from our marketing intern, Alexis Jackson
All parents are aware of the steep learning
curve that exists when raising a child—including everything from “How do you
protect them without sheltering them?” to
“How do you get them to eat their vegetables?”
This learning curve goes for adoptive parents
as well; however, the questions include “How do I help them with their
emotional and developmental issues?”
“How can I get them to open up?”
And for transracial adoption the question of cultural consciousness is
raised – an increasingly important question in light of the fact that approximately
40 percent of adoptions in America are transracial.
A quick scan of online adoption blogs and
message boards, will result in an endless number of posts from parents
concerned about what to name their child, where to put their child in school,
and what ethnic holidays to celebrate all in an effort to establish their
children’s cultural consciousness. Learning
how to groom a different texture of hair, though noticeably absent from most of
these posts, is a critical part of this cultural consciousness.
A few examples: Actress Angelina Jolie sought
advice on how to care for her Black, adopted daughter’s hair; and many recall
the Sesame Street “I love my hair” video that the show’s writers created for
his adopted daughter when she expressed a desire for long, blond, straight hair.
Hair carries a significant cultural
identity, and learning how to care for a child’s tight curls or pin straight
tresses teaches that child how to take care of him or herself while also sending
positive, affirming messages about that little person’s texture and cultural
identity.
Even today, as a Black woman raised by Black
parents, I struggle with the cultural part that my texture represents. I’m constantly trying to straighten it or put
extensions in it simply because I’ve been taught that caring for my hair meant
straightening it to make it more manageable.
This personal struggle has led me to seek affirming and helpful messages
and videos on Pinterest and YouTube.
During one of my most recent “Pinterest
sessions, I found this website specifically designed for White parents of
Latino(a) or Black children called Chocolate Hair Vanilla Care. The White
administrator whose daughter is Black wrote “Hi, I'm Rory, and I write about
pretty much everything you wanted to know about my journey learning to care for
my daughter's beautiful, naturally curly hair. It's a chronicle of what I do
and why I do it.”
'Nuff said!
This
site not only provides step-by-step tutorials on how to care for hair, but also
includes testimonials and product-reviews.
After spending just a few minutes on this site, I had learned about
three new products and two new ways to increase my hair’s moisture
retention—all things my parents never
taught me.
So, whether it’s locked, in an afro,
straightened, naturally curly, or chemically processed, learning how to take
care of hair is important. And since a
lot of cultural identity is coiled up in our tresses, let’s appreciate it for
everything it is and teach our children, nieces and nephews included, to do the
same.
Since we’re all learning, I encourage you
to share your hair stories. Everything from saving a bad hair day to helpful
websites on the topic is welcome!
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