What Spurred the Current Natural Hair Movement
- Thread starter vtoodler
- Start date
I beg to differ. While there are some people who have gone natural because of the fad, I don't think that's the majority of people. I can't see people devoting as much time, energy and money as I see by people on boards like this one into something that's just a fad and will be here today and gone tomorrow. Maybe we're an anomaly.
For many people it is a lifestyle choice. I made the decision to improve the health of my hair. I'm almost 7 years in and there's no looking back. I haven't relaxed my hair regularly in 10 years. I wouldn't even know what to do with myself.I'm in for life. A relaxer isn't necessary for me, IMO. I can do all the same things with my natural hair that I could with my relaxed hair and then some. Why bother?
Sure you can disagree...that's your choice.
People in the 60s/70s weren't doing the things naturals do now for a reason. Mindset, as stated in my post.
I think that the current movement is stronger because it allows us to do more within the natural hair scope now then the 60s/70s. There are becoming less reasons to relax.
geejay
Well-Known Member
If you define natural narrowly as styling your hair in an afro, then you're right. There was much more emphasis on the afro in the 70's. If you define natural more broadly as not using chemicals to permanently alter your texture, then I think we are seeing a significant shift where people are viewing relaxers as an option, not a necessity.
I think the state of the hair - relaxed, natural - is different than the styling of the hair. As in you can be natural and style your hair straight. You can be relaxed and style your hair curly. Your post suggests you are most concerned with the style and the political statements of those styles. I'll be honest and say I don't give a hoot how women style their hair, but I am deeply grateful to all the women who contributed their knowledge on the internet and made it possible for me to learn how to manage my hair in its natural state. Having that knowledge, regardless of how I choose to style it when I leave the house, lets me care for and interact and take ownership of a part of myself that I never knew since I was a child. That knowledge is not part of a fad. That's a part of me now.
One day after washing my relaxer out I noticed that my edges on the left side of my head were completely gone. I decided then and there that something had to change. I would only relax my hair twice a year because I was cheap and inexperienced. I had no clue about transitioning or relaxer stretches. I just did not like dealing with my hair. I used to think of it as a wild beast and stylists would always complain that it was too thick and I even apologized for its thickness. My hair has never took very well to relaxers, done professionally or by myself. It has always appeared to be underprocessed.
On that day when my edges up and disappeared. I looked up what to do and wore a hat for 4 months straight because I did not want to deal with the beast. I remember stylists being pissed when I walked in because a flat iron and blow dry took an hour to do on my bob hairstyle. Those days are long gone. I embraced my hair and it thickness. I apologized for neglecting it all these years. For me going natural was just a happy accident.
On that day when my edges up and disappeared. I looked up what to do and wore a hat for 4 months straight because I did not want to deal with the beast. I remember stylists being pissed when I walked in because a flat iron and blow dry took an hour to do on my bob hairstyle. Those days are long gone. I embraced my hair and it thickness. I apologized for neglecting it all these years. For me going natural was just a happy accident.
SimplyLive
Well-Known Member
Youtube videos, blogs, forums, tumblr, and other websites devoted to learning about natural hair care via the internet was not available during the 60s and 70s. And today, natural hair is less about being "political" and more about Black women simply having more options in their hair care arsenal. To me it's not just a "passing fad" this time around. I really believe more Black women will be more reluctant in relazing their daughters' hair and more encouraged to pass knowledge of natural hair care to their children. During the 60s and 70s natural hair most meant a picked out afro, while today, who have a plethora of popular natural hair styles in addition to wearing one's afro.
Not only this, but more hair companies, especially Black owned ones, have grown economically in catering to natural hair.
Not only this, but more hair companies, especially Black owned ones, have grown economically in catering to natural hair.
greenandchic
Well-Known Member
There's also more natural hair acceptance in mainstream media and in the workplace. When the afro trend went out style by the early 80s, women were reluctant to wearing their hair in its natural state. Only "alternative" Black women wore their hair naturally - not women dressed up for work. Even locks were considered "dirty", nasty, and something only those "heathen" Rastafarian ganja smokers wore.
i think your a fad clr women on blk hairboards given hair advicee..lmaooohair growing out of a black persons head is not a fad----
*Frisky*
Well-Known Member
I beg to differ. While there are some people who have gone natural because of the fad, I don't think that's the majority of people. I can't see people devoting as much time, energy and money as I see by people on boards like this one into something that's just a fad and will be here today and gone tomorrow. Maybe we're an anomaly.
For many people it is a lifestyle choice. I made the decision to improve the health of my hair. I'm almost 7 years in and there's no looking back. I haven't relaxed my hair regularly in 10 years. I wouldn't even know what to do with myself.
I think this is the main reason alot of people are going natural now which why it isn't a fad. Comparing today to the 1970's are 2 totally different things. Just because I choose to define my curls or wear twists doesn't mean I am ashamed of my hair in no way shape or form or makes my hair less black hahaha
Froreal3
haulin hard in the paint
In the 60's-70's the mere fact that wearing natural hair was associated with something outside of simply wearing the hair that grows out of your scalp (Blk Power Movement) suggests that it was more likely to be fleeting once that movement was over. However, women are now wearing the hair that grows out of their scalps because...well because it grows out of their scalps. lol That doesn't indicate a fad to me. We've learned ways to actually care for the hair that comes from our scalps and society is slowly recognizing it as normal (like it should be). We should be able to have a choice to rock the hair that comes out of our heads just like Becky and that is what ppl are recognizing.
dicapr
Well-Known Member
This is a very idealized view of black hair in the 60s and 70s. I talked to my mom and dad about their hair during that time and it was anything but just natural. My mom talked about washing her hair in Listerine to get the right amount of kink and then braiding it up and rolling it on sponge curlers. She would then pick it out after it dried and spray it with Afro sheen. My parents still laugh at how my Dad's hair turned red and then fell out from a blow out kit. My mom also said that many of her friends were natural and many went between press and curls and Afros.
BostonMaria
Well-Known Member
I agree
I didn't transition to natural earlier (90's) because I had no idea how. Stylists and family kept giving me wrong advice (use beer, your hair can't grow without relaxers, you'll be bald). I did a search in 2007 and found all types of websites.
When I joined in 2008 this board was majority relaxed heads. At some point more people transitioned.
Not sure if its a trend but I'll definitely stay away from relaxers. They did nothing for me.
Sent from my iPhone using LHCF
greenandchic
Well-Known Member
LMAO at the blow out kit incident!
Looking at my family photos from the 60s everyone pressed their hair, especially in LA. In the 70s they went back and forth between pressing and wearing in its natural state. Their hair was long (about waist length) so there wasn't much fro picking going on--it was mostly in ponytails and puffs.
I asked my mother and she said their hair was unpressed because the were in a pool or at a beach so it got "messed up" a lot during the summer LOL.
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empressri
Well-Known Member
Re: What Spurred the Current Natural Hair Trend
Yeaaaaaah nappturality had a HUGE part in it, and I remember joining up back in...oh gosh, 2005 or so? And a lot of people were going natural then. Pretty long time to consider it a movement, I just think people are becoming more educated and also know that they don't HAVE to relax or flat iron their hair all the time.
vtoodler, you're mighty late.
When I joined LHCF, the board was mostly relaxed. And since then the ratio of naturals gradually increased such that at one time it seemed there were more natural heads than relaxed. Now it seems that people are going either way. I think it's just like fashion. Trends come and go and return.
Maybe someone folks admire goes natural and they emulate the style, or it could just be people learn more about managing natural hair so give it a go. Maybe people just want a change of style. I don't really think there's some deep reason or one universal reason for it. A lot of longtime naturals who inspired me in my early days are now relaxed so there's no movement in one direction, IMO.
And no, I don't think LHCF played a part in it.There are more forums than just LHCF where natural hair is featured, Nappturality being queen of them, not to mention blogs and videos and books all showcasing natural hair and giving tips of how to care for it.
It could also be that you are noticing the natural styles more now because you are now interested in them. It's like when you learn a new word, soon after it seems as if everyone is suddenly using it...but really it's just that you now recognize it and so catch it, while previously it just flew over your head.
Yeaaaaaah nappturality had a HUGE part in it, and I remember joining up back in...oh gosh, 2005 or so? And a lot of people were going natural then. Pretty long time to consider it a movement, I just think people are becoming more educated and also know that they don't HAVE to relax or flat iron their hair all the time.
SmilingElephant
Well-Known Member
I don't think its a fad. I believe it has become an option just like having the option to relax your hair.
When i joined LHCF i gradually learned i had the option to go natural. Before i joined i had no clue about natural hair. I thought it meant not having a weave i used to jealous of girls who said their hair curls up when it gets wet lol never knowing i had hair like that too.
So with all the education out there about natural hair, i think its here to stay.
When i joined LHCF i gradually learned i had the option to go natural. Before i joined i had no clue about natural hair. I thought it meant not having a weave
i used to jealous of girls who said their hair curls up when it gets wet lol never knowing i had hair like that too. So with all the education out there about natural hair, i think its here to stay.
Enyo
Well-Known Member
I don't like the idea of wearing my hair the way it grows out of my scalp being called a "fad". It really rubs me the wrong way. It implies that to chemically manipulate your hair is the standard and deviation from that is somehow the outlying choice. That's wrong on many levels.
MsSanz92
Well-Known Member
Definitely the internet, and the rise of more and more women suffering damage from relaxers. I think Black women got tired of potentially damaging their hair by relaxing it, and learned that our hair is not so "unmanageable"; we just have never been taught how to properly take care of our natural hair. Once more information was put out there through the internet, blogs, YouTube, forums, etc., women learned how to take care of their hair sans relaxers, and hair companies started to accommodate by making more hair products designed for the maintenance of natural hair. I think now, more and more people will continue to go natural because a lot of the mainstream hair lines have products designed for natural hair care.
Dove56
Well-Known Member
I think women want healthier hair with less maintenance and drama. I know I "big chopped" in the late 90's after reading Andre Walker's Book (Oprah's stylist) Andre Talks Hair. I joined naturallycurly.com back in the late 90's as well.
I just marvel at all the "natural hair" products available now though. Back in the early 2000's there were just a few companies selling natural products. At Sally's I have numerous choices of cleansing conditioners and puddings, I love it! I am so glad to be transitioning again from keratin treatments back to my natural hair. I forgot I much I love the ease of curly hair.
I just marvel at all the "natural hair" products available now though. Back in the early 2000's there were just a few companies selling natural products. At Sally's I have numerous choices of cleansing conditioners and puddings, I love it! I am so glad to be transitioning again from keratin treatments back to my natural hair. I forgot I much I love the ease of curly hair.
Dove56
Well-Known Member
Yep, and as the country gets more and more diverse straight hair well become less of the "norm".
bhndbrwneyes
Well-Known Member
Also just growing up and becoming more comfortable in my skin and proud to be a strong, independent African American woman. Growing up I was in a VERY white community. It was a rare occasion when there'd be more than one black girl in a single class. For the MOST part my community was very friendly but I do remember being excluded from jump rope in the second grade because I was black and I knew that that was the reason as such an early age because they told me so! I definitely had a very distorted view of what beauty was (thin nose, long straight hair, light skin, light eyes, etc) and what one needed to be accepted. And sadly these ideals of beauty are still portrayed in the media today.
College was much better as there was obviously more people than in high school and middle school which meant a better portrait of diversity. I moved to Atlanta after college for work and just saw for the first time so many strong and beautiful African American men and women with so many different styles in every since of the word that I was more comfortable to be myself. (A lot of the African American people I knew from my hometown were very ratchet so it was just not a good portrayal, they definitely had the mindset "If there's going to be stereotypes against us then let's live up to them", smh).
I admit when I was younger (and not even THAT much younger than I am now) I would see a woman with natural hair and think "she's too black" because that was always what I had been told. Now I think "you go girl!" and "she is so beautiful".
It was just a mental transition for me.
Hope not to offend anyone with any of that
College was much better as there was obviously more people than in high school and middle school which meant a better portrait of diversity. I moved to Atlanta after college for work and just saw for the first time so many strong and beautiful African American men and women with so many different styles in every since of the word that I was more comfortable to be myself. (A lot of the African American people I knew from my hometown were very ratchet so it was just not a good portrayal, they definitely had the mindset "If there's going to be stereotypes against us then let's live up to them", smh).
I admit when I was younger (and not even THAT much younger than I am now) I would see a woman with natural hair and think "she's too black" because that was always what I had been told. Now I think "you go girl!" and "she is so beautiful".
It was just a mental transition for me.
Hope not to offend anyone with any of that
Theresamonet
Well-Known Member
LivingDoll
Well-Known Member
So, wait...you mean to tell me that most of the people who spent months, even years, transitioning....or ladies that cut all their hair off are doing so to be part of a fad?
AND....only women who wear unmanipulated fro's are truly natural?
I am so tired of people finding ways to create dissention and divides amongst Black women.
AND....only women who wear unmanipulated fro's are truly natural?
I am so tired of people finding ways to create dissention and divides amongst Black women.
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Enyo
Well-Known Member
Who said the latter?? This board seems to be pretty good about what makes a person "natural". Generally it's the lack of a relaxer - nothing more or less. The idea that you have to wear an afro to be "truly natural" is an extreme that even hardcore natural heads don't really agree with. All of the anti-relaxer naturals I've met wore twists, rod sets, braids, locks, etc. Some were iffy about hair dye, but nary a one said you have to only have an afro to be a true natural.
LivingDoll
Well-Known Member
So it's not good enough that the hair is growing out of my head without chemicals to alter the natural pattern permanently? I'm not supposed to put anything on it or do anything to it...just let it grow out and slap some Ultrasheen on it?
LivingDoll
Well-Known Member
ITA.
Okay, so she didn't say 'fro. Nevertheless, her views are militant. Respectfully stated, of course.
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Saludable84
Better Late Than Ugly
I personally don't think either are fads, they are just styles. More women have Become more educated about how to MAINTAIN their hair in general, regardless of preference. We had none of that before and for that felt helpless.
It's when one style was made to be more inferior/superior than the other that unnecessary problems were created and none of it is necessary. As usual, our community finds a reason to further segregate each other and that is the saddest part of it all.
Regardless to preference, its just hair. It's not feeding you, not paying your rent, not finding you a man, not making you a better daughter/sister/niece/cousin/mother/aunt/women, not making you as a person something you are not. It changes nothing, just makes an impression and it doesn't matter how nice your hair is, if your a stank wench nice hair will not change the fact that your a stank wench.
So at the end of the day, its not a fad, its a style. If you want to rock a style because you just want to then do it without some cockamamie reason, a novel and your life lesson. Because you want to and that is all.
Sent from my Gramatically Incorrect iPhone
It's when one style was made to be more inferior/superior than the other that unnecessary problems were created and none of it is necessary. As usual, our community finds a reason to further segregate each other and that is the saddest part of it all.
Regardless to preference, its just hair. It's not feeding you, not paying your rent, not finding you a man, not making you a better daughter/sister/niece/cousin/mother/aunt/women, not making you as a person something you are not. It changes nothing, just makes an impression and it doesn't matter how nice your hair is, if your a stank wench nice hair will not change the fact that your a stank wench.
So at the end of the day, its not a fad, its a style. If you want to rock a style because you just want to then do it without some cockamamie reason, a novel and your life lesson. Because you want to and that is all.
Sent from my Gramatically Incorrect iPhone
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