thread about slaves being deprived of their traditional styling tools, products and techniques.

It's so great that regular people/amateur filmmakers who are passionate about something can produce their own documentaries for a reasonable price, and more importantly, distribute it across the world by uploading it to YouTube. As Chris Rock's documentary, high production values/budget/nationwide theater release have little correlation with earnestness, integrity and positive impact.

Thanks for sharing, nappyrina!

 

[CocoGlow]

Bumping!! Bumping!! For those who may have missed this thread...

 

[BEAUTYU2U]

Thanks so much, OP!

"Good Hair" really didn't touch on the history of hair in the AA community at all or talk about natural hair. It was kinda just "it's this thing that black women do for no reason...but it's fascinating so let's judge!" LOL.

Second, I never knew Oriental was a negative term. Doesn't it just mean people who live in the Orient?

 

[Kurlee]

Thanks so much, OP!

"Good Hair" really didn't touch on the history of hair in the AA community at all or talk about natural hair. It was kinda just "it's this thing that black women do for no reason...but it's fascinating so let's judge!" LOL.

Second, I never knew Oriental was a negative term. Doesn't it just mean people who live in the Orient?

Ask yourself, what is the Orient and are all people from the Orient the same?

 

[Sounique]

"Oriental" is to Asians as "Colored" is to Black Americans

It's not racist per se, however it is derogatory and frowned upon by most Asians, if used in reference to their race.

If a white person were to call me a colored gal, I would take offense, wouldn't you?

Like Biggie said, "If you don't know, now you know"
Seriously though..
When we know better, we do better.

 

[BEAUTYU2U]

Ask yourself, what is the Orient and are all people from the Orient the same?

Orient = Asia ... and no. Isn't it like calling people from Africa, African? Although we know it's several different countries, cultures, etc. I'm not trying to be ignorant ... really. I just never knew it was derogatory.

ETA: Oh nevermind. I just read post #8 and I understand now. Thanks.

 

[KurlyNinja]

I liked this. I actually posted on FB and posted on my Natural Hair group. I hope people watch this.