So I'm 7 months into the transition phase of going natural.
It's going pretty well I must say. It's gotten much easier with me using my different options for styles and what not.
I've also stumbled across some good products like Kinky Curly Knot Today, that I can use once I'm fully natural as well and some excellent tips from youtuber kimmaytube. Check out her channel:
http://www.youtube.com/user/kimmaytube?blend=1&ob=4
In the process of going natural I have stumbled across one major revelation that has helped me feel the utmost confidence in my decision to go natural.
Let me explain...
Many people don't like for Black women to have natural hair.
When asked if her liked for a woman to have natural hair, Method Man replied, "No... I don't like peasy afros... I like for a woman to get her hair did. I don't like her to have dreads and I don't like her to have a afro." (Excuse his horrid grammar)
Many times when I tell people black or white that I'm going natural they look at me like, "Umm... Why?" or like, "Eww..."
I have a white friend who regularly gives her opinion on how she likes black people's hair straight and not "bushy."
When I get reactions like that it really used to hurt my feelings and scare me into thinking that I was all of a sudden going to be ugly when I didn't have permed hair anymore.
Then it dawned on me:
Wait a minute! I say, WAIT A MINUTE!
I'm going natural FOR MYSELF! Not for anyone else.
True beauty starts from within, right?
Will I think I'm beautiful once I go natural?
Yes...
THEN WHO CARES WHAT ANYONE ELSE THINKS!!!!
If you remember one thing and one thing only about this blog entry, let it be this:
THE ONLY PERSON WHO YOU CAN DEPEND ON TO THINK YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL IS YOU
Everybody else is a bonus! If you truly believe you're beautiful it won't matter what anybody else thinks, because you'll know the truth.
The way I see it, if I have to kill my hair and become something I'm not to be beautiful in your eyes, then I'd rather you just not look at me! K? Thanks! :)
As a woman, to go natural takes more than just not perming your hair anymore. To me it really takes courage, inner strength and confidence to say, "Hey, everyone may not approve, and maybe I won't be as pretty to some other people, but I'm doing what's best for me and that's what's important!"
I think throughout this process I've really matured and I can honestly say,
I LOVE ME! :)
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Thursday, January 6, 2011
BOYCOTT LIL WAYNE!!!!
If you haven't already, read this article.
http://getwititmagazine.com/2011/01/06/lil-wayne-dont-like-black-women/
When I read this article I was ENRAGED!
Colorism can be defined as discrimination based on skin color. I wrote a 9 page paper on this very topic for my African-American History class and it is a subject of black history that has always intrigued and boggled my mind.
It is no secret that light-skinned women are put on a pedestal by the media in today’s society and it is also nothing new. The division between light and dark-skinned African-Americans dates all the way back to slavery.
Most of us know the story:
Lighter skinned slaves, usually the offspring of the slave master, were commonly house slaves, while darker skinned slaves labored in the fields. The animosity between dark and light skinned black people grew from there. After slavery was abolished the tension lingered and there was a separation between the two groups. Tests were created to determine who was “fit” to be accepted into certain clubs and churches. The brown paper bag test, for example measured a person’s skin hue against a brown paper bag. If your skin was darker you were not accepted. In another test, establishments would hang combs in the tops of doorways and if a person walked through and their hair snagged they were not admitted entrance.
Today, perhaps we aren’t doing these types of tests but how much has really changed? The majority of women we see in magazines, movies and music videos are light skinned. What does that say about how society as a whole views black women? To me it says: “Black women are not pretty unless they look as close to white as possible.” As a black woman, this offends and quite honestly hurts my feelings.
When I heard the song, “Right Above It,” I was offended by the line where Lil’ Wayne says that a black woman would look better “red,” or light-skinned. From then on he was on my bad side, but after reading that interview he is UNDER MY SHOE! That’s how little I think of him.
If I could speak to Lil’ Wayne, this is what I would say to him:
Hey IDIOT! Do you understand the hate in what you just said about your daughter? And do you understand the negative effects your statements are going to have on her when she hears them??? You just called her ugly! You are the reason little girls walk around hating the way they look and wanting to bleach their skin!! I hope parents stop allowing their kids to listen to your music(not that they should have in the first place since your lyrics are shear senselessness) because ignorance is contagious and I wouldn’t anyone gaining their view of what beauty is from you. Not to mention you yourself are a dark-skinned! So what your crude comments really say is, “I hate the way I look and I wish I was closer to Drake’s complexion.” I feel pity for you. Either get yourself together or stop speaking altogether!
If I could speak to Lil’ Wayne’s daughter I would tell her this:
YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL! And don’t let your father or anyone else tell you that your dark skin makes to any less beautiful then the Mixed, Puerto Rican, Asian, or White girl standing next to you. Don’t let them take away the love you have for yourself.
I realize I’m not a dark-skinned female but I’m offended all the same. I’M SICK OF THIS SELF HATE! So let it be known that from this moment forward I STRONGLY DISLIKE Lil’ Wayne and I AM AGAINST HIS MUSIC AND WHAT IT STANDS FOR.
….Whew! I feel better now!
If anyone would like to read the paper I wrote for my history class I’ve attached a PDF below. Take a look if this topic interests you too.
The Stain Bleach Wont Remove
http://getwititmagazine.com/2011/01/06/lil-wayne-dont-like-black-women/
When I read this article I was ENRAGED!
Colorism can be defined as discrimination based on skin color. I wrote a 9 page paper on this very topic for my African-American History class and it is a subject of black history that has always intrigued and boggled my mind.
It is no secret that light-skinned women are put on a pedestal by the media in today’s society and it is also nothing new. The division between light and dark-skinned African-Americans dates all the way back to slavery.
Most of us know the story:
Lighter skinned slaves, usually the offspring of the slave master, were commonly house slaves, while darker skinned slaves labored in the fields. The animosity between dark and light skinned black people grew from there. After slavery was abolished the tension lingered and there was a separation between the two groups. Tests were created to determine who was “fit” to be accepted into certain clubs and churches. The brown paper bag test, for example measured a person’s skin hue against a brown paper bag. If your skin was darker you were not accepted. In another test, establishments would hang combs in the tops of doorways and if a person walked through and their hair snagged they were not admitted entrance.
Today, perhaps we aren’t doing these types of tests but how much has really changed? The majority of women we see in magazines, movies and music videos are light skinned. What does that say about how society as a whole views black women? To me it says: “Black women are not pretty unless they look as close to white as possible.” As a black woman, this offends and quite honestly hurts my feelings.
When I heard the song, “Right Above It,” I was offended by the line where Lil’ Wayne says that a black woman would look better “red,” or light-skinned. From then on he was on my bad side, but after reading that interview he is UNDER MY SHOE! That’s how little I think of him.
If I could speak to Lil’ Wayne, this is what I would say to him:
Hey IDIOT! Do you understand the hate in what you just said about your daughter? And do you understand the negative effects your statements are going to have on her when she hears them??? You just called her ugly! You are the reason little girls walk around hating the way they look and wanting to bleach their skin!! I hope parents stop allowing their kids to listen to your music(not that they should have in the first place since your lyrics are shear senselessness) because ignorance is contagious and I wouldn’t anyone gaining their view of what beauty is from you. Not to mention you yourself are a dark-skinned! So what your crude comments really say is, “I hate the way I look and I wish I was closer to Drake’s complexion.” I feel pity for you. Either get yourself together or stop speaking altogether!
If I could speak to Lil’ Wayne’s daughter I would tell her this:
YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL! And don’t let your father or anyone else tell you that your dark skin makes to any less beautiful then the Mixed, Puerto Rican, Asian, or White girl standing next to you. Don’t let them take away the love you have for yourself.
I realize I’m not a dark-skinned female but I’m offended all the same. I’M SICK OF THIS SELF HATE! So let it be known that from this moment forward I STRONGLY DISLIKE Lil’ Wayne and I AM AGAINST HIS MUSIC AND WHAT IT STANDS FOR.
….Whew! I feel better now!
If anyone would like to read the paper I wrote for my history class I’ve attached a PDF below. Take a look if this topic interests you too.
The Stain Bleach Wont Remove
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