A MODERN HISTORY OF BLACK HAIR
BY DAVID ASAMOAH ILLUSTRATION BY KENDALL WIFF
Black hair is more than an aesthetic. Black hair is culture.
Culture is found everywhere, from the way we talk, to the way we dress, to the minute details of life we often consider mundane. These all represent a facet of our culture, our identity, and our society as a whole. But, what is culture? Is it a collection of the arts and the intellectual achievements of a group, or is it something beyond this?
Hair is culture, and while it might get reduced to its aesthetic value, people of color, particularly many Black people, see hair as a link to their heritage. It is a map to the present, and an unwavering guide to their cultural future.
Black hair is not just an aesthetic artifact of its people, nor a commodity to be bought and sold by those who see fit. Rather, it is a living, vibrant part of Black culture that continues to evolve, continues to inspire, and continues to demonstrate the ways in which a people triumph in the face of adversity.
To distill the entire history of Black hair around the world into a single article is impossible without excluding aspects of Black hair. Therefore, this is a modern history, focused primarily on Black hair in America and a contemporary look at Black hair from the era of the Civil Rights Movement to today.
While this is a modern account of Black hair, context is key. To understand the contemporary age we live in, we have to understand its roots.
Black hairstyles involve a variety of different styles which have been developed over centuries, but we can first go back to pre-colonial Africa–a world without the pressure of culture being defined by outside authorities. In these societies, Black hair was a symbol of a person’s identity, with each style having a long history. According to Victoria Sherrow, the author of the Encyclopedia of Hair, A Cultural History, the priests of the Ethiopian Coptic Orthodox Church were some of the first in Africa to wear dreadlocks back in 500 CE.
Braids are an ancient style, with cornrows believed to be one of the oldest braiding forms in Africa. In the 1950s, a French ethnologist along with his team, discovered a rock painting with a woman wearing cornrows dating back to 3500 BCE, the earliest depiction of braids. Braids are a diverse style, worn by many different cultures in Africa and ranging from ancient to modern history. One example of this rich history can be seen in West Africa, with the popular Fulani braids from the Fula people or the Ghana braids from the Ghana people, which were often recognized for their upkeep ability and protection of Black hair.
In the early modern era, with the advent of the Transatlantic Slave Trade as well as colonialism, many of these traditions were forced to evolve under the conditions of their new environment. Texturism, the discrimination and systematic oppression faced by people with Afro-textured hair, is a key component of the colonial era's Eurocentric culture. People with 4C hair, the hair type with the tightest curls, have historically been subject to discrimination that continues to this day.
In spite of this oppression, Black people across the diaspora continued to find ways to resist through their hair. One way in which Black people resisted through hair was braiding rice in their hair to remember their homelands in places like Brazil and the Americas. This shows that despite the forces that deprived Black people of freedom and cultural creativity, they still found ways to hold onto their ancient homeland.
During the era of slavery, masters would often divide enslaved people according to their skin tone, as well as their hair texture. Those with lighter skin and straighter hair would often work in the house, while those with darker skin and more coiled hair tended to work in the fields. This created a hierarchy in which lighter skin and straighter hair translated to more economic opportunity and social advantage. By understanding the historical roots of texturism, we can better understand the cultural significance of future resistance movements that challenged centuries of prejudice against natural Black hair.
The era of colonialism and slavery left a lasting mark on the way many Black people viewed themselves. Eurocentric ideas continued to persist, such as the idea that lighter skin and straighter hair were more beautiful than darker skin and tighter curls.
While there was a renaissance of intellectual and artistic creativity through the New Negro Movement in the 1920s, skin color remained a symbol of social and economic status. Black leaders would even promote African American women of lighter skin and straighter hair as an ideal symbol of the Black race. Later in the twentieth century, a new age would come that would stand against these century-long ideas of beauty, ushering in a new age of pride.
While many Black people in the 1950s felt the need to straighten their hair, the 1960s represented a new era of Black pride. One can view the Civil Rights and or the Black Power Movements as movements focused primarily on civil, social, and economic equality. It is also important to note the impact these movements had on Black cultural expression such as hair and Black pride in the face of active discrimination. The “Natural Hair Movement” and the “Black Is Beautiful” movements arose from these movements where Black people would proudly wear their natural hair in public, notably in the form of an afro. Activists Angela Davis and Huey P. Newton wore their afros with pride, signifying hair being used to not only express themselves, but proudly showcase their heritage.
This continued in the 1970s, as musical acts such as the Jackson 5, Nina Simone, and the Sly Stone would wear their afros out, representing a new age of aesthetic revolution amidst the centuries worth of Eurocentric standards. This shows how Black hair historically was never just an aesthetic choice, but an active tool of cultural expression in a world that often denied their right to exist.
The 1980s brought new iconic hairstyles such as Jherri curls, notably worn by artists like Little Richard, Lionel Richie, and Michael Jackson. The 1980s was a remarkable era in terms of fashion and cultural expression. You see the advent of the Hi-Top Fade, with people like Erik B, Rakim, and of course, Kid N’ Play who made it their signature look. This decade also showed a rise of protective styles like braids and twists.
The 1990s in many ways built on this foundation, and we can see artists like Will Smith rocking this hairstyle in “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” in the early ‘90s. Artists like Janet Jackson in “Poetic Justice” or Brandy in the sitcom “Moesha” notably brought box braids to the forefront of popular culture.
The pixie cut was also popularized by celebrities like Halie Berry, and Nia Long in “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” or in the popular movie “Friday.” There was a diversity of styles in popular culture–from Lauryn Hill’s dreadlocks to Missy Elliott’s fingerwaves. Throughout this era, Black people continued to find new ways to innovate and showcase their creativity, their passion, and their roots.
The new millennium represents the rise of the Y2K aesthetic, a new age in which Black hair would continue to evolve. The spiked pixie-cut was in fashion, worn by many celebrities such as Missy Elliott or Kelly Rowland. Crimped hair, created by using a crimping iron that created a distinct wavy pattern, could also be seen worn by celebrities such as Beyonce during the 2000s.
Early in the decade, RnB star Aaliyah could be seen wearing side-swept bangs, a trend that created a distinct look for the era and continues to be worn by artists like Normani till this day. Fulani braids could be seen worn by artists like Alicia Keys and Beyonce, evoking cultural heritage as well as self-expression.
In the modern era, there is a diversity of different hairstyles Black people wear and that are at the forefront of the public conscience. The use of social media platforms like YouTube contributed to the widespread natural hair movement in the 2010s. While Black hairstyles have become far more seen in mainstream media in the last 50-60 years, it is important to remember that Black hair does not just represent an aesthetic choice, but a deliberate revolution against centuries of beliefs that perpetuated the idea that Black hair in its natural state was inferior.
Despite the embrace of the Natural Hair Movement, it is important to note how prevalent discrimination based on hair and texturism is to this day. According to a research study in 2023 by Dove and Linked, Black women's hair is 2.5x more likely to be perceived as unprofessional. The same study revealed that two thirds of Black women also reported changing their hair for a job interview, and amongst them, 41% changed their hair from curly to straight.
According to another study by Dove in 2021, 66% of Black girls in majority-white schools report facing discrimination, with 87% of those girls facing discrimination by age 12. The term “good hair” still exists, and a study called “The Good Hair Study” conducted by the Perception Institute in 2016 revealed that white women show explicit bias toward Black women’s natural textured hair.
While the CROWN Act that protects minorities against hair-based discrimination was passed in 27 states, it's important to note how Black Americans in professional and educational settings continue to face discrimination, and how the fight against texturism persists to this day.
Cultural appropriation, or the adoption of cultural elements by members of another typically more dominant group, is relevant because hair is more than a visual accessory for Black Americans, but a reflection of a rich cultural heritage. This is why appropriating these elements is widely considered offensive, as people outside that minority culture are not penalized for taking these elements of Black culture; meanwhile, marginalized people who wear their own cultural hairstyles are discriminated against in the workplace and other parts of society. It becomes offensive for minorities to see the parts of their culture that they were discriminated against be adopted by people with little knowledge of that culture, and for their original contributions to go unacknowledged.
Black hair continues to evolve and inspire, and by examining it closer, we can better understand how something like hair can be reflective of a great social and cultural landscape. This is why cultural appropriation remains a significant issue, because Black hair is not just a commodity or an aesthetic, but in many ways is a collective act of defiance against a larger system. By examining its history, we can better understand the rich legacy that Black people across the African diaspora continue to leave throughout the world. We can also understand that the evolution of Black hair represents a powerful story of triumph, tribulation, and revolution.
