Hair discrimination is an undeniable issue in our society, though it often goes unnoticed. Criticizing a woman's hair — whether it's too curly, frizzy, short, or anything else — can be incredibly harmful to her self-esteem. Thankfully, there are courageous women who are taking a stand against this type of discrimination.
An issue of Glamour featured actresses Gabrielle Union, Uzo Aduba, Marsai Martin, and Keke Palmer sharing powerful stories of women across the country to bring attention to the issue of hair discrimination.
At the beginning of the video, all of these actresses quote certain comments and stories women around the country have gotten about their hair. It is truly surprising that people have said these things to women. For example, “I’ve been told it’s too big,” “I’ve been told there is too much,” “I’ve been told it blocks people's view,” and “Your dreadlocks are so nice and clean.”
I love that these women are using stories from non-celebrities, because you know that we wouldn’t be hearing them if they were coming from the sources themselves.
Marsai Martin shares a quote from a student or teacher that was extremely powerful: “I’ve seen children humiliated at school. Getting suspended. The baby girl whose teacher cut her hair because her beads were making too much noise. Those actions are bullying, discrimination, microaggressions, and acts of racial injustice.”
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Gabrielle Union explains that these stories are from 13 women around the United States, which is then followed by statistics about Black women: “Black women are 83% more likely to report being judged more harshly on their looks than other women at work,” and “Black women are 1.5X more likely to be sent home from work because of their hair.”
If you have naturally straight hair or hair that requires minimal effort to maintain, you may not consider the issue of hair discrimination that affects many women. No matter what a woman's hair looks like, they should be able to walk out of their door with confidence and be able to keep that confidence all day without someone attempting to bring them down for having a different type of hair.
To view the whole story, click the video!
