Decolonize Black Hair
Black hair transcends mere appearance. It embodies our resistance, culture, and identity, spanning from pre-colonial times to the present day. Decolonizing Black Hair is a journey towards exploring various African hairstyles to reclaim our narratives - for and by us.
Before colonialism tightened its grip, African hair symbolized pride and communicated various meanings within African societies. Exploring the pre-colonial meanings of Black hair offers insights into its cultural significance as a symbol of age, wealth, and societal roles within African societies. From conveying marital status to symbolizing prosperity, Black hair has always been deeply intertwined with cultural identity and expression.However, Eurocentric beauty standards imposed during colonialism erased this diversity, turning Black hair into a battleground for cultural expression. Similar to all other facets of African life. The purpose for this? To gain complete control of African land, resources, and people. Hair is simply ONE of the pieces of African life distorted by Europeans.
An exploration of Black hair through the looking glass
We cannot decolonize hair by simply changing our hair styles. Anti-colonial psychiatrist Frantz Fanon's insights remind us that decolonization is not just about changing appearances; it's a deeper struggle against the exploitative structures of capitalism. The ongoing exploitation of African resources underscores the systemic violence inherent in capitalist systems, which continue to exploit African/Black communities worldwide.
Decolonizing African/Black hair requires challenging the commodification of beauty under capitalism, which currently prioritizes eurocentric ideals and erases Black hair in the process. Under capitalism, Black hair is only celebrated and brought to the forefront when it can be sold and bought in ways that lead to the very Africans being exploited.
We must simultaneously resist exploitation in order to fully reclaim our relationships to African/Black hair.
Executive Director & Producer - Stella Okech // Executive Producer - Mungo Ligoya // Sound Engineer - Sphinx Sound // Set Assistant & Writer - Salome Paul // Hair Stylist - Tenesha Luckett // Assistant Hair Stylist - Allie Berry // Models - Nyaweka Choul, Agau Kuek