It’s About the Texture of My Hair and the Color of My Skin!

Individuals – women in particular- of African Diasporic heritage are not only judged simply by the color of their skin, but also by the texture of their hair.
Colorism/shadism as well as issues surrounding hair texture(s) are forms of categorisation commonly used in the process of creating discriminatory hierarchies that effect Black women and women of color.
Inspired by Audre Lorde’s 1990 essay Is Your Hair Still Political? I would like to explore the socio- political implications of the wave of many Black/African diasporic women transitioning to and embracing natural hair care and styles. We will also discuss the issue of colorism/shadism and how it is embedded within the natural hair movement.
The aim of this workshop is to initiate an interactive discussion about what the practices of embracing natural hair and dealing with colorism within Black diasporic communities may mean for Black female diasporic subjectivities, and to share various „hair-stories“ and stories related to skin color as experienced by Black females living within white hegemonic European spaces.