Hard Core Naturals, Where Does It Stop?

Do you really keep to the word or the spirit of being natural?

My hair is natural. By that, I mean that my hair is not relaxed. Until recently, I assumed that the whole black community had the same simplistic view that I did but how wrong I was. Apparently there are degrees of ‘naturalness’ of which I would probably not even qualify in spite of the fact that you cannot put a comb in my hair without the fear of losing it in its wiry glory. Forgive the note of sarcasm but I’ve never believed that exclusion is the best way to get people on your side which you may have gathered from a previous article about relaxed hair just being a hairstyle.

So who are the hard core naturals? They are a breed of ladies either whom have never relaxed their tresses or who have transitioned from a relaxer at some point. So far, quite normal but this is where by large the similarities end. Hard core naturals believe in natural hair care to the exclusion of all else. To further understand you would have to visit their forums and without specifying any names some of these forums will not even allow discussions on hair straightening or get this, even the words ‘straight’, ‘straighten’ or ‘straightening’ in any form to appear in their threads! These are stringent rules that moderators in the forums will follow to a tee with warnings being handed out to any who dare not comply.

Now I don’t know about you but this strikes me as rather exclusionary. There are plenty of natural ladies with gorgeous locks who wear their hair straightened occasionally; do they not count as truly natural as their tresses are often changed by the ‘evil heated tools’? How about the natural ladies who enjoy a bit of colour in their hair; does changing their hair colour mean that they are no longer natural?

You will find that the members of these forums will braid, twist or curl their hair all without heat for styling purposes and while these are good hair practices, I am curious as to who writes the rules and decides what it means to be a true natural? Does heat free mean you are a true natural or is it a question of avoiding any possible hair texture change by chemical or mechanical means? On the subject of mechanical texture change and without stating the obvious culprits like flat irons or pressing combs; many ladies know that braiding hair can also change the texture of some of your strands. Overstretching the strands during the braiding process happens often which leads to traction alopecia which can be a permanent change leaving hair follicles damaged and unable to produce new hair.

All this makes me think of some vegetarians who believe that eating any meat replacement product (e.g. steak flavoured veggie grills or vegetarian bacon rashers) is not true vegetarianism as it does not adhere to the spirit of being a vegetarian. They would have you believe that as a true vegetarian you would have to suppress the urge to eat any meat flavoured product even though no animal had to die for it. That would be akin to trying to suppress your humanity, surprise surprise the vast majority of humans enjoy the taste of meat, but that’s an argument for another day!

If you were to apply the principle of the so called ‘true vegetarianism’ to the hard core natural’s view on hair care, then it could also be argued that changing your hair texture by any chemical or mechanical means does not adhere to the spirit of ‘naturalness’. Braid outs are out of the question then because they stretch the natural hair’s curl pattern which is an evil mechanical change right? Banding is also out as this is the same as straightening (Am I allowed to say straighten?). Braiding, cornrows and twisting are also out; your hair does not grow out looking like that! So what are you left with, how should the hard core natural wear their hair?

To keep to the spirit of naturalness, the hair would have to be worn as it grows from the scalp for complete adherence and that means a shrunken afro! Now if you know anything about caring for natural hair, you will know that a shrunken afro is the worst possible way to wear natural kinky curly hair if you are looking for length and health.

While I’m all for teaching black women to be proud of and to see beauty in their natural hair texture, exclusion just compounds the problem by creating a black or white (excuse the pun)situation. We all know that the world is different shades of grey, my hair is natural but I like straighten it often, I colour my hair and enjoy braided styles too. I’m sure that there are plenty of ladies who prefer to have relaxed hair but curl it or braid it when the urge strikes them.

Black hair care is about learning the limitations of your texture and working with it to obtain healthy hair. I don’t believe in limiting styling choices, too many rules make it difficult to truly enjoy your hair. It’s only hair right?

Non Tangling Virgin Indian Hair

Hair Vitamins For Faster Hair Growth

Black Hair Books

Mega Tek

Jamaican Black Castor Oil

Protein Treatement For Black Hair

100% Human Virgin Indian Remy Hair Extensions from World Hair Extensions

Author Bio

BHI – has written 198 posts.

BlackHairInformation.com is the brainchild of myself Alma Campbell. I am a homemaker, a mother and a writer. I started the website in mid 2008 with breaking relaxed hair. After making the decision to transition to natural hair, I have now fulfilled my dream of healthy long hair and I want you to achieve the same. My favourite subject is hair and I continue to blog about my hair journey here but I also write a weight loss blog LessFoodMoreLife.com

More To Explore:

Shrunken Afro, a protective style?

Is Shampoo Better Than Conditioner For Detangling?

7 Nutrients That Liven' Up Your Locks!

Twist Out With Bee Mine Curly Butter

The Baggy Method - Ultra Moisture Fix For Your Dry Hair

Are You In The Business Of Growing Your Hair Long Or In Defending Natural Hair At All Costs? Part 2

So What If Natural Hair IS A Trend!

The Mindset Behind Our First Perm

Posted by BHI on June 6, 2010. Filed under Natural Hair. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

KARMA

WELL WRITTEN!
just so you know

I have to disagree with some of what you've written. Why does it bother you so much that Some natural women choose to exclusively care for their hair one way? How does that effect you and the way you live your life? Did someone make you feel bad about what you do with your hair? I would rather they be extremists with a healthy natural bend than the opposite. Is your hair healthier when you avoid heat? Is your hair healthier when you do apply tension from braids and weaves? Is your hair healthier when you don't put chemical relaxers and permanent colors? Of course it is! What's the problem? Why can't a vegetarian refuse to eat meat substitutes? It's their body and their choice just like it's your choice to eat what you want and do whatever you want with your hair healthy or not. For so long the Black community excluded any notions of Kinky hair, natural hair, braids, twists, afros, ect.. They were the outcasts shunned for wanting to wear healthy hair. I agree that some of the extremes you mentioned were a bit much. We should be comfortable and knowledgeable enough to change our hair in a healthy and versatile way. It's our heritage to do so! This whole natural thing that's so IN right now is very new and it will grow and transform as time goes on. So let natural Black women have what they have NOT had for over a century, the opportunity to create a strong, dynamic, positive self images of our own FIRST, and then be inclusive of any and everything. If it's all just a hair style to you, you wouldn't be writing multiple articles about it for this type of site. We ALL know that our hair ties into our identity whether that's a good or bad thing. That it the way it is. We should encourage and cheer on those who are trying to strengthen that identity so that in the future our granddaughters will not feel pressured to relax their hair or their children's hair because they cannot deal with it.
We need to get back to the basics first. It's only the beginning. There is so much in the media as well as Black culture period that uplifts and supports the straight euro-centric ideal rather than the natural African image, so lets stop adding negativity and encourage and uplift those who are trying to promote a healthier self image for Black women.

http://intensedebate.com/people/BHI BHI

It doesn't affect me at all how they choose to look after their hair and I'm glad to say that I do not partake in their forums, especially after seeing how they all attacked (vulture like) a new member when she asked for advice about straightening her hair. It's probably annoying from their point of view that this person did not bother to read the rules of the forum before posting her question but it does not excuse such extreme behaviour.

I disagree with you there about cheering on ladies that wish to grow and keep their hair natural, I wouldn't cheer someone on for choosing NOT to get a tatoo! I wear my hair natural and in natural styles as well but I don't want to be congratulated for it, it's just hair. I guess my point is some people take things way too seriously!

Elle

"just so you know" must be guilty of that which you wrote of. She starts off with "why do you care, and how does it affect the way you live your life", then ends with "We should encourage and cheer on those who are trying to strengthen that identity…". How does other people's identity affect my life? So basically, only speak up if you agree with them; otherwise keep it to yourself? She totally missed the point; it's not that you care what they (straight hair critics) do with their hair, THEY are the ones who are overly critical of other people's hair care routines! I've seen it and agree with your original post. Sharing hair tips and stories is wonderful, but not when it gets to the point of dictating what other people should do with their own head of hair.

BHI

Exactly!

Lprdgds1

you both make good points, and I too use to say its “only hair,” but unfortunately its a bit more deep rooted than that. The other poster hit the nail on the head with the end of her comment. If it were only hair, other black people wouldnt be ashamed to have kinky hair. Yes, ashamed. I also thought it was only a minority of us that were still on that “good hair(meaning straight or wavy) and bad hair(kinky coily)” tip. But its still the majority. That and the skin complexion complex but thats another topic for a later time. I feel like this, as long as you dont judge me for choosing to wear my hair kinky, I could care less about how you wear yours. But look at it this way, those same women that you are scrutinizing for having an exclusive right of passage into their circle. Think of how they probaly get treated by the community of brainwashed individuals that think kinky hair is bad, ugly, and unkept.

Jlo

Wow, well that’s really deep… nearly boarders into a cultish sort of fanaticism. I say to each his own. If someone feels compelled to adopt such ideology they are entitled to this. Just like the overly strict vegetarian, it’s a particular lifestyle choice and view that should be respected. I think the only point at which it crosses the line is when in doing this they make someone else who may not follow along feel that they are somehow less than and that their way is the wrong way. I just know for me, that I free myself of any of the self made stereotypes about African-American hair or anything else for that matter; just 5 words…”I am Not my hair!” We are all somewhat changed by the Euro-centric viewpoint, thanks to the age of Imperialism and now social media, just take a look at the Chinese business man wearing the suit and tie, or the spread of Christianity worldwide. The world is constantly changing, sometimes for the better and other times not. I have been natural and done the big chop, I was laughed at and got fist pumps from complete strangers. It was never my intention to make a political statement with my hair, it was just something I wanted to do at the time. I feel sometimes that black people need to Emancipate themselves from self held ideas and unwritten rules about what it means to be black and the limitations associated with this. I believe education is the key and I am a fierce supporter of higher knowledge. One should never stop learning and broadening their horizon in life. And this sometimes means being open to listening and understanding different view points and lifestyles. (This of course does not mean you always agree!) Once we can do this there is so much out there for us to claim, instead a lot of us are sill focused on the 19th century representation of “being black” and in doing so rob ourselves of priceless lifetime experiences and opportunities to grow.

Jade

BHI, I would have to agree with you. I am 100% natural myself and I would NEVER look down on a person because she straightned or relxed her hair! Might as well throw her in a concentration camp. That's what it sounds like to me and it's SAD. The division continues and people need to realize that you are all indivisuals, YOU ARE NOT YOUR HAIR!
Jade

Also, I would like to point out that in the day and age (believe it or not) not ALL black people are straightening thier hair to look like white people. My friend does it because she PREFERS it that way, because it's easier for her to MANAGE. Not because she "wants to be white." Seriously folks.
Camille

Definitely agree with BHI, and on top of all of that, relaxed or straightened black hair is still uniquely black. It doesn’t look or behave like white hair, it’s just another way for us to wear our BLACK hair. If you’re taking care of your hair and keeping it as healthy as you can in the style you desire, why should anyone take issue with that. Great article!
Things

Love, Self-Love, Tolerance, Individualism: Relaxed vs. Natural vs. Straight vs. Curly vs…I’m uninspired – It’s the same drama disguised. Sad.

http://www.lessfoodmorelife.com/ BHI

True, but one that will probably never end!

Southernladee513

i have to agree w/”just so you know”. even tho’ you disagree w/her, your post and the inherent sarcasm both acknowledged and implied do add to the negativity of which you speak. to point something out is one thing, but to jump in the fray and react negatively to the situation adds to the situation. it’s all love (or should be) between us. can’t we all just get along?
Mz Wertz

but you must admit that it is down roght silly to visit a NATURAL HAIR Blog and inquire about straigtening techniques……you perm it or add heat. (DUH)

http://www.lessfoodmorelife.com/ BHI

true . . . !

claud

I am natural by choice because i want to change up my look, I sometimes want to have straight styles as part of that change, I am now rocking twist out and the reason I google making natural straight is because I am in the mood for a change this week..simple…
Si

As someone who began to transition to natural last year (around this time), I must say I both agree and disagree with you. I think its silly for natural women to put down women who like to straighten their hair or who have naturally straight hair (it can happen!). The type of behavior you reported seeing on those forums is ridiculous. Yes its a bit silly to ask about straightening on a natural hair forum, but that is only when one assumes that the only way to be natural is to NEVER do anything with your hair aside from braids and afros! Natural sisters straighten their hair sometimes (I don’t, but some do); there’s nothing wrong with that.

That was one of the things I hated about going natural…other natural women began to assume I didn’t want to do anything else with my hair but have an afro. Everytime I put a weave or a color in my hair, I get asked, “But I thought you wanted to go natural?”. Argh! Leave me alone! I like being able to do a lot of different hairstyles. I can’t keep my hair only one way; that’s why I went natural in the first place, ’cause I felt I had no versatility with my relaxed hair (for my personal preferences, that is).

But at the same time, I really believe women who decide to go natural and embrace their natural texture should get their due credit. Don’t know about anyone else, but my community really looks down on me when my hair is out and natural. They treat me as though I’m having a “bad hair day”. My boyfriend doesn’t even actually like my natural hair. We gotta face facts: Natural Black hair is still “bad hair” in American society (not sure about anywhere else), and that’s often why you get such radical behavior from natural sisters. They behave that way because in reality, they are scared and insecure about their hair and the way society perceives them for it. We gotta put up with a lot of flack because we aren’t conforming to the typical “standard” of beauty. Because of that, I think we should definitely applaud natural sisters, not because we’re doing something grand for the identity of African Americans or anything, but because we need the support. Ya know? When our hair is considered equal to other hair testures, THEN we can say “why act like its special?”. But I may be a bit biased, lol.