BLOG – GROWING UP WITH 4b HAIR – Gas2Ignition – 22/02/2018 – Kaina Zahid.
4b hair is a type of textured hair found primarily with people who are born with/from African or Caribbean heritage. The hair is hard to manage as it is very thick and curls can easily become tangled due to frizz or product build up. The hair breaks easily during the winter as it’s the most fragile state at that time of the year. The hair is in it’s healthiest state during the summer, when the sun nourishes the hair.
In the early 21st century not many people’s hair from African Caribbean societies is natural. We manipulate our hair in different ways – such as applying weaves or extensions to protect our hair, or using relaxers – a chemical product that loses the curls in the hair so it can become straight on a semi-permanent basis.
There are manly different reasons why people don’t accept their natural hair. In schools, pupils would get bullied because they did not have “straight” hair. The fashion trends also played a huge part in schools, not just for the type of hair you had, but also body shape, height and weight. Only recently it was a trend to have natural curly hair, and, at the start of the 21st century, it was not fashionable to have natural curly hair. All fashion models, even black models, had straight hair; such as the famously known Tyra Banks. Famous black entertainers, such as Beyoncé in the early 2000s, had straight blonde hair. In the working environment, even today, having curly big afro hair is seen as unprofessional.
However, in today’s society, more and more curly born individuals are accepting their natural hair. Because of the current trend for natural hair, if the fashion trend changes back to how it was a few years ago, would we all have to decline the today’s trend? Yes, everybody has different experiences with natural hair, depending on where you’re from, or where you were bought up. At least 8/10 individuals has faced a problem with their natural hair in regards to what is acceptable in society.
So yes growing up with 4B hair was not the easiest thing! However, I am proud to be able to experience different styles with my hair – I can have it straight one day and the next day I can have big curly hair. I change my hair depending on my mood, I get to decide what I want to do with my hair and not society or trends. My decisions have an impact on how I carry my hair.
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