Back in the summer of 1999, I started wondering why I was ruining my scalp just to get a straight look. I wrote this article to address some of the many questions I had on my mind. When I wrote this, I decided I would no longer relax my hair.

Consider This:

Why is relaxed hair more manageable than natural hair?


Do you think straight hair is more professional looking than kinky hair?



Do you think you would look like a boy if you wore a short natural?



Does coarse, kinky hair need to be tamed into submission?



Do you perm your hair before you get braids so your hairline and edges will be smooth?



If you wear a short cut, do you get the back or your hair relaxed regulary?



When you see a woman wearing her natural do you wonder why she would do that to herself?



Do you think your head is too big or too small for a natural? Too lumpy maybe?



Are currently wearing braids or natural, but hope to have straight hair soon?



Are you unhappy with your hair because it won't behave the way it did when you had a perm?



Do you think you would be beautiful if you had long straight hair?











Did you notice a common theme in those questions? Most black women do not want their true hair texture to show. I have always wondered why black hair is not acceptable to black women. Many women are in search of long, thick, beautiful straight hair. Short hair, expecially short nappy hair is not considered desirable. I know this is true! There was a time in my life when I could not go six weeks without touching up my relaxer. I was afraid my hair look an afro, my "buck shots", would show or worse yet, it would snap!!!


Now that I wear my hair natural I see how foolish that thinking was. I actually despised a part of my own body. I'm not saying that women with relaxers hate themselves, but when I wore the relaxer I was never happy with my appearance. My hair was never straight enough or shiny enough or good enough.



Earlier this year I recieved a revelation. Every time I a got a relaxer, eventually new growth comes in. I know you are thinking: "That's some revelation. I could have told you that". The point is straight hair does not grow out of my scalp. Why am I going through this routine? Why am I not happy with my own hair? That is when I decided the relaxer had to go.