We do a pretty good job of keeping each other informed about what’s happening in the health & beauty world, but I want to make an official request for any (legal!) info you have about things happening behind the doors that affect women of color.
What sparked this? Well, a few weeks ago I had a meeting with the top officials of a well-known Illinois-based beauty school. It was in the days leading up to the June Chicago naturals meetup and they wanted to discuss possible partnership opportunities with BGLH. I left the meeting surprised and disappointed at how little the officials knew about natural hair, and how dismissive they were of getting to know more. They basically wanted to use the meetup as an opportunity to recruit for their school, where natural hair isn’t even taught.
At one point, a top beauty instructor said, “We study real hair here, not natural hair.” She didn’t say it to be offensive. She was explaining as best she could, but her choice of semantics really betrayed her ignorance.
I want us to begin to inform each other about decisions being made in the beauty industry that affect us directly. Both good and bad! This isn’t meant to be a witch-hunt, just a wake-up call.
If you have insider tips, please email blackgirllonghair@gmail.com. Put “beauty tips” in your title.
