My whole life, black hair has been viewed as ugly, nappy, and unkempt. My whole life, women have damaged their natural hair to fit into the white/European beauty standards. My whole life, black women have spent millions of dollars to hide their natural hair under wigs. And, my whole life, I was taught to ignore European beauty standards and love my wild, nappy, kinky, curly hair. 

Being born an only girl to a licensed beautician meant my hair was my mom’s pride and joy. She made it her mission to ensure I loved every inch of my hair, from its thick fullness to the little curly naps that grew at the back of my neck (My kitchen). My views on black hair were shaped in love, allowing me to see the true beauty of black hair. If you view black hair as a material (as I do), you see it as one of Earth’s most robust, most versatile materials. Black hair can take on multiple shapes, black hair has several different textures, most black women possess two or more textures or hair types, and black hair can be molded into hundreds of different hairstyles, some changing multiple times in one day. When you think about black hair as a material, you make it’s potential limitless, creating a superhero whose power is her hair; you make her the ultimate power in the universe. And when you make a black girl the ultimate power because of her natural hair, you give black and brown girls representation they’ve never had before. You provide them with love for their hair that has never been there before.