Just Bring Those Beautiful Curls and Coils!
Cuánto tiempo, morenas! Hope you’ve been keeping hydrated and moisturized in this summer heat.
Speaking of moisture, what better way to end the summer than with a discussion on Black hair?
Join me with Elle from Speakingtonguespod and Language Bae from Black Girls Learn Languages for the last installment of the Instagram live series Dismantling Racism through Language.
This part will focus on Black hair!
We know that Black hair is layered. It’s complex, though simply amazing. There’s a rich history to how Black people maintain, style, and nurture their hair.
It’s not easy to translate the context of Black hair into another language. And us Black language enthusiasts have probably found ourselves tongue-tied or frustrated with that reality during language exchanges.
Fortunately, there are plenty of resources out there for finding the right words—or the closest equivalent. Here’s a page from my ebook Melanintro to Languages about Black Hairstyles and Haircare in Japanese.
But language is one thing. Cultural acceptance is another. If the Crown Act is any indication, there’s no doubt that Black hair is indeed political.
Our hair intersects with many issues in society. From ableism to xenophobia, wearing our hair however we want wherever we want just isn’t acceptable (or possible) everywhere.
Of course, that is all the more reason for us to discuss Black hair. We’ll be covering topics like visibility when going to other countries, hair care while abroad, and more.
Can’t wait to see you there!
~Errol
