HISTORY OF AFRO NATURAL AND

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MULTICULTURAL HAIR

\n By: Dr. Edward Tony Lloneau\n\n \n\nThe natural Afro hair style is not new, shop medical but is a recycled phenomenon dating back to the time of slavery and continuing to the present day, salve find only in different ways depending on the trends of various times in the history of Afro hair development.\n\nIn today’s world the Natural Afro look is primarily concerned with hair belonging to mixed race Afro females (although men are included to a much lesser degree).\n\n\n \n\n THE START OF AFRO AMERICAN MULTICULTURAL HAIR\n\nThis phenomenon dates back to slavery when white slave owners and their overseers were engaging in sexual encounters with slave women.  The results were light skin children with curly and/or wavy hair that were in stark contrast to the natural African Kinky hair and dark skin.  As these children grew up, they were generally treated better than other slaves and the females were even more attractive to the Caucasian male population, and commanded higher prices at slave auctions.  Many slaves of that period attempted to alter their hair by straightening with hot home made iron combs or dinner forks and cooking grease or lard for sheen, longevity and to keep hair from scorching (this was the beginning of pressing hair).  The inspiration for this was something that was unknown to the slaves in Africa of ironing wrinkles from clothes and applying this technique to straightening hair.  Later they discovered that they could relax the hair with lye soap that was used to wash very soiled clothes by combing the lather through the hair, sometimes with disastrous results of burning scalps, loss of hair and hair turning red.  The burning and hair loss was resolved by accident by rinsing the hair with lemonade or vinegar (neutralizing).  The reasoning for hair straighting was the believe that if they could in some way mimic the appearance of the white masters this would gain them better treatment as was shown to slaves with Caucasian fathers.  The results were sometimes negative because this attempt was considered as mockery by the slave owners.  Later during that same period mashed potatoes and lard were combined with the lye in order to control the concoction from gravitating to the scalp, resulting in less burning of the scalp.\n\n \n\nFast forward to the early 1900s when the pressing comb and related products were developed and popularized by a woman named Annie Malone who started the first Afro American owned Beauty School Chain called Poro College (Poro: a West African word meaning organization dedication and discipline) in  Chicago, Indianapolis and St. Louis. Malone did not invent the pressing comb but did popularize it in conjunction with her related products line, because the true originator is unknown.  She and her husband acquired a wealth of 14 million dollars during the course of their business empire.   She was the mentor and the inspiration for Madam C.J. Walker, who improved the pressing comb to be more affective on course kinky hair.  Walker was granted a patent for the improvements.  Malone and Walker’s mission was to develop and devise improved ways to style female Afro kinky hair with products designed for that  purpose that replaced make shift methods from thick petrolatum and axle grease to control kinky hair.  Walker included the pressing comb in her innovative shampoo press and curl kit that made her the first self made female millionaire in America.\n\n \n\nFast forward again to the 1950s when hair relaxers became popular.  This method used highly caustic cream to penetrate and soften the resistant Afro hair, and then physically smoothed it until it was straight.  This procedure was first used on men in barber shops, and then refined for use on women by Johnson Products of Chicago.\n\n \n\nLater in the late 60s a “back to basics” movement came about called the NATURAL (or AFRO). This was to allow the hair to grow out in its natural state, and then cut it into a neat rounded shape.  This style was very popular among both Afro women and men.  However, this style was rejected by non Afro employers because they felt that was a sign of black activism against the ruling class.  Many black women and some men were mandated by their bosses to return to their “so called” straight look by way of pressing, relaxing, or short cut afro’s for men or risk losing their jobs.  This resulted in law suits that went all the way to the Supreme Court that ruled that a black person can not be discriminated against for wearing their hair in its Natural state no more so then any other culture is for their hair in its natural state.  This style was replaced in the late 70s with the CURLY PERM better known as The Jeri Curl.  This style used a mild chemical (cold wave solution) originally used to form a curl on naturally straight hair in reverse to put a controlled smooth curl or wave in Afro Kinky hair.  For the most part, this hair style reassembled natural multicultural hair, although that terminology was not used then.\n\n \n\nAfro hair is described by several names based on the many styles and ways it can be worn.  This is because of the many textures of Afro hair from straight to extremely kinky.  No other culture has such a variety of choices.  These choices go by a number of names.  For example, The Press & Curl, the Natural or Afro, (in its natural curly, wavy, kinky state), Curly Perm (chemically induced style on rods) first known as the Jeri Curl and Relaxed (chemically soften, then combed and smoothed straight).  Corn rolls and braids that originated in Africa, and dread locks that had it’s origin in Jamaica. \n\n \n\nFast forward this time to the present.  Due to the fact that so many Afro American women do not have traditional Afro-centric hair, the trends now are for products that address this situation that are identified by the terms Multicultural, Transitional, Multi-Textured, Curly & Wavy, Mixed Hair, In-Between Hybrid (meaning two or more).\n\n \n\nSo in conclusion, you can see and understand the many aspects that are attributed to Afro hair, and is the reason why the Afro hair care business accounts for 1/3 of sales of hair care products  and professional service in America, even though they are only 12% of the population.\n\nRemember the old phrase that describes a women’s hair as her “crowning glory”.  The social and cultural significance of Afro hair should not be underestimated.  In my opinion, one of the reasons that black women spend so much time and money  on their hair, even though they may not realize it, is that they are reaching back to ancestral memories brought with them from Africa, and for social acceptance and self esteem that dates back to the time of slavery and beyond.\n

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