In the last decade natural hair has started to show up in magazines, on television, and even on the Victoria’s Secret runway with model Maria Borges becoming the first to rock natural hair at the iconic fashion show.
However, even with such progress, there is still a backlash in Brazil against natural hair. On Facebook actress Tais Araujo, who is Afro-Brazilian, faced derogatory comments after posting a picture of herself with her natural hair. Arauja responded to the comments by saying: “I won’t delete any of those comments. I want you all to feel the shame I felt: the shame to still have people so cowardly and small in this country…I won’t be intimidated or keep my head down. I’ll continue to do what I do best: work. If my image or the image of my family bothers you, it’s your problem!”
In response to such criticism, hundreds of Afro-Brazilians recently flooded the streets of Salvador da Bahia, Brazil in the first ever natural hair empowerment march called Marcha da Empoderamento Crespo.
We salute the men and women of Brazil for fighting against prejudice and for showing the beauty of natural hair.
Have you experienced discrimination because of your natural hair?
Stephanie Kemp is a writer, poet, natural hair lover, and social media specialist. Follow her on Twitter @stephanie_poet.
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