Good Hair Bad Hair????
 

Ok. In the aftermath of the whole Don Imus scandal, I am left with a few questions. The question that has been weighing heavily on my mind is why is the term nappy headed considered so derogatory amongst blacks? I understand why the term is considered a racial slur because by definition racial encompasses anything that is characteristic of a race or ethnic group.

However, it still leaves me wondering why we take offense to the term? Back in the day, if someone were to call me nappy or say my hair is nappy, I would have been ready to fight, but why is that? The term nappy only means hair that is tightly coiled/curled. For the overwhelming majority of black people, that is how our hair is BEFORE the press/relaxers. I encountered this dilemma years ago and did some soul searching of why I felt the term nappy was bad. In my soul searching I always turn to God, so I opened the Word and realized that I am created in his image, and that includes my NAPPY hair, not to mention that my Savior, the one in whom I believe and worship, had nappy hair (description hair like wool is used to describe Jesus' hair). My conclusion was that if nappy hair was good enough for Jesus why isn't it good enough for me?

In the end, I began to realize that maybe the reason of why most black people do not like the term nappy used in describing their hair, is because we have allowed white society to capture it in a negative way, hence the good hair/ bad hair distinction. I take offense when some black people tell me that "oh you can wear your hair natural b.cuz you got good hair". What is good hair? There is no such thing. Could it be that through the years we have allowed white society and their standard of beauty to define us instead of seeing ourselves and our nappy hair for what they are, and that is beautiful? Of course, after soul searching, I embraced my nappy hair and wear it in all of its natural glory. Ok soRHOrs, sorry so long, but are there any thoughts out there?

ok without rehashing all that has been said on GC re: this topic...


while "we" (and i mean those who are conscious to nappy hair being a positive thing) understand being "nappyheaded" to be OK, clearly Imus (and anyone else who uses this or a similar phrase) used the phrase in a derogatory context. the issue it seems, is that HE doesnt realize that it is offensive to a wide majority and furthermore doesn't see the history in WHY it would be.

of course no one wants to talk about how hair is one (of the many) things used to separate and elevate races amongst women. similarly, topics of sexuality and the body have similar effect. so... to throw the phrase "nappy headed hos" at black women, youre making a lot more connotations on that group than what is said. there are implications of their sexuality, their beauty and inherently, their identity as women.

to make a bold claim, Imus calling the Rutgers team "nappy headed hos" (especially in comparision to the opposing, white team) is as equivalent as saying they arent women/womanly. which, no surprise, is what the white man has declared from the beginning - that black women are something other than a woman because their attributes do not reflect that of white women.

Thanks soror for the response. I did not realize that a nappy hair discussion was on GC, I should have checked. So true is your response, so true.

I am really glad you posted this. I have been struggling with this for a while and finally decided to wear my natural hair (it wasn't that big of a transition because I only relaxed a couple of times a year and pressed in between).

"Talkin bout good and bad hair. Whether you're dark or you're fair. Go 'head and swear. See if I care. Good and bad hair."

I was thinking about that scene the entire time I was reading this thread.

What I really was trying to focus on was not Imus but why is it that black folk have a problem with nappy hair. For example, many black people who knew me before I went natural have asked me " why in the world did you mess up your hair like that?" Mess up? What's so messed up about natural hair? Or the classic, " Girl I could never wear my hair natural" and why is that? Another example is that once I started wearing my natural hair, I got more WHITE men trying to get with me than black men and I have heard this from several other natural sistas who say that their black boyfriends/ husbands had a problem with them going natural. Why is that? Why are we allowing one group of people to dictate to us what is beautiful and what isn't?

Hmmm....this thread looked interesting so I thought I'd stop in:)

That's a heavy question. Personally, I wouldn't wear my hair "naturally" because it seems a lot harder to deal with (I put the quotations there b/c IMO, the only way it's not natural is if it's not growin' out my head;) ). I'm seriously style-challenged when it comes to hair. I know how to flat iron it and curl it and that's about it. My friends with natural hair tell me they have to get creative with the styling and I'm just not talented enough in the hair department for all that. But I can do a mean ponytail! :p Plus, I'm tender-headed. It hurts enough to comb tangles out of my hair, but to comb it while it's "natural"....:eek:. I just couldn't do it. But, you know, I've always been told by my mother not to go around looking "nappy" like it was indecent. I've had chemicals in my hair since I was either 7 or 9, I'm not sure. My girlfriends will be quick to tell me when I need a touch up. I guess there are just cultural norms that flow in and out. At one point, you were lame if your clothes matched. Matching was just the proper and normal thing to do, then one day, it wasn't anymore. Maybe there's gonna come a day where women reject Motions and Mizani. Until then...everyone wants to fit in and that's not gonna change. *shrug*

There is definetly a stigma against "nappy" hair in our community. I've had a relaxer since I was two years old. (*Just For Meee...*) New growth in my family is forbidden! My mother has been trying to give my 5 year old neice a relaxer since she was 3 but her mother refuses.

I guess I'm like CG. I wouldn't know what to do with it except probably get a low cut or something. I'm just proud that I have hair that "touches my sleeve" (stole that phrase from a club DJ) that I didn't have to sew or glue in. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.)

i think "good hair" is a phrase that needs to be erased from our vocabulary. the only way nappy = bad is when straight/wavy = good.

i was natural for about 10 years, then recently i went back to a relaxer. for me, it's just hair. i wasn't a miltant nappy, i was just comfortable enough in my own skin to rock whatever hair style (natural or relaxed) and still be fly.

the only people that had problems or questions about my hair were older people, non-blacks (your hair does that???), and a guy that i USED to talk to. LOL.

when i'm around my friends, they know there are certain words or descriptors that won't ride with me. if someone has straight hair SAY straight hair. it's not "good" or better than mine! just as i won't tolerate n-words and so forth, "good hair" is one of those things that should be avoided.

Thank you for responding. You can tell that this is a touchy subject. You are so right that their is a stigma within our own community against nappy hair. I thought that this topic would allow some people to reflect on the reasons of why and give those of us who have not responded to such a topic a chance to respond.

Hmmmm.....I debated on not telling on myself, but I think that this is something that needs to be said.

I was in the school cafe today and saw my friend's friend, who wears her hair "natural". But today, it looked a little rough, like she hadn't combed it at all. And the first thing I thought was, "That's not cute, she looks a little nappy." :eek. As soon as I thought it, I caught myself and tried to figure out why on earth I'd say something like that, even in my head. And I came up with.....nothing. I honestly can't think of a single reason why I thought that other than it's engrained in me to feel negatively toward that word. While her hair was "nappy," that wasn't really the problem--the style itself looked bad. It was very unkempt (if that's a word) as thought she'd just rolled out of bed. But why I chose the word "nappy" to sufficiently describe an ugly hairstyle, I don't know. I honestly don't know. Whether that tendency came from society, culture, family, etc., it's so psychologically engrained that I can't even put my finger on it. And the things that we do without even thinking about it are the habits that are hardest to change:(.

I too wish that "we" would remove the term "bad hair" from our vocabulary.

I was shopping in Wal-Mart the other day when a man with starter locks approached me to ask about my locks. During our conversation he tells me that his loctician says that his hair will lock easily because he has a bad grade of hair. :eek: Then he goes on to tell me that his niece, who wears her hair naturally has really bad hair, too. That is why he is trying to convince her to lock hers up. :( I repeated these statements back to him, hoping that he would realize how stupid they were. No such luck. He nodded in agreement. :rolleyes: Then I had to get really elementary on his behind, and explained why "bad hair" is terminology he should never use.

This is basically the reason that I gave. Then he asks me what he should call it. Why not just call it hair? :confused: I refer to my hair as nappy; so do most of my friends with natural hair. But I would not advise this guy to do that. I'm sure the word nappy has a negative connotation when he uses it.


To address the original post, I think the term nappy is considered derogatory because of social conditioning.

Thanks for sharing this.

Hairstyles & Maintenance Tips for my Happily Nappy Sistas --Delta Ave

http://greekchat.com/gcforums/showth...=happily+nappy

SoRHOr you know you are the bomb!! Thanks for this link.

I have good, nappy hair that has loced beautifully

Ladygreek, are your locs considered sisterlocs? I've been trying to figure out the real difference between locs and sisterlocs.

Why is our culture so stressed over the texture of hair? I'm just curious because I don't think other cultures point out that difference.

Serioussigma22:confused:

I think it is because we were blessed with a texture that is typically found only amongst our people...although I have seen some other ethnicities with really tightly curled/coiled hair.

I guess you mean black American culture.

There are other races/ethnicities/cultures of people that do the hair texture and skin shade thing. That's both domestically and internationally.

An example of which can be found in the distinctions made by many Jewish Americans. For many, the closer they resemble "whiteness" in terms of skin complexion and hair texture, the better. This is about aesthetics and opportunities to be gained through assimilation and privilege. It can be traced historically and contemporarily.

Other examples can be found in Latin America.

I don't know what sisterlocs are. I am just loced, and did not use a loctitian. I go now maybe twice a year to get the head massage, and to feel papmpered. But othewise I do my own maintenance.

Funny story: While growing up my mother always commented about nappy hair. I think that was because of the three siblings whe was the one who did not get "good" hair. I took my hair after her and that dismayed her. So from an early age she pressed my hair and then took me to get get perms. My hair broke off easily and would not grow long.

When I went natural with a fro in the late 60s she was not pleased. But the funny thigs is she saw the real texture of my hair, which was mixed. What she used to call my nappy kitchen was indeed very soft and fine.

Fast forward to me locing. It took me two years of daily twisting to fully loc, because the texture of my natural in places was so fine and soft. And even now the hardest part of new growth to loc is that nappy kitchen. LOL

Now seven years later my hair is down my back and still growing strong.

I would loc but I am too lazy to retwist and too cheap to go get them done :D Update, I finally saw some sisterlocs but I am still confused as to why they are called sisterlocs because they look just like normal locs only they're really thin :confused:

Interesting. Now I have heard of sistah twists,which is how my daughter wears her hair. She twists her hair every night and then in the morning untwists it and finger combs her hair. When she is lazy, she wears the twists.

Hello,

Sisterlocks is a trademarked brand of lock. Only people who recieve special training are able to offer Sisterlocks. Basically they are a lock which is typically very small. I have seen them as small as 1/2 of the diameter of a pencil (mature size) but they also make them larger so they look more like traditional locks. Installation can be pretty pricey. In my area it averages about $500-$600. The cost of maintenance (sp) depends on your consultant. Sometimes they can charge and hourly fee, or they may offer a flat rate. It is possible to maintain one's own Sisterlocks, however you must pay to take a class on how to retighten them and you are supposed to wait 6 months after they are installed to take the class. There are quite a few people, however, who just figure it out on their own and maintain their Sisterlocks themselves pretty much from day one. That's about as much as I know. Their website, sisterlocks.com offers much more information.

Thanks for the info and the website. $500-$600 dollars? That's rent, car note, insurance, shoot who in the world would pay that for hair??

On another note, last weekend I was walking in the mall and I had saw a group of girls walking in the opposite direction. These girls stopped, starred at me, pointed and laughed :mad: What the heck? I could have acted a fool but I remembered that God delivered me from such foolishness and that I represent SGRHO where ever I am :rolleyes: I was wearing my hair in bantu knots looking fly (if I may toot my own horn :D). The really sad thing is that I got so many compliments from white people :confused: This just shows the prevailing ignorance within our own culture about our hair :(

Yeah. A lot of women are investing in this hairstyle now though. I had considered it for a while, but I think I'll go the route of braidlocs so I can get similar results without the cost.

Anyways, its a shame that we have to act like that about hair. Just another thing to divide black women. Kudos to you for keeping your head up.

I can only be me...Natural

I love bantu knots.

Now what are braidlocs. Are we talking extensions with these two kinds of locs?

Braidlocs are locs started with small braids (parts average maybe 1/4 to 1/2 in). The end result are locs that look similar to the ones I saw in Ideal08's online photo album, but they can be a lot smaller or a bit larger.

Both Sisterlocks and Braidlocs are done without using extensions. One reason that many women are drawn to these two forms of locking are because of the ability to have very small locs therefore making them more versatile. Additionally, both of these kinds of locs can be started with a small amount of natural hair (Sisterlocks need only about 1 1/2 in) and relaxed ends, so they appeal to those who don't want to do the BC or take a long time growing out their natural hair. Initially this appealed to me as well, however my relaxed hair was far too damaged to try and hold onto for the sake of having some extra length. I am currently wearing braids as I grow out my natural hair. My goal is to rock a nice afro puff for a little while before I start locking.

Anyways, HTH:)

I love them too, the only problem is trying to sleep on em' :p

[quote=lovehaiku84;1444543]Braidlocs are locs started with small braids (parts average maybe 1/4 to 1/2 in). The end result are locs that look similar to the ones I saw in Ideal08's online photo album, but they can be a lot smaller or a bit larger.

Both Sisterlocks and Braidlocs are done without using extensions. One reason that many women are drawn to these two forms of locking are because of the ability to have very small locs therefore making them more versatile. Additionally, both of these kinds of locs can be started with a small amount of natural hair (Sisterlocks need only about 1 1/2 in) and relaxed ends, so they appeal to those who don't want to do the BC or take a long time growing out their natural hair. Initially this appealed to me as well, however my relaxed hair was far too damaged to try and hold onto for the sake of having some extra length. I am currently wearing braids as I grow out my natural hair. My goal is to rock a nice afro puff for a little while before I start locking.

Anyways, HTH:)[/quote/]

What is it called when the hair is loced but its fake locs? For example, when the hair looks like a loc but real hair is on the inside of the loc which may be braided or something. Sorry if I am not explaining this well..I saw this in a magazine and I thought about doing this just to see what I would look like with locs but its hard to describe for anyone to know what I'm talking about.

I don't know the exact name of locks done with extensions. I always thought that lock extensions were supposed to be permanent since they are so expensive (the ones with human hair). I've seen lock extensions done with synthetic hair on quite a few teenage girls in the area, but they don't look real.

Outside of the extensions you mentioned using synthetic hair, there isn't any kind of loc extension that I could get that I could take out if I chose to? Do you have any links where I could see the loc extensions using synthetic hair?

I'm not sure. I think that in the early stages when one gets them put in, you can still take them out because they are not fully locked with your own hair. However, the process is often very expensive, so when people get them put in, its usually because they want them permanently. Um, pictures... You can check afroworld.com and see that they sell pre-made loc extensions with synthetic hair. I think they sell those in most (black) beauty supply stores as well. Also, if you look at nappturality.com and visit their loc discussion, you can run a search on extensions and see what pops up. I know that there is at least one link to a picture of a girl with loc extensions. I believe hers are human hair though. If you want to get the look of locks without committing, some people suggest yarn braids. Nappturality also has pictures of people wearing these. Lastly, I have seen women wearing kinky twists that are twisted very tightly and usually worn pretty short (under 6 inches). I have mistaken them for short locks on several occasions and I think that they look pretty nice. Where do you live? I live in DC, so I get a lot of exposure to different natural hairstyles. There are also a lot of people who work well with natural hair.

I live in Ohio where natural hair is very much taboo. I do my own hair and I go to a natural stylist once a month. My stylist is the bomb. Its funny but I have been a member of nappturality for like 2 years and never once have I got on the loc discussions forum--duh on my part. Thanks.
I used to live in DC, I am thinking of moving back there because jobs in Ohio are hard to get. Either DC or Atlanta actually is where I'll be heading soon. I have lived both places and love both places.

I see. Ever since I decided to go natural (for good this time) I STAY on napptuality. I visit the locs discussion a lot because I'd like to start mine sometime in the next year.

i'm baaaccckkk...
 

(humming in the spirit of India.Arie) "i am not my hair... i am not this skin...i am not your expectations, no...)