Totally Twisted!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Second graders fried, dyed, and laid to the side
Recently I decided to create this blog because my daughter has started to feel self-conscious about her hair. Most of the time her hair is worn in braids or two-strand twist styles and she has never complained about it. A few weeks ago I tried a twist-out style for her and she loved it! But, when she came home from school the very next day she had a hat on. When I questioned her about the hat she stated that she “thought that they other children were going to make fun of her”. When we got home, I explained to her that her hair was beautiful just the way it was. She asked if she could have her hair straight like mines used to be (I’ve recently decided to go “Au Naturale”). I promised her that she could make that decision once she’s in high school but that I’d press it once in a while. I wondered what kind of hair styles these children were wearing that she thought that they would make fun of her natural hair style. The following day I went into her Second grade classroom and was shocked to see how many children were sitting in her classroom with “bone-straight” hair! Don’t get me wrong, that’s your child, your business. I just never thought that in second grade my daughter would be faced with the issues of peer pressure regarding her hair!! I have always reminded that she was my “beautiful bubbling brown sugar” inside and out. After seeing what peer pressure my daughter would be facing, I decided to find ways to encourage my daughter to feel beautiful and comfortable in her own hair, no matter how it is styled!!
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I'm glad you decided to do this blog! It's really good for people to see THIS perspective. Many parents face this same issue (I am not a parent myself, but many of my friends have children who have encountered this problem). I think you are doing the right thing by encouraging her and letting her know that her hair is beautiful and that her hair, whether straight, twisted, or braided, is just FINE. It really is a shame that children in 2nd grade have to deal with this peer pressure! In 2nd grade all of my classmates had natural hair (to my knowledge). I didn't have to deal with the pressure to get a perm until I got to Junior High School. I think what you're doing is good, so hopefully things improve.
ReplyDeleteHey Cousin I am so proud of you and the idea of this blog. It was sad enough to know women are so disillusioned by self image as a result of our hair but to hear about little girls in 2nd grade having such misunderstandings is sad. I do hope that this blog reaches the masses in an attempt to change the way of thinking of females young and old! I will do my part in helping to promote a positive self-image regarding my natural hair to my lil cousin-diva in training! ;)
ReplyDeleteHey, I think this blog is really good and has the potential to become a good support mechanism for other moms struggling with the same issue. Its sad to see that its started so early because in second grade i was still fully in love with my braids and my puffs....
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