By What I love about browsing through blogs and other social media platforms are the comment sections. I love feedback. They are like another post on their own. Let’s be frank, sometimes the comments are even more fun to read than the real article! I can’t resist scrolling down to read the viewers’ opinions after watching a video on YouTube or reading an article on Yahoo. Always a delight (excluding all the useless trolls and spammers of course).
Lately however, I can’t help but notice the shade negative feedback from bloggers readers and just the general public towards black women who have been adventurous enough to play with different hair colours (ie blonde).
Here are a few excerpts from the web in which readers comment on Beyonce’s cascade of blonde locks.
‘Every woman of colour has an important social and cultural history that cannot simply be bleached away or denied by the use of hair straighteners. That’s why I passionately believe that Beyonce’s ignorance of how this betrays her heritage is so insidiously damaging to all peoples of colour,’ writes Yasmin Alibhai-Brown in the Daily Mail.
-She is a black girl. What happened to embracing brown or even black hair ? Beyonce has had black and brown weaves before and has looked simply amazing (even the haters would agree) …. Can black girls wear blonde hair or does it look contrived and fake? — Charcoal Ink
And this other comment from a reader on Stylist: ‘She didn’t go blonde; she went Caucasian. African American women are uniquely beautiful. Why do some of them want to become white? I miss the African American women of the 70’s who embraced their natural beauty. Oh, and I’m a white girl, by the way.’
Okay, have any of these people ever heard of freedom of expression or the freedom to choose? Why should brown or black be the only option? I personally believe art is expression. Each person is a package and if you think going blonde represents your whole person better, then nothing should stop you.
Since when did getting bleached hair mean a person was betraying their roots/race? Granted, bleached hairstyles will give the illusion of brighter skin but as long as you are not using any artificial lighteners to change your complexion, what’s the big deal?
I strongly believe in, if the shoe fits wear it. If you can pull it off, go blonde. Hell, go platinum! If it doesn’t suit you, fashion blogs will give you a thumbs down but who cares? That’s what they’re there for.
Eve, Rihanna, Mary J Blige and Nicki Minaj have all rocked (and slayed, mind you) the bleach blonde look. They werked the hell out of those wigs.
Like everything else in life, this look will not suit everyone. Trust me, I have seen people whose blonde tryouts failed and they ended up looking like the Wicked Witch from the West, bless them; but I have also seen several bloggers and Instagrammers (new word?) slaying this look and frankly I wish I could pull it off. It is gorge!
People are scared of change. We see a ‘black blondie’ and immediately we’re thinking, ‘Bitch is trying to look white’. Who makes these rules anyways? In the same way, we see a white girl in box braids to die for and go, ‘She probably thinks she’s black.’
What if Cinderella had box braids or Snow White had corn rows? Imagine Goldilocks was a black girl with golden locks…
Then what we consider outrageous and out of order today should have been completely normal because we would have been ‘familiar with the concept’.
I am strongly anti allocating hairstyles to specific races. I am black but that does not restrict me certain hair colours.
What is your point of view?
I came across Saiharii. She is into Gyaru which is Japanese fashion. If I had porcelain skin like hers, I’d definitely be in to Gyaru. Girl you look dreamy. I love!
Visit Saihairii’s blog here www.saihariigyaru.tumblr.com.
What is your opinion on this? Is this look a betrayal of one’s background or just a harmless and fun expression of style?
Love and Light xx
afro hair colourblack hairstylesblack weave stylesblack women in blonde hairblonde blacks stylesdye weaveEva Marcilleevegoldilocksgyarumary j bligeNicki Minajplatinum hairstylesrihannasaiharii
Ifeoma
March 2, 2013I love the way you write. I agree with you about tying specific hairstyle to certain races – it’s not right and I do it sometimes as well, guess its something we need to get used to. I love Eva’s short hair, if i could bleach my hair and look that good then I would but I won’t because I can picture what I’d look like lol. Lovely post. xx
http://www.duchessfifi.wordpress.com
Ify.
MsAidyl
March 2, 2013It’s all about what we can ans what we can’t pull off. If only i could pull off that Eva’s hairdo…
thanks!
barbie sean
March 8, 2013Amerie, Rihanna, Queen B… love it! they are representing.. And Saihairri is phenomenal..
MsAidyl
March 8, 2013very flawless
Linda
March 12, 2013I dont like this whole responsibility thing that comes with being a celebrity, its like a person can not celebrate their own individuality without being question or ridiculed for it.
These women look beautiful and the should enjoy playing with what God gave them, they shouldn’t be chosen for. The colour of your hair does not change who you are inside.
MsAidyl
March 12, 2013thank you! my thoughts exactly
Vintage
April 28, 2013I love blonde hair on dark skin. I think it has nothing to do with wanting to be white. I love my dark skin but I also love the contrast that blonde hair on dark skin gives. If you can pull it off then shoot for it! try it, wear it, work it, play with it. However a lot of these stars also lighten their skin (if you say no then you’re ignorant) and so with lightening their skin AND hair, it really is giving off a not so good note about black women & as the white girl said, they’re not going blonde, they’re going Caucasian. Besides that, I think that Nicki and Amerie look gorgeous with their blonde locks. It somehow makes Nicki look more elegant, or is that just her new style in all? Either way, I love the look!
Sonya
May 27, 2013I love the blonde…all do respect if a white girl can dye her natural hair color to blonde so can other girls. We all the same and so we all may like the same t;hing at times
francine
June 5, 2013I was born with blonde hair yet what everyone does not get is celebrity or not celebrity why can’t you were what the Good Lord gave you because action speaks louder than words what hey are really saying is they don’t want to wear the real hair that God has given them yet this is the way all of this generation is better being a fake somebody than a real nobody.I don’t want to wear another look for an expression come on people give me a break and stop apologizing and defending the lie instead of the truth.The black women should wear their own hair that God has giving them guess they don’t want to.
Brittany
October 2, 2013some black women are born with blonde hair (myself included) its actually really frustrating when people ask my why I dye my hair even after I tell them th.ey assume iam a liar but don’t generalize one whole race if you don’t know all the facts let alone judge people because they want to do what they think looks best on them. God also said not to judge
Alexandra
March 17, 2014It’s ridiculous that people would even call this a betrayal of identity, your identity is not what you look like it’s who you are! I don’t dye my hair because I want to hide my heritage, i’m mixed race, caucasion/west Indian and I love that! Best of both! But my god dark hair can get so boring! I’m considering dying it platinum, blue or pink at the moment seeing as I got bored of red, light brown and purple… just stop being so judgemental, people are reading far more into things than they need to, in a world full of options why shouldn’t we be able to explore? Thoughts that limit people should be kept inside those who are limiting themselves thank you very much!
leandra
January 15, 2014I think it is a betryal of background. do yu see other races walking around with afro hair pieces? and I am sorry, the girl with the blonde hair and blue eyes clearly has some identity issues 🙁
princess siwela
September 27, 2016hahahaaha its just hair. people are so uptight with reinforcing what races should look like, its just a pointless and contradictory exercise to take up. i mean really by enforcing ‘my culture not yours’ we are just embracing subtle racism. let people be beautiful so long as they are not trash talking about cultures they are emulating or appreciating.
richard
February 10, 2015People do what they want to do and people will always judge. Can a black woman with blonde hair look good? I suppose. Can it be it artistic? Maybe. Does it look contrived & fake & like they are trying too hard? Too me it does. It looks like biological appropriation. It looks like a desperate cry for attention from the American stand of beauty police. African American people have lost a substantial part of their culture & it’s sad because the heritage of a people should be embraced. I still support people’s right to express themselves how they want to, but when someone tries too hard aesthetically, I can’t help but to see the void inside that they are trying to hide because they aren’t comfortable enough to reflect the beauty that was given to them by mother nature.
Eva
February 6, 2016There is a fine line between losing identity and just having fun. The people making comments on how Black Girls should not have blonde hair are needless to say threatened, jealous or ignorant. You can tell by the tone of there writing. Controlling , also self conscious. They feel it must be only one reason black girls are doing this without even taking in any other scenarios . For example: Solomon Islands? Anybody even take the time to realize that they are a real African Group of People right now,who are Vary Dark skinned,but Born with Blonde hair. So if you say black girls, who live here in the Americas are (African ) Americans are they not actually going back or exploring more closely there own roots anyway? Can they not play around with another part of there own heritage. Or how about the Africans they call Albeamers /Maasai or Red-headed Africans that also are Born like that from genetics and sun exposure, and have natural blue eyes. Would you tell them they are trying to be white? Should they dye there hair dark to fit in to look like what people are telling them they should look like. What all the other Africans look like? What your simple view of beauty should look like. That black people are only born with Dark hair? And even if they wanted to dye it ( like some of them do with red clay) who cares. We are able to share our air space on this earth with each other for a vary short time. So why not have fun. Don’t take life so seriously. Yes, there are some who might do it for the wrong reasons but it’s there life.They have a life so maybe it’s time you should find yours too.
princess siwela
September 27, 2016hair does not define culture. practices do.
Monica Gaye Lee
June 2, 2018Most of my beautiful black sisters that I saw in variuos blonde shades wear it beautifully and look just as beautiful than any other women that I have seen as blondes. Keep on wearing it my Sisters because you are Beautiful in it and it on you!!!
Sarah Angel
August 23, 2018I am a 57 year old black woman. I wear my hair in a short blonde afro. My hair is naturally curly so it is very pretty I’ve been told. I have no problem being a black woman. I just like the color. Plus it brings out my brown eyes. Sometimes you just want to “Pop & Perk Up”. My hair goes with my spunky personality.