"Pressing Forward"

Welcome to the "Wonderful" world of... Weave? Call me crazy fellas but... I think I'm starting to understand this whole "weave fad" that our generation has adopted. I say adopted because history shows that weave (artificial hair) dates back to Egyptian times or maybe even further back than that but, let's focus on a period that most of us can more easily identify with. Do you remember a little group called "The Supremes"?...(haha) Led by music icon Diana Ross? In the 50's, The Supremes were one of the many R&B groups of that time indulging in the use of wigs as part of their collective "outfit". Which influenced African-American women around the world to take part in the wearing of wigs. This led me to believe that the African-American women of today's society may have been reintroduced to the wearing of synthetic hair through familiar faces in the media. (Reality Check) Fellas? When was the last time you heard a woman say, "When I go back to the shop,I'm gettin' the Felicia." Never!! It's always "The Halle Berry", "The Beyonce'", "The Rihanna", or whatever face is plastered on your nearest T.V. screen. Mannnnn!!! What I would give to see ONE woman today rockin' the "Cleopatra Jones"(Afro for the unknowing) but, the likelihood of that is slim to none. Who's to blame? the obvious answer is.... Men? Yeah men. Our opinions and responses to women in the entertainment industry play a major role in the decisions that our women tend to make. For example, every time we watch T.V. and make comments like, "Beyonce' is hella sexy" and "That n@#%a Jay is lucky", our women take heed to that and make these drastic hairstyle and wardrobe changes,when really we don't even want a Beyonce'. We just want to see something different every now and again to keep us interested (so we don't go looking for it elsewhere...Message!!). Okay! Okay! I've bashed us brothas enough. I've even confessed to our wrong doings but, even if we change ours ways I think it goes deeper than that. Let's take it back to where I believe it really evolved from. Are you familiar with the terms "House Nigger" and "Field Nigger"?(notice my use of the "-er"...Yeah! It's about to get serious). For as long as I can remember there has been a sense or "favoritism" toward the lighter skinned African-Americans. They've always seemed to be looked upon as the "more attractive" African-Americans(male or female). So, it came to me as no surprise when I learned about the terms "House Nigger" and "Field Nigger". (For those who don't know) These terms tie back into slavery days where the majority of the darker-skinned blacks worked the fields, giving berth (not like a baby..haha) to the term "Field Niggers" and the lighter skinned blacks worked in the house also, giving berth to the term "House Niggers". It was said that the lighter skinned blacks were given better treatment because they more closely resembled the "slave master"(or maybe it was because they were relatives of the slave master?). This "special" treatment created a lot of hostility between some blacks,causing separation amongst the slaves and in a lot of cases envious feelings toward one another. (Fast forwarding nearly a century)This "favoritism" is still present. Lighter skinned women are considered more attractive than darker skinned women. The major factors surrounding these ideas are eyes and hair. Hair, that has the ability to curl when wet and the ability to be straightened nearly to the consistency of a white woman's hair. Now, I don't know about you but, in my lifetime I've heard countless numbers of darker skinned African-American women, at young ages, being called "Nappy Headed" and they were often put into comparison with bi-racial children(Ring a bell?). Having naturally coarse hair in our society is frowned upon but, there is always a solution. Brace yourself for what I like to call "The Survival Kit". Consisting of, the ever so popular "straightening comb/flat iron" (Courtesy of Madame C.J. Walker) and the "perm". (Comic Relief) Shoot!!! A lot of yall reading this right now are product of a "Just for me" and "Luster's", or if you are grown "Dark N' Lovely" and "Motions"...haha. All jokes aside, I don't have a big issue with perms and weaves. My only issue is that we let these thing dictate whether we will be comfortable with ourselves or not. Insecurities stop us from securing a solid foundation in relationships. Which can be the reason why a lot of black families dwindle or seize to exist. I'm going to leave you with this... In the 50's, around the same time The Supremes and other groups wore their wigs, another fad was being carried out amongst African-American men. Conking ("The Conk"), a lye that is very similar to today's "Perm", but consisted of far more chemicals, was being worn(for those who need reference, think of the S-curl, times five..haha). This hairstyle had a buzz in the African-American community for nearly thirty years but,as time went by black men grew against "Conking" because they felt it was just a black mans attempt to look like the white man of that time (For example, Frank Sinatra)and that they should celebrating their culture, heritage, and natural beauty . So, what is it going to take for our women to step outside the box? for them to dare to be different? Does Beyonce' have rock a Afro for a whole year?!!! All I ask is that you analyze every aspect of what you are doing before you do it and you might be inspired to be yourself... because I love who you are and what you stand for as black women. Not what you can become after a couple hundred dollars of product and alterations. It's the struggle that you have been through as single parent mothers, supporters of black men, it's your ability to be strong minded,and your ability to adapt in your OWN way that what makes me get chills at first glance. Not your ability to conform to what society says you should be. I love black women and just want yall to be the best YOU. Remember that!!. (Shout out to Melanie Renchie for daring to be different) God Bless... fade.. To Black...