To Wig or not To Wig
Candid View
I recently had a compelling conversation
with a male figure (we will call him Edgar) whom I happen to love
and respect. What I had not realized prior to our candid talk was
that our point of view was extremely contrasting, specifically when it came to
the black (women) experience.
Edgar (a black male) had expressed that he wanted to start a
campaign against black women wearing wigs/fake hair. His belief was that they
wore the artificial hair due to a lack of self-love.
His opinion was of conviction and creed, so I
had to disarm myself in ordered to be opened to heeding to his position. After
patiently receiving his message, my vigor came out because it was time for my
voice to be heard.
My Sentiment
I began by
validating some of his mass statements, then I countered by rhetorically
asking:
Are you aware that the traditional images of
white woman in our society are an illusion filled with trick lighting, flattering
poses, and nowadays are also enhanced with photoshop software?
Did you know that hair coloring
is exponentially higher for white woman and many other ethnic groups as
opposed to black women?
Have you thought of the possibility that black women
are not the only group who gravitate toward adorning their hair with extensions?
Since most of us can agree that yes, photos are touched up and Caucasian women have traditionally colored their hair, particularly blonde more often than women of color; I decided to expand by focusing on wigs and extensions.
I let the questions marinate so he could ponder upon them, then I elaborated with a few sources to share my logic:
Extensions
Unfortunately, Bad hair days happen to us girls far
too often. Either because the weather did not agree with our do, we were in-between
washes, or simply because we did not have the time for the flat iron that
morning! Due to this reality, we usually accepted that we cannot measure up to the
ideal idolized “perfect woman” with the cultivated hair and body!
Spoiler Alert: That image that we might have been admiring on the latest
cover of Elle magazine may just be a little deceitful! That perfect body, tan
and luxurious hair are all made up so that we could spend money on beauty
products, making worthy the media’s advertising dollars! Yep, we have bought into
the illusion!
According to pro hairstylist Priscilla Valles, an estimated 97
percent of female celebrities regularly rely on faux hair pieces to lengthen
and pump up their natural look (Daily Mail.com).
More than three quarters of those polled (76%) said that
they wore extensions to add volume, with other reasons for wearing them
including a desire to look more glamorous, the ability to change your style
quickly and the fact they could be applied at home.
This group consisted of not only blacks, but other groups
as well.
Yes, wigs are popular in the black community for some of the same reasons other groups wear extensions. To confess some black women, have hair issues or have succumbed to the ideology that long, fine hair is better, however let us not jump to judgement so quickly, because not every black woman agrees with this line of thinking.
Many of us (yep, I have a whole collection of wigs myself) simply want the versatility the wig brings to our style, appreciate the low maintenance, enjoy saving time, see the advantage of protecting our own natural hair, also identify it as a great solution to grow out a bad or short haircut. These are all practical reasons black women may opt for a wig.
So let the truth be told, many women of various nationalities invest in their appearance for a variety of reasons. So, before it is decided to bash black women for wearing wigs, let us gather the facts which will reveal that it is not just a BLACK THING, but it is a WOMEN THING!
End
"Making it count" Aniyah
