I love my natural hair.

Every day, when I get up, I look in the mirror and look at my hair. It's rugged, nappy and all over the place. And you know what?

I love it. It's me. It's who I am.

Six months and still going strong.

 I didn't have a say in what my hair or my genetic code was going to be.  I admit to having some envy over other people whose hair was straight or not as woolly. But this was when I was considerably younger and didn't know better and I've since gotten over that insecurity. My hair was always an issue with my mother, and I don't like it. And lo and behold, hair happens to be a problem in the black community. Now, I'm a man, and I can easily comb my faux afro into something neat, or just outright cut it. Women on the other hand, hooo boy.

When they ask about your hair, being real doesn't mean a thing if it isn't yours.

This is a subject that to this day is a cancer to our community. The amount of women who wear fake hair is grossly at an all-time high. And it's not appealing. It's not attractive, it's not natural, and in some cases, it's outright dangerous. My own mother is guilty of this. Now, I have no problems with someone growing out their own hair and styling it to their own tastes, but that of course takes time and effort, and we all know that's too much for people to do. But, it takes a hell of a lot of time to stitch artificial and 'natural' hair into your scalps.

But even then, not too many people do that. Look up any fight on the internet with black women present. You are guaranteed one shot of a wig on the ground. Madam C.J. Walker's efforts were in vain. I remember the old hot comb we had in our junk drawer. I never used it, nor did I see my mother use it. At least not before I was born. But even that has its drawbacks. Black hair for whatever reason is looked down upon. Ditch that - The ideology of beauty and the standard of beauty is to blame. White and straight hair is considered beautiful, and coarse, woolly 'nappy' hair is considered ugly. I noticed it as a child, and I see it moreso now. Remember when I said we can set the standard? Now is the time. But moving on. Here's some reasons as to why natural hair (IE the actual hair grown out of your own damn head) is superior and better in all ways.

-It's cost effective. 
Managing your own hair is virtually free. Be it short, long, etc., you can simply comb it, wash it and there you go. To use weaves and the like cost money, and for 'quality' hair, you'll be shelling out some money. One co-worker mentioned she paid $120 for someone's hair. to put in her own head. Now, of course everyone wants to have good looking hair, so there's a high demand for quality hair. The money you use for that hair could be used for paying bills.

-It's versatile.
Your natural hair is strong, and can withstand wind, air, water and earth. You can swim and not worry about the fake exterior on your head getting wet, runny and ruined. You can grab your hair when you're frustrated and pissed off and feel it sift through your fingers and it'll go back to its normal state. It's also its own living life form. You nurture it, it grows and stays healthy. You neglect and abuse it, this happens.

And just because THEY do it, doesn't mean YOU should.

And if that's not bad enough, prolonged usage of weaves can result in molded hair and infections. Your hair is you and is a part of your health. If you don't take care of your health, it will show. We've got enough problems with weight, diet and the like. Tommy Sotomayor is much more informed on this matter than I can care to research. Countess Vaughn suffered from this, too. Steroids and weaves are one in the same. How ironic.

-It looks better.

 -You look better.
I like seeing natural hair on women. It looks better, it looks better, it looks better. Short black hair looks better than long, beige hair that isn't yours. And some women can't pull long hair off. Their faces are either too fat or too greasy. Not surprising. The time you spend stitching and damaging your scalp can be time used to exercise and take better care of your body. Your hair is a part of your body, treat it as such. That said, I hate the Raggedy Ann hair most black women in commercials go with, it's been about eleven years now. There's more to it than that, white marketers.

-It shows we take pride in ourselves
Now I know that coloring your hair and shaping it all kinds of ways can be fun and stylish, and especially when you're at a party or a cosplay convention. But how many of you actually go to parties and conventions? And really, with some of the outrageous shit I've seen online and in real life, there's no shame to be had, and there's nothing to be proud of. We spend all of this money on synthetic hair and imported extensions from India and Brazil and yet not a single cent comes back to us. Half a fucking trillion dollars spent on our hair and we can't even fund our own schools, banks and grocery stores.

What the fuck is going on??? Why are you women so hellbent on spending so much damn money on something that isn't yours and has to be removed every two weeks or so or it becomes moldy and a threat to your health??? All of that money, and it doesn't come back to us. Why? Do you not see what you're doing? Chris Rock's documentary, Good Hair talks about this. I remember a clip where one idiot called out Chris for exposing 'secrets' about black hair with his film. It's not a secret that's not your actual hair, lady. We all know it's faker than Pam Anderson's tits. It says more about you, really. And I know I may strike a nerve with this post, but I don't care. If you spend $1000 on hair that isn't yours, you're an idiot. If you do not take the initiative to grow it out yourself, and style it, you are lazy and not worth anyone's time. If you think that your natural, nappy black hair is ugly and disgusting, as far as I'm concerned you're part of the problem. I love my nappy negroid hair, and I don't care about appealing to a group of people who already look down on me to begin with.

We all gotta start somewhere, and it's either now or never.