Are you a natural living outside of America? Submit your profile to blackgirllonghair@gmail.com
Where are you from?
S: I was born and raised in a village in Rhineland-Palatinate but currently I’m living in Duisburg which is a big city in West Germany. My mom is German and my dad is from Antigua, so I’m mixed. Right now I’m going to school to become a state-qualified commercial assistant with languages
Duisburg is a big city on the Rhine close to Düsseldorf and Cologne. Duisburg has a big harbor where you can do a lot of things e.g. visit a museum or Legoland, drive a boat or just sit in a café. If you go to the center of the city you will see a lot of Turkish people and shops.
The Duisburg harbor at night
What is the natural hair scene like in your country?
S: In my opinion there is no natural scene here. Most Africans and mixed girls wear their hair in weave or relaxed. But lately I see some mixed girls at my age (19) with their natural hair. My natural hair is accepted by my family and friends. My parents even like my curls more than my relaxed hair before. They don’t want me to relax my hair ever again.
When did you go natural?
S: I had my last relaxer in January 2006 and I’m completely natural since March 2008.
I went natural because my hair was breaking off and I had too much hair loss because I was also dyeing my hair. Before my relaxer I had very long hair (waist length) and I want to go back to this again! I was transitioning for over one year and it was really hard for me because many times I wanted to relax my hair again so I kept my hair in protective styles. When I finally cut my hair in March 2008 I was very happy that I did it.
I get many compliments especially from white people! They always want to touch my hair and tell me that it’s gorgeous. I always wear my hair different even before my hair was natural. I wear it in braids, cornrows, weaves almost everything and everybody loves it!
What would you like to see in your country in terms of natural hair?
S: An important issue is that we don’t have enough shops where you can buy products for kinky hair. We only have afroshops in big cities! So if you live in a village like I used to before you have to drive far to the next big city or order your products online. I’m glad there’s an online shop now which sales natural hair products but I’d prefer to buy my natural products in a shop around the corner. Another point is that we don’t have any hair salons in Germany where you can cut your natural hair. And of course I’d like to see more naturals at any age.
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Scarlett is a member of the BGLH forum! Check it out HERE.
