Hair comes in a multitude of colors, shapes, sizes, and textures. Tight curls, coils, waves, and kinks are just a few of the hair textures that Black people can have.
Mahasin Nasir, a sophomore studying business of cinematic arts and the programming director at Curly Vision, has had different hairstyles ranging from locs to short haircuts. Her positive hair journey was due to a key player, her mother.
“I always grew up with my mom. She had short hair. She never had long hair, so she was often an encouraging factor for my short hair and telling me that it was still beautiful,” said Nasir. “Then I grew my hair out so I started expressing [it] more through color. I dyed my hair purple and blonde and all of that.”
We spoke to USC students who told us how to appreciate and understand your hair journey, no matter what type it is. Curly Vision aims to provide a safe space for curly-haired Trojans at USC.
“It’s just about educating young Black girls who are still trying to learn about natural hair. Who maybe didn’t have a natural hair role model growing up and just trying to learn it for themselves,” said Nasir.
Kondwani Phiri, a junior studying mechanical engineering, felt represented by Black artists and their hair in media.
“Seeing the Jackson Five, or even now, Brent Faiyaz, I guess just those people in the forefront [and] limelight of Black culture kind of inspired me,” said Phiri.
This representation within the Black community brings a sense of support to explore different hairstyles. Michael Steele, a senior in the Iovine and Young Academy, recalls his earliest hairstyle, which he dubbed the “clean bean.” It wasn’t until he saw Chadwick Boseman in “Black Panther” that he recognized his tighter curls as beautiful, despite the lack of representation in mainstream media.
“I didn’t really feel proud of [my hair] until I was in high school, and until I watched Black Panther and kind of saw ‘Oh this can be something that’s you that should be celebrated.' And it was the first time that I [saw] my hair type as beautiful,” said Steele.
This led Steele to co-found Textura, his company which aims to fill the lack of guidance for hair cases and empower people to innovate with their products.
“We haven’t yet been afforded what our white counterparts have or what our straight hair counterparts have been afforded in terms of expression. That’s what I think one of the biggest gaps [is] for Textura. We’re really focused on trying to make sure that people can express themselves and they can solve their own problems,” said Steele.
Everyone’s hair is different and we all go on a journey to understand it more. It’s a part of our identity and we tend to find community as we learn more about who we are. Whether we’re currently rocking a clean bean or a fro, each of our journeys is worth celebrating.