Currently Watching: Good Hair

I got "Good Hair" from Netflix on a whim. I had heard a couple of people recommend this documentary, and thought that I'd be interested to watch it. Chris Rock put together an excellent piece of cultural exploration about what makes "good hair" in the African-American community, and what drives that concept.

A few things stood out to me in this film. First, there is a great deal that, though the specificities were unfamiliar to me, is still deeply human. The desire for something other, be it out of boredom, social pressure, envy, or insecurity. It was ironic to me to watch one actress being interviewed as a proponent of 'natural' hair (her hair is not treated to be relaxed), and to be incredibly jealous of the curl and texture of her own hair. It was exactly the kind of curl I have wanted to have for my own for many years now. Ironic because the texture of my hair is exactly what she was fighting against for herself. This is because hair is relaxed so that it will be "good" - it is relaxed through the use of incredibly dangerous chemicals so that it will have more of the texture of "white" hair. I'm fairly certain that most women (and some men) go through some form of chemical alteration, be it with their hair, their weight or muscular strength, make-up, even emotional. No matter the race or ethnicity, we have all tried to make ourselves different from what we naturally possess.

I have only dyed my hair once (and had it highlighted a few times before that). But I think once was enough. It didn't take very long to be sad that I could not get my natural color back. My own hair is brown with blonde and red highlights. There is no way to make that happen in a bottle. And for two years, I have been waiting to get rid of the red dye. But I am still so very unhappy with my hair: some days it is straight, some days it is wavy, some days it is frizzy, some days there is static. Some days I can't seem to get it all go in the same direction. I get discontent and frustration, and so it is very easy to enter into the story Rock is telling: the lengths to which we go in order to quench our discontentment.

Another part of the movie that stood out to me was a lively conversation Rock held in a barbershop with a dozen or so men. Many women, due to the time and money that goes into their hair, dislike to have it touched - and frankly, who really wants to have their hair touched by strangers? But Rock uses this conversation to explore the ways in which the ideas of "good hair" interferes with intimacy, both of a physical and an emotional kind. Be warned, this section came with a lot of graphic language that some may find offensive. But it was without a doubt the most enlightening part of the documentary: our discontentment, and the lengths we go to in order to make that go away, do in fact get in the way of our relationships. The idea of what we should be destroys what actually is, what is real.

A third note that intrigued me was the notion of "white" - that is, how the use of the word was applied to white and Asian alike. Much of the "human" hair used for weaves comes from India and is sold by Koreans to the African-American community. This is all in the quest for "good" hair - that is, "white" hair. It's always hard to hear that division so blatantly spoken about; I grew up in a generation of white, middle class children who were taught about tolerance and acceptance and I was in college before I ever heard someone actually use the racial slur known as "the N-word" (used by one African-American man to another). I'm not so idealistic to believe that racial hatred and anger doesn't exist - rather, I believe that the heart of every man and woman holds some form of racial pride and arrogance that can seed into a subtle racism at best and genocide at worst.

Still, it's always jarring to me to remember that I'm still on one side, that though I have routinely been told, over and over again, that I shouldn't see any color or race or anything, I'm still "white" in the end. And so I am. My ethnicity is mostly Welsh or British, one great-great (possibly another great) grandfather was Dutch, and there might be some Native American in there somewhere (likely Cherokee). But I'm still white. And like just about any other white American, I'm a mutt. I've got no real ethnic or cultural identity to which I lay claim. So, perhaps that is why it sounds so harsh to my ears to hear others talking about their ethnicity. I dislike using words to tear people down, and am uncomfortable with racial stereotyping when I hear it. But is it so bad to want to keep your ethnic identity? Maybe I don't know the answer to that question because the American identity has overtaken any other. Maybe I do know the answer because I am missing my own ethnic identity.

So I guess it is odd to me to hear Indian, Korean, Chinese, and Japanese alike called "white" when they clearly are not - and I very much doubt they consider themselves to be white. It was interesting to watch Chris Rock interacting with some of the vendors at the Bronner Brothers International Hair Show: when he ascribes an incorrect ethnicity, they would quickly correct him: "We're not Chinese, we're Korean!" He was graciously humble, as I think many of us would like to be, in receiving the simple reprimand. So in this place where so many ethnicities meet together, it is likely that we will step on each other's toes. Maybe there's some legitimate root for frustration... and I've observed that where one group holds a vested interest in something (such as the products used for African-American hair, as well as the business and profit that comes with that industry), they do not care to see another group option it away... and I think that, too, is very human. The question is, what should happen next? What can happen next? Will these differing groups work together? Do they even want to?

I don't have an answer, as I often don't. These are just my thoughts and observations, which means they reflect me. On the whole, this was a well-executed, funny, and thoughtful look at what makes "good hair" and the only reservation I have in recommending it are a couple of scenes with strong language that some may not want to hear. Otherwise, "Good Hair" offers both a human story as well as very unique story: one that will be familiar as well as eye-opening.