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Another myth African-Americans believe when it comes to 4c and the kinkiest hair types
“Is that your hair?”
“Is that all yours?”
“No way is that your hair!”
“Is that weave?”
^^^ These are some phrases I’ve received. Some of my own family has even asked (haha).
For some odd reason, many African-Americans believe it’s not possible to have long hair unless you’re mixed with something other than Black (note: we’re all mixed with a bunch of things, but we all have dominant genes); this is probably because people with straight-up black hair are known to have kinky and short hair that breaks off at the soonest chance.
Untrue.
Black People Can Grow Long Hair If They Want
My mother did my hair for half of my life, and it was always long. I’ve worn protective styling 95% of the time, but in those rare moments I take my hair out, the length is there (You can’t tell how long my actual hair is since I keep it up in twists; my hair shrinks >50%). The key to my length, though, has been the protective styling. My mother set me up for success.
3 ways to grow longer hair:
Use quality protective styling.
Manipulate your hair as little as possible. I wear the same styles every day and often do double protective styling (i.e., Bantu knots or braids on top of mini twists.)
Co-wash your hair and opt-out of shampoo. I only use conditioner on my hair 99.99% of the time. Dropping shampoo out of the regimen has worked well for my super coily and kinky hair.
Stop trying to manipulate your hair to look like a white person’s texture. Our hair gets damaged easily.
If you want long hair as an African-American, all you have to do is quality protective styling and manipulate your hair as little as possible. Now, the maintenance of African-American hair is not easy. Unfortunately, it takes a lot of work, which makes me ponder on the day I might let it all go, but black hair is beautiful. The better we take care of our hair, the more it will grow and be kind to us.
I wanted white people’s hair in my younger days. It wasn’t until college that my CA helped me fall in love with my hair texture; I never once wanted someone else’s hair texture again – aside from the easy maintenance (now that’s something I would love to experience).
“Who taught you to hate the texture of your hair? Who taught you to hate the color of your skin? Who taught you to hate the shape of your nose and the shape of your lips? Who taught you to hate yourself from the top of your head to the soles of your feet?” – Malcolm X
Many people desire hair like white people, which is why we see so many women wearing wigs and weaves that don’t reflect their natural hair texture.
There is nothing wrong with weaves and wigs similar to white hair texture, but it’s okay to wear our natural hair textures.
One of the primary reasons black individuals struggle to grow their hair is because they’re consistently using damaging products or processes on their hair that prevent growth.
Treat your hair well, and it will treat you well. Love your hair, and it will love you back.
This content is for informational purposes only — not professional advice. Consult a qualified professional before making any major decisions.