[BUMPED = great comments]
Hello, Liberator Readers!
Welcome to the inaugural Please Take A Seat [expletive deleted], sponsored in part by the good folks at the Liberator Magazine.
This is the space to let it out. If there's something/someone tap dancing on your last good nerve, try emailing it to us at |nomorefoolishness (at) liberatormagazine (dot) com| before you decide to knuckle up and risk a felony charge. That's just not cute.
First off, I'm going to let reader r in transition break down just what the heck lacefront weaves are and why they, the manufacturers of them, and the poor, misguided women who wear them need to...you know.its [a] wig that has a lace attachment that is GLUED to the skin on your face and blended in with makeup to give the appearance that the long flowing strands of hair grew out of your scalp....your negro-ness uh i mean hair is completely hidden from public view....its weave squared!!!!....they can cost in the thousands...like 25,000 for a wig that is glued to your face!!!!! one high priced wig could like benefit the Lwala clinic for months!!!!!
It's scary stuff. It's taking over our culture. And it must be stopped. Heck, even Britney Spears' crazy ass is walking around wearing lacefront wigs and I have no idea what to say about that.
As we all know, hundreds of Black women have taken to wearing the lacefront. Tyra Banks, Beyonce, Amerie, Ashanti, The Chick Who Looks Like Rah Digga on That Show That Shan't Be Named Here Because It Is The Very Definition of "Shameful Shit"...the list goes on and on.
Heck, even one of my bestest friends from my Howard days was talking to me about "investing" in a lacefront. I was shocked and awed. I hope she was joking but I get the feeling she was 100 percent serious, and that is just not the business.
Before I get emails talking about:
a) You're just hating on Beyonce/R&B singer posing as Beyonce because she's prettier/thinner/richer/has better hair than/can speak fluent Creole better than/ you,
b) Just because you have a 'fro doesn't mean everyone has to,
c) You just hate everything.
Let me say this:
a) I find Beyonce very annoying for a multitude of reasons but the only reason I'm semi-calling her out like this is because she's beautiful and doesn't need 10 lbs. of makeup, tight, tacky dress...concepts made by her mother (is anyone else freaked out by the fact that her mother thinks it's cool to dress her daughter like that?) and a wig glued to her face to look gorgeous. She already is. Beyonce and her ilk need to listen to Brown Skin Lady and transcribe the lyrics, stat.
b) I know that. I wear my hair the way I do because I'm too lazy to go through all the shullbit that comes along with straightening my hair. But if that's what other people want to do, cool. Just don't get trapped in that myth of believing you have to have straight hair to be beautiful/succeed/get a man/woman, whatever.
c) Um....that's probably true. But I'm a rather compassionate misanthrope.
So to re-iterate:
+Lacefront wigs/weaves = the devil.
+Beyonce = annoying, but beautiful and doesn't need fake-ass hair to do her thing.
+Danielle = angry at everything.
XoXo!
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Lacefront Weaves, take a seat, [expletive deleted]
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Post a Comment
31 comments:
lovely...i co-sign on every single point.
except i wear my natural because it suits me and it doesnt make sense to me to relax it but im out the recruit-nappies phase:-)
the thing about fake hair/perms is that usually i can always tell once i get in close... like it looks good from afar but once u start cuddling, it feels weird, or stinks like burning plastic.
Oooh, the guy perspective on fake-ass hair.
Actually I'd love to get more male feedback on wigs, weaves, and lacefronts. Is it that important to be with a woman with long, silky tresses or a fro or locs or does it not matter as long as the hair is healthy?
As a woman who has worn a perm, a 'fro and locs, the natural phases were definitely easier.
It's scary how white Beyonce makes herself look and I just saw a Covergirl ad with Rhianna looking more pale than Beyonce.
Not to sound anti-white, cause I'm not at all. But sh*t Black folks are the only ones who can do what we do with our hair! I think it makes the rest of the world insecure, for real and so they bully us about it. And like any child who is continuously bullied, we eventually start believing we must deserve it.
tasha, could you explain what you mean by us being the only group who can do what we want with our hair?...not sure i understand you because white people perm/relax, dye. get extensions..ive met a couple of white girls who relaxed their to make it straighter not just curly....there is the Japanese trend of perming their hair to make it kinkier to wear a fro or to lock it..a very expensive process...
it seems we are the only ones for whom many many of us feel that our natural hair is unacceptable and MUST be changed...that is scary...i know black women who would rather undergoe a route canal with an ice pick than wear their natural hair outside..cuz it doesnt look right or is too whatever the reason. Choice is good...and I have no problem with that. I wore a relaxer from age 11 to 19. But to feel that you must change your hair is the problem that I have. A lot of women will say they straigthen for versatility and manageability ( neither of which is unattainable with nappy or natural hair). I dont think that culture of good/bad hair is as strong in any other people. Its symptomatic of our larger problems with identity.
Great comments, tasha and r. I think women in general are made to feel less than and Black women tend to be hit really hard by that. It makes us damage our hair with flat irons and relaxers instead of embracing our hair in its natural state.
Like I said before, I'm not hating on women who straighten their hair. But I do think it's sad that in 2008, I still have friends and family members who refuse to even CONSIDER what they'd look like without weaves, extensions, relaxers, dye or press and curls.
I'm all for diversity and versatility but that whole "Your hair is only pretty if it's straight or wavy" bullshit has got to stop.
Hence, why lacefronts need to sit down. And stay down.
What I mean is that nobody has hair like Black people. We are alone in that and I think that uniqueness is special, not freakish. Nobody's got hair like us. You know? We have a God-given crown that nobody else can grow. And I think that being the only one who can is dope. So let's not be embarrassed cause we have a crown and it's shining different than everyone else's.
if they invented a perm that smelled good and that actually kept your hair feeling like real hair instead of plastic strands, i'd be all for perms.
they do look nice. as do many natural hair styles.
perms just stink... literally. and they feel weird.
a hot comb is cool cause if u do it right u don't burn the hair a stink it up... and it still feels like hair.
so yeah i guess i'm all about a healthy looking head.
cause if that shit is nappy and dry then its not looking right either..
cats think that u can just rock ur shit nappy... but even in zamunda they got JUICES AND BERRIES!!!
holler!!!
ahaha
^^^^ WOW! Now I agree that however you wear your hair it needs to be healthy, moisurized and well-cared for..natural or not. But a large amount of black people have hair that is naturally nappy/kinky and dry! so even if you're taking care of it and grooming it , it can still be that way if that is the natural state of the hair lol...why is that a bad thing? to me its like saying being caramel brown or honey-toned is good but yo a** better not be weslie snipes black or alek wek black cuz thats just black...what is the difference???
and, dude, a hot comb is hot, lol! there is not non-burning of the hair...you denature the chemical structure of the hair to make it straight. done professionally or by someone who knows what they r doing you can avoid the burning smell but the the hair is still burnt...what else can you apply 150-200 degrees to and not have it be burnt? lol
so you are for perms hunh? lol that is hilarious to me only because so many black folk feel that way.i just think there is something seriously wrong with thinking that natural nappy kinky hair MUST be changed. It can just be well-groomed, moisturized, styled...naw its gotta be altered. For no other hair type is this true...which is just sad.
I say where your hair how you want to but im against the feeling that you can like what you got on your head even if its nappy and dry. WOmen tell me all the time I cant wear my hair like your's its too nappy...its unmanageable...it doesnt look right. Insanity!!! Its no different from colorism and all that mess. Hairism! okay...im getting excited but to me...its a serious problem when you feeling like whats growing on your head is problematic.
I see what you're saying, Tasha
achali, im surprised by your hair comments lol....so um would be behind some type of permament hair straigtening and softening product that didnt smell for the negro people with the nappy hair? (smile)
"cats think that u can just rock ur shit nappy... but even in zamunda they got JUICES AND BERRIES!!!
holler!!!"
I hate you, achali. Just thought I'd let you know.
Hahahaha....
i have hair that is naturally nappy and dry.
but i moistureize it to keep it healthy, as african people have been doing for ages, not to make it moist necessariy.
so i'm talking about dry as in dry scalp, dandruff... split ends... etc... that is not taking care of your hair.
if u take care of ur hair and u have a healthy scalp, etc. but the TEXTURE of ur hair strands is dry... so be it.
far as hot combing... there are people who hot comb their hair right... and people who burn their hair.
good hot combing is like cooking, or ironing... u heat the food or clothing so technically u "burn it" but... u don't burn it.
recap... for perms. for natural. long as its healthy and don't stink.
danielle, u know juices and berries is good fo everybody. don't front. lol
^^^Lol ok...this..."cause if that shit is nappy and dry then its not looking right either.." kinda implied that the nappiness and dryness in and of itself was ugly or bad or whatever...you aint say nothing about no split ends or dandruff....but I understand ...the psychology is still bothersome but perms and weaves are here to stay...that I get
"the psychology is still bothersome"
mine? still?
Well, one misconception I always had was that white folks just woke up, washed and brushed and wore their hair "naturally". But that's not true. They do all kinds of straightening and/or curling and conditioning and stuff to make their hair look good.
We should take care of our hair. Being natural does not mean necessarily doing almost nothing with your hair. I know a woman who wears such beautiful and diverse styles with her natural hair, and when I had a fro I tried to do the same. We should have fun with it and be fashionable too.
But like that overly-simplified song: "I'mma do me. You can do you."
ours..collectively..
relaxed hair can have all those other things too...split ends...dandruff...waiting weeks to wash so it doesnt nap up so that its not just the smell of the relaxer ( which you dont smell once you wash it out and finish the process).not washing your hair for a week or two at a time and continously applying product to make it wazy or flowing can lead to hair not smelling so nice
which is funny that I usually see that the association with bad hair care practices never being made with relaxed/permed hair..but always with natural hair. most women i know who perm can go for weeks at a time without a wash while most women i know who are natural wash more( just my experience)...there is no fear that it will nap up and look "unpresentable" ...of course there are no absolutes...but im a girl so hair comes up a lot and this is what ive noticed
let us never forget, looking fly is African.
the reason why i kid, is because i went thru a phase where i thought being natural meant being grimey.
that was in part influenced by rasta-type philosophy thru which i came out with the idea that the path to humility and avoidance of vanity was "dumbing down" your appearance.
now i realize u can put effort into your appearance without being vain or arrogant. it's hard, and i'd guess that there are those who claim to be doing that and aren't, but it's possible.
"Well, one misconception I always had was that white folks just woke up, washed and brushed and wore their hair "naturally". But that's not true. They do all kinds of straightening and/or curling and conditioning and stuff to make their hair look good"
Ive known since middle school talking to white girlfriends that their hair care is more than waking up in the morning and just going..but what does this have to do with black people and their hair? and also I didnt get the "imma do me--you do me"----I wasnt challenging anything you said..I asked you to clarify and then I said I understand (not agree though) with what you are saying...the rest of my post(s) were not directed at you. but still what does what some white people do to their hair have to do with what some of us do to our hair??????
my problem is thinking whats on your (general) has to look like their's (manipulated or not) to be nice/beautiful and a lot of us feel this way
well i'd agree. permed hair can get nasty too.
in fact i'm saying that most perms are nasty up close and personal from my experience.
i'm saying it don't matter, either way.
and that the thing that matters most is a healthy head.
heath is wealth.
i'm also adding that women styling their hair, whether it be natural or permed is important to me as a man.
"let us never forget, looking fly is African."
definitely.
My point is that no one group of people in the world can just get up and go without trying. I think sometimes black women are trained to think we have the "difficult hair", but it's not true. White women, all women with the straight and/ or wavy have to get up and do something to their hair. So Black women don't have difficult hair. It's just something I thought growing up and so I am throwing it out there for other black women who might think having natural hair is harder for a black woman. It's not. It's harder socially maybe, but not as far as the care part.
The "Imma do me and watch you do you" thing is a reference to a somewhat cheesy song that is out right now. It just means that while I might think whatever I choose (and share my opinion), you can do whatever makes you feel comfortable.
^^^ Thank you so much for saying that, tasha. Black women are usually told from jump that their hair is difficult and by extension ugly or somehow not right. I'm really glad my parents didn't raise me with that mentality.
I've pressed and permed my hair, had locs and now I have a fro but all those styles were my choices; it wasn't because I thought straight hair = the only way to be pretty or natural hair = the only way to be conscious.
H. Rap Brown said he'd rather be around someone with a natural mind and processed hair than someone with natural hair and a processed mind. That's my outlook on life because I met a LOT of brothers at HU who would run around talking shit about women but thought since they had locs and a beard and wore a Lion of Judah t-shirt they were "conscious". And I think we all know that's a bunch of BS. And guys like that need to sit down! And stop stepping on my shoes!
I wore a perm until I was 17. And then I cut my hair low and went natural. I rocked a fro of sorts for about 5 years and started locing 3 years ago. Ashe! (ahhsaaay)
I hope no one kicks me out of the Get-Free-Mighty-Africans club but I don't have a SINCERE problem with perms. I definitely agree that the perming concept originated out of a self-critical "white-is-right" mentaltity. But MY WORD, African women (and men back in the conk days) took that chumpy and RAN with it!
I mean now, we have all kinds of bomb-ass styles that ain't got NOTHING to do with white folks (in fact, I doubt white folks would be caught dead in some of our styles, they not READY!)
I do agree that until very recently, natural hair was viewed as the worst case scenario for a Sister. So I definitely get the whole standing up for Natural hair thing. But I also wouldn't say that a person with a perm or weave is automatically lost and backwards either because most times that isn't the case either. I have several friends and family memebers who have worn wigs for convenience but have natural hair underneath.
Being Fly is SO SO African! YES, very true! When you look at ancient and modern African styles, you see that folks altered their hair, appearance, etc to beautify themselves. The Ancient Egyptians rocked wigs and braids (with extensions). So its not a new phenomenon and some of what we do with our hair is more African than anything else.
It just reminds me how damaging slavery has been, its mixed us up and put in things that weren't there before, while changing up our existing cultural practices, you know?
If anything, my biggest concern with a perm is the chemical part, that's mighty dangerous. Thats my biggest issue with the perming thing. I think hot combing is a little less abrasive and while it is burning I guess, its not applying foreign chemicals to your pourous scalp. So I'd prefer that over the two.
I mean even our west coast and southern bredren took that hot comb and RAN with it! I'm sorry, but DJ Quick, Snoop Dogg, and Andre 3000 made those straight styles look so pretty! Like there styles are so clean!
I view it more as expression. Of versatility and like just how dope Blk folks are! Some might have self-hatred as their inspiration, but I find that others are just smooth with it, you know? They just fresh!
So im loving my people regardless!
One last thing: Grooming is essential and I would say that 90%Blk folks are diehard about it too! Perm or natural, they clean with it! In fact, cleanliness is simply an African mantra and it is a known fact that cleanliness was a challenge in Europe (check out the Middle Ages and "Renaissance" period).
With locs, I agree that ome folks over think it and start going outside the box and forget what they were raised up on. I hear a lot of people talk about how they only lke locs if they're "neat"...I'm like well what's THAT though?!?!?!
I love Rasta locs, those were the first locs that I identified myself with (even though I never grew mine that way). I just love seeing Brothers and Sisters with the Rasta-style locs, its so BECOMING! And I think they look neat, you know? They're like Crowns!
And most folks with Rasta locs tend to maintain them quite well, keeping them clean and oiled. They just choose not to twist them at the roots. Even that is still so splendid! Lauryn Hill rocked hers that way. Andre 3000 did at one point (and might I add that he is one BEAUTIFUL man--pressed, permed, loc'd whatEVER!). My point is I agree with maintenance and cleanliness, but the rest (especially in the context of Rastafarian ideals) is really up to the individual!
"But I also wouldn't say that a person with a perm or weave is automatically lost and backwards either because most times that isn't the case either"
I agree with your post ( im just quoting you to make a point..not to challenge you on ur beliefs lol) and I want to make the point not to or anyone but in general that I NEVER brought up the idea of consciousness or backwardness or anything like that. That is NOT intrinsic in the discussion about hair or shouldnt be. Thats not my huge issue and Im know Im a part of a very small minority that does have a problems with relaxers. I see little girls like 5 and 6 with broken off hair cuz their mama says their hair is too bad or too nappy--they internalize that and grow up thinking something about them is defective!!! ...thus the NEED as grown women to cover up or hide....that is not versatility. I do not beleive in absolutes but I KNOW ths is true for a BUNCH of people.
I feel so misunderstood lol
and just to reiterate I never said nothing about no consciousness...I said self-acceptance lol
okay..i wont say anything else..fo' somebody else tell me to do me (smile)
okay i lied..one more thing..i dont straight relaxed hair or non-kinky hair as ugly..there are styles that I find very cute and look good to me( though I wouldnt wear thems myself bc i look better with my big hair)..what I find ugly is the inferiority complex...I wish people could get past it..and stop seeing yourself as defective....ya'll cant really be saying that everybody with a perm is just being creative and stylish?
"I feel so misunderstood"
*in my kind mama voice*
u may want to jus step back for a sec babay...
i think everyone is just typing what they think to get their thoughts in... i don't think anyone is really responding to any one person in particular.
its all love
Exactly. R, I don't want you to feel misunderstood or anything like that. I totally get where you're coming from; I was just speaking my piece on the matter. You always have great comments so feel free to share. If we agree, great! And if we disagree, that's great too, because it means we're learning and thinking and actually having a dialogue, which is the real point of the whole "Please take a seat, [expletive deleted]" diatribes I have planned.
Because a LOT of things really just piss me off. HA!
R, I don't want you to feel that way either because I have felt that before and it sucks. I think we are all trying to stay true to the heart of the Liberator and keep an honest and open discussion flowing.
Much respect R!
I will add a co-sign to the above sentiments...feel FREE cuz its all good!!!
I guess I kind of see the whole "inferiority complex" thing as having something to do with a lack of consciousness (or knowledge of self), you know?
So in some ways it does imply that a lot of folks are just self-loathing becuase they rock a perm or weave. I'm saying that on the flip, I know mad folks who embrace natural hair, but just wear a perm or weave cuz they want to (change of pace, style, etc).
So I think its as complicated as we all are making it out to be. Blk fokls and their hair stories, skin stories, name stories even! Its so REAL, so deep...so much!
Post a Comment