>Just because black women choose to
>wear their hair natural meaning
>chemical free does not mean
>that we forget where we
>came from. I can
>remember wearing my hair relaxed
>for years and not wanting
>to go outside if it
>rained or it it was
>humid for fear that my
>hair would get frizzy or
>go flat. I can
>also remember not wanting to
>go swimming because I didn't
>want to mess up my
>newly permed hair. When
>I decided to wear my
>hair chemical free I was
>able to experiment with an
>array of styles that I
>would have never considered trying
>if my hair were still
>straight.
>
I couldn't agree with you more! I just wake up, jump in the shower and roll!

>As for me I was wearing
>my hair natural long before
>I ever heard of Jill
>Scott. Most black women are
>dissatisfied with their hair because
>we continue or have continued
>to try and make it
>do things that it is
>not meant to do.
>

Again, I agree! Personally I don't think Jill or erkyah have anything to do with the situation even if it is a trend, I would to so far as to say that they are jumping on the trend. Erkyah had fake dreads before she shaved her head bald! I shaved my head bald last year and it's sickning to think that people look at me like "she's copying"-BOO!!! I always wanted to go natural and when I relocated to a new state I just did it! I was so tired of my permed hair, it was long, full, etc., but I was tired of it! So I walked into a barber shop and said shave it off! No big production, except that some guy in the shop said "girl you walked in here with all that long preety hair fine as hell, only ugly girls go natural"-BOO!

>For some people it may be
>a trend but for others
>it is simply Black Pride!
> How can you question
>someone for dressing or wearing
>their hair in a way
>that makes them identify with
>their culture? If black
>sistahs want to follow behind
>the likes of Jill or
>Erykah or Lauryn Hill that
>is wonderful! Because we
>have been conditioned to follow
>behind the trends of white
>women for far too long
>(ie: blonde hair weaves and
>blue contact lenses)and for those
>who choose not to go
>the "natural" route, that's all
>good too.

WORD!!!!!!!

I personally love natural hair and I think it brings out our beauty, but it's a personal decision, just like anything else. I do think that dreads as opposed to simply natural are two different things and concepts. I am not growing dreads but I am growing my natural hair out long, and people make assumptions based off the fact that I have alot of hair now. They think I'm trying to make some sort of statement and that's wack. It's my natural hair for crying out loud! Shouldn't natural just be normal! Nobody asks white girls why they grow their natural hair out, and nobody should be questioning black women. Imagine somebody asking a white women "So why do you have long straight hair?" That's just how it is! Same principal applies!
The fact that people feel a need to question black women, speaks volumes to the history behind assimilation. If your not relaxing then you must be making a statement, because what's natural for you is still not really accepted, why not just get a perm and stop perping like your different-BOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!

I think that sista's with naturals make others uncomfortable and the assumptions they make about our reasons are just reflections of their own insecurities.

Anyways, I wrote alot, but I just wanted to say WORD!!!!