It is becoming more unlikely for anyone to ignore or fail to appreciate this moving trend that is ever increasing and becoming ceremoniously contagious.
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| Image from pexels.com |
The come back to reign of the black melanin skin and the natural hair among black women has left us all amazed, some ladies who we used to know to be dark skinned, we woke up one morning only to find out that they are now white, as the result of bleaching.
Lately, some of this same ladies are now going back to their normal skin, some even proudly taking to their social media with hashtags #blackIsBeautiful, #blackSkinRocks etc.
The act of skin bleaching as having being misreported in most media, did not originate with Africans bleaching dates back to the Queen Victorian era, though nobody viewed it as demeaning when the whites do these, but with the blacks it is different, to shed more light on this concept let's go back history lane;
The popular natural hair and black skin, a trend which was so great in the 1960's and 1970's, The African Afro and black skin, was the full emblem of African originality associated with pride and 'race confidence'. But the glow of this emblems seemed to fade out in the 1980's as the once emblem of pride was now a new symbol of shame, the natural state was abandoned. The skin bleaching gained momentum and the pressing comb for straightening the Afro hair was replaced with chemical relaxer.
In Nigeria, from the 90's to the early 20's was a time for the artificial fair skin beauties to reign, and they did! everyone wanted to be tagged an oyibo, the whole definition of a beautiful woman was fair skinned and straight hair, and the dark women were edged to a very small spot.
The natural afro hair did not die out completely though, it was still donned mostly by some religious sect although in a less attractive manner, making it easier for the growing generation to stick to fair skin and straight hair.
The natural afro hair did not die out completely though, it was still donned mostly by some religious sect although in a less attractive manner, making it easier for the growing generation to stick to fair skin and straight hair.
For some following this trend was to build confidence, for some others it was simply "following the train of trend".
But in recent times these trend have taken a different twist ,the black skin and natural hair is back, the once prevalent view of lighter skin women having it easier is now pushed behind, these black skin beauties are everywhere, bursting every single door of opportunity, popping melanin radically and donning that coiffure that defies gravity! Recently Lira molapo, south African singer became the first black woman to have a Barbie doll in her image, Zimbabwean Vimbai Chapungu was crowned Miss London, first black to win the title, she wore her natural hair.
Zozibini Tunzi won Miss South Africa with her natural hair and of course popping melanin! Like before some will join this trend either to regain lost confidence, free themselves from the shackles of white Supremacy or just to follow trending fashion, either way this is a trend you can't afford to miss, Pop that melanin and don't forget to show off that gravity defying hair!!