We, of course, would never dream of telling you how to vote. But, one of our clients shared this video with us and we wanted to share it with you. Whether you plan to vote for Barack Obama or not, maybe you can still get some inspiration from his speech. This is a very cool video put together by Will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas. If you want to see how it was done and why it was done, visit www.dipdive.com
We know many of you are waiting for an update on Kim. Kim is an Airman whose story we recently reported to you. As you know, Kim is being pressured by the Air Force to remove her locks which they have chosen to deem “dreadlocks’. Dreadlocks are banned by Air Force regulations. In our opinion, Kim’s commanders have missed the points that a.) dreadlocks is too loose of a term to use in the regulation and b.) by most standards of what a “dreadlock” is, Kim’s hair would not violate the regulation. Dreadlocks are typically free formed locks. Kim’s hair is twisted and has locked. While Kim’s hair is locked, she keeps it in neat cornrows (which are specifically allowed in the regulation). For all practical purposes, Kim’s hair is in cornrows. Her hair is neat and professional and does not interfer with her donning any of her safety equipment. It’s well within regulations in every way possible, except that the commanders have chosen to lump all locked hair into the category of “dreadlocks”. We believe the people who wrote the regulation had something else in mind when they used that term.
We wish we could report Congress has stepped in, the regulation has been changed and Kim and others who are being pressured to change their natural hair have been vindicated. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Kim’s mother reports that Kim has gone to the JAG (legal system in the Air Force) but they cannot help her because they can only get involved if the commander’s decision was not legal. Kim has begun the process of taking out her locks and is still being pressured to do so.
Update on the Update December 14th:
Kim has stopped taking down her locks and is now in communication with an attorney that reached out to her through Treasured Locks. The uniform board has been reading our blog and your comments. We can hope and pray that they will reconsider. Kim feels rejuvenated and again expresses her gratitude for your support.
Kim’s mother has said Kim is aware of the support you have given her and appreciates the emails and the signing of the petition. We have had attorneys volunteer their services and been contacted by at least one reporter. We will continue to track Kim’s situation and report back to you as we can. Meanwhile, do not stop the campaign to get the word out on this. For more details and to see how you can help, read the blog post here: Help Needed- Hair Discrimination In the Military
No matter how you feel about the war, we think it’s important to support those who fight for us. We found out about this great program Xerox is sponsoring which makes saying “Thank you” to our troops as easy as visiting this website and making a few clicks. Please take a moment to check it out:
No matter how one feels about the war, we feel we have an obligation as citizens of such a great nation to support the people who put their lives on the line to support us. Our military people sacrifice being with their loved ones, they sacrifice financially and they risk their very lives. We feel it’s very important to support them.
By visiting and choosing a card, one of our men or women who are serving in the armed forces will receive a little piece of home in the form of a card designed by children. You can put your own greeting on it and let them know we appreciate the sacrifices they are making for us.
Take a look at this young lady. Do you notice anything outrageous about her appearance? Would you describe her as looking anything other than neat and professional? We received an appeal concerning one of our sisters in uniform that we have to pass along to you. This young lady is serving her country and is being threatened with a dishonorable discharge, not over her behavior, but over her hair style. This case is reminiscent of the recent case with the Baltimore police department where certain hair styles were banned by people who clearly did not understand natural Black hair. Thanks to the response of the community, that regulation was overturned. Kim’s hair is neat, clean and professional. But, don’t take our word for it. If a picture is worth 1,000 words, here are 5,000 words (5 pictures) saying that her hair should not be a problem. Here are Kim’s Cornrow Pictures Please take a look at them and decide for yourself. If you decide you want to help, at the end of this post there are instructions for how you can help out.
Every time we write about natural hair versus permed hair we get a huge response from all our clients and readers. We know this topic is near and dear to you. Treasured Locks is here to support Black women and provide information and products to help you be the best you can be whether you decide to rock it straight or natural. I love “I Am Not My Hair” by by India.Arie. My girls and I love to sing at the top of our lungs in the car. The second verse goes like this:
Good hair means curls and waves
Bad hair means you look like a slave
At the turn of the century
Its time for us to redefine who we be
You can shave it off
Like a South African beauty
Or get in on lock
Like Bob Marley
You can rock it straight
Like Oprah Winfrey
If its not what’s on your head
Its what’s underneath and say HEY….
We recently received an email from someone concerned about a huge faux pas made by someone representing Glamour Magazine. The email calls for a boycott against Glamour Magazine in reaction to some remarks made by a representative at a luncheon. If you get such an email, we encourage you to do your own investigation. We clicked on a link in the email to get “the rest of the story”. And while the incident does provide us for a great opportunity for discussion, even here at Treasured Locks, we differing opinions of what the proper reaction should be. What do you think?
Here is an excerpt from the email we received:
I am deeply offended by this editor’s statement as should all women of color (natural or relaxed). I didn’t realize that the way my hair grows out of my head naturally had political implications! I’ve been an avid reader of Glamour over the years, but I propose a permanent STRIKE ON PURCHASING GLAMOUR MAGAZINE. This attack on black women is no different than Imus’ recent “nappy headed hoes” statement and we have to show our financial power by hitting companies like Conde Nast where it hurts the most: their pockets.
If you agree with this strike on GLAMOUR MAGAZINE, please pass this email along to your network of family and friends. Also, if you know of any television show producers, I think it’s time for this issue to go from the web to television.
The offending remarks were made at a presentation to a group of women lawyers. The topic was the dos and don’ts of corporate fashion. Unfortunately, the person making the presentation didn’t understand the dos and don’ts of racial sensitivity.
First slide up: an African-American woman sporting an Afro. A real no-no, announced the Glamour editor to the 40 or so lawyers in the room. As for dreadlocks: How truly dreadful! The style maven said it was “shocking” that some people still think it “appropriate” to wear those hairstyles at the office. “No offense,” she sniffed, but those “political” hairstyles really have to go.
The thing that is shocking is how clueless this presenter was. But, we’ll get around to that later. You can read a more complete accounting of the tale here: Clearly Gottlieb Has A Bad Day Continue Reading >>
Hi, I’m Tywana Smith and I own and operate TreasuredLocks.Com. Treasured Locks is a small, black owned company that sells high quality hair and skin care products, predominantly for the needs of African Americans and people of color. While most of our products are excellent for all hair and skin types, our focus is to make available the best products on the market to people who have special needs. We know you have unique needs and we are here to meet them for you
We chose the name for Treasured Locks for many reasons. First, like treasure, quality hair care products for black people can be hard to find. As more of us move away from areas where there are local stores to cater to our needs, we find ourselves running all over town just to find the basics. Secondly, your Secondly, your hair or your locks is a treasure to you. Our hair has unique requirements, and we must take care of it properly to unlock the beauty contained within. Treasured Locks was created out of my personal frustration with finding quality black hair care products and information on how to care for my family’s hair and skin.
If you know me at all, you know I’m not normally one to call for punishment. I also think I have a pretty good sense of humor. I love all kinds of humor. Things that many others find offensive, I can find the humor in. But, in the case of Don Imus, I’m going to make an exception to both my rules. I’m more than happy to tell you why, just in case you don’t understand why I think this man should lose his job over his “nappy headed hos” remark.
First I have to admit, I am not a Don Imus fan. I have never caught his show. I’ve heard precious little about him up until a couple of days ago. But, I do know this. The man has a mainstream “news” (or entertainment or comedy program) on CBS radio and MSNBC. It’s debatable as to what type of show it is. The line between comedy, news and entertainment has become so fuzzy, it’s hard to tell. But, since the show is put on by CBS and MSNBC as a quasi-news program, I think these companies are responsible for his speech. I understand he’s one of those irascible shock jocks that America seems to love. They seem to me to be a guilt-free way to allow hatred to spew forth under the guise of humor or free speech. I’m cool with that, if that’s your cup of tea. But, Mr. Imus crossed a line (jumped way across it) with his remarks about the young women who play for Rutgers’ University basketball team and for that, he should pay with his job.
Nappy headed hos is just about the worst thing a white man can call a group of young black women. It insults their hair (one thing that Black women are particularly sensitive about). And, it insults their sexuality. It’s racist and sexist all rolled into one. It’s possible that Don Imus is so insensitive and clueless that he didn’t know the impact of the speech he used. But, this is as good a time as any for him (and others to learn). They will only learn if serious consequences are paid by Don Imus. And I think nothing short of NBC and CBS parting ways with him will show just how seriously those corporations take the feelings of the people who watch and listen to their shows.
This is not a free speech issue. If someone wants to put Imus’ tripe on alternative stations, goody for them. He’s free to say what he wants and we’re free to react to what he says. This is my reaction. If NBC and CBS allow this without some very serious consequences, they are complicit in it as far as I’m concerned. I’m hopeful that people will keep pressure on them and bring this situation to the right conclusion.
I’m not naive. I realize that Imus will land somewhere else very soon. I’m guessing probably with a better contract and more freedom to continue with his hate speech. Frankly, if I thought the man was going to starve on the streets I wouldn’t be calling for his firing. I don’t think his remarks rise to that level of punishment. I don’t think he will personally lose any money over this, even if he is fired. I’m doubtful he’s nearly as contrite as his apologies portray him as being or that he’s really understood what he’s done wrong. But, a two week vacation suspension is barely a slap on the wrist. I’d almost rather see them do nothing than to insult the women of Rutgers by pretending a two week suspension means anything. The pattern is clear now. Say whatever outrageous thing you want and the next day issue a “heartfelt” apology outlining how much you’ve learned from the incident and how you’re not “really” a racist/sexist. I’m sick of it. As a black man, this is language I wouldn’t use in a room with my closest friends over a beer. I’ve never called a woman, any woman a “ho”. I can only imagine how I’d feel if my daughter were on that Rutgers basketball team. Looking at Imus and hearing those words come from his mouth, over public airwaves and funded by corporate sponsors brings up some very unpleasant memories of a time most of us do not want to be reminded of.
I’ve heard two excuses for Imus’ behavior and why he should not be fired. I’d like to address both of those here and now. The first thing is that black rappers use this type of language all the time with no repercussions and that the black community itself calls black people “niggers and hos”. So, they say, everybody should be held to the same standard. As far as I’m concerned, a racist remark by a radio host on a mainstream program and the lyrics of a rap song or something said by a comedian somewhere are two very different issues. As soon as Snoop Dog gets a radio show and makes a remark like that, I’ll call for him to be fired, too. We need to deal with the verbal violence committed by blacks on blacks every day. But, that does not excuse Imus or give him permission to use this type of insulting, racist, degrading language. White people have to understand that the problems within our community do not give them permission to pile on. If you don’t understand the language you’re using and the implications of it, don’t use it. Ignorance is not an excuse for someone in Imus’ position. Others being equally guilty is no excuse either.
The second reason I’ve heard why Imus should be allowed to slide by is the people who are going after him (Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton) are no better than he is. I’m not going to get into how I feel about Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton other than to say I never voted for either of them to represent me. And, that I hate to take the same side with them on just about any issue. But, that is a completely separate issue. I don’t care about who is calling for Imus’ resignation or firing and he should not be able to slip by on this issue simply because the credibility of some of his accusers might be suspect.
Racism and sexism are still big problems in America even while institutionalized racism has largely been eliminated. NBC and CBS putting up with this type of speech is not acceptable. Every once in a while we get the opportunity for an educational moment. This is one of those opportunities. For a white man to call a group of young black women hos (and nappy headed hos at that) from a public platform needs to have serious consequences. We need to send a clear signal that we will marginalize this type of speech and that it is not acceptable in the public forum. I don’t see anything short than a “Here’s your hat, there’s the door, Mr. Imus.” as a clear enough message.
In case you missed it, here’s a link to the actual comment made by Don Imus:
Disney has announced they are finally adding a Black princess to the tremendously popular line-up of Disney princesses that we and our little girls grew up with. Production has started on “The Frog Princess” the first Disney movie to feature an African-American princess. In a tribute to New Orleans and the resiliency of that city, the story will be set in the recovering Louisiana city.
Also interesting in this film is that it will be the first hand-drawn movie released by Disney since Disney pledged to return to the traditional animation that made the company a household name.
Rumors about the story-line for “The Frog Princess” are flying. But, apparently, Disney is keeping it under pretty tight wraps. Whatever (well not what ever) the storyline is, I’m just glad to finally see an African-American Disney princess. Disney is a huge influence in our society and our little girls have had no one in the line-up that looked like them. In 1999 Disney collected the princesses under the name of Disney Princesses and has put out books, clothes, toys, furniture and other merchandise targeted for girls from the ages of 3 years to 8 years. Those eight princesses have brought in about $3 billion for Disney. But, a Black princess has been conspicuous by her absence. Finally, about 10 years after launching the Disney Princess line, a Black princess will be in it.
“The Frog Princess” will feature Maddy, an African American princess. Disney began diversifying its princess line up in 1992 when Jasmine appeared in “Aladdin”. Jasmine was a middle-eastern princess. In 1995, Disney featured Pocahontas, an American Indian. Three years after that, Mulan, a Chinese heroine appeared. The other princesses rounding out the line-up are Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Belle from “Beauty and the Beast” and Ariel from “The Little Mermaid”. Maddy has finally made it to the big time.
This is an update to an earlier post on an unfair grooming policy that targeted natural African American hair styles From the petition page- “Jan 18th: The Baltimore Police Dept has officially RESCINDED the policy against natural hair styles. The new policy is now in effect. African American natural hairstyles are no longer considered fads and banned under the new policy.The affected officers of the BPD Thank you for all your support. in helping to reverse this policy in the name of freedom and acceptance. I also thank you all for supporting these officers and remember to ALWAYS be diligent!
We were recently made aware of a grooming policy going into effect this month at the Baltimore Police Department. This policy is insensitive at best and racist at worst. We wanted to make you aware of it. Nappturality has put up a petition you can sign and listed email address of several Baltimore city officials that you can contact to make them aware of what you think of this new policy.
The policy prohibits the wearing of “extreme and fad hairstyles” by employees. This description includes:
cornrows
mohawks
dreadlocks (not my word, but theirs)
twists
designs or sculptures made with the hair or cut into the hair
Is beauty really in the eye of the beholder, or is what we are supposed to find beautiful drilled into our heads from the time we enter into society? As women of color, this question is especially pertinent as many of us chase the Eurocentric image of beauty that is thrust upon us. Just look at what trying to be the European image of beauty has done to Michael Jackson to see the most obvious example of this distorted image gone horribly wrong. For Black people trying to chase the Caucasian image of beauty there is a great deal of danger. Great physical, psychological and even spiritual damage can be inflicted. But, most women and many men- Black, White, Hispanic and Asian struggle to walk the line between being the best we can reasonably be and accepting ourselves as beautiful the way that God made us.
No one can find fault with common grooming tasks like combing our hair, showering, a pluck of a hair or two there. But, how much is too much? Plastic surgery? Dying our hair? Permanent relaxers? How far do we go? What does it mean to be happy with the way we are and to find beauty in the way we were made? A recent short film put out (ironically) by Dove (not the chocolate and ice cream people but the beauty people) has been getting quite a bit of buzz on the Internet. In the film, we see a plain-Jane type of girl as she goes through the miracle transformation into a bill-board model. The transformation includes makeup, hair, lighting and then a pretty nice job with PhotoShop to stretch her eyes, lips, neck, etc. to totally unrealistic, but “beautiful”, proportions that women then try to emulate. Take a peek at the film and see what you think.
Black women outspend other women by a factor of two to six times (depending on which source you believe) when it comes to hair care. While we represent less than 10% of the population, we spend most of the money spent on hair care in this country. A black woman will take care of her hair- no matter what the cost. Hair care is deeply embedded in our culture as India.Arie so eloquently described in “I Am Not My Hair”. This is tremendous spending power that is being spent largely outside of our community. The vast majority of the money spent by black women on their hair is going to large white-owned corporations, and to Asians who have effectively cornered the market on distribution and retail of black hair care products. As a black owned company servicing the black community, this is something we are obviously interested in and concerned about. How did things get this way? Is there anything we can do about it? Should we do something about it? Why should you even care? In this article, we will address all of these questions.The first question we will address is “Why should you care?” If you’re getting the products you need at a good price, should you be concerned with who you are buying them from? This needs to be considered from two perspectives. First, there is the cost/benefit to you of doing something different than what you are doing today. Secondly, there is your responsibility, if any, to the community.We established Treasured Locks in April of 2002 because we simply could not find high quality products for African Americans in our neighborhood or city. Living in a largely white area, when we went to the local drug stores and grocery stores to find products, we found a huge variety of products for Caucasians, ranging from poor quality to pretty good and some even very good. But, when it came to African-American beauty products, we found an extremely limited selection and the products that were on the shelves were mostly full of cheap fillers. Even the local beauty supply store sent us to the “Asian beauty supply stores” located in the Black neighborhoods. When we ventured over to the Asian beauty supply stores, we found not much better quality (if any better) products and a lack of service. The people behind the counter knew nothing about our hair care needs and concerns. Wanting the best products for our hair and skin, we chose not to settle for the inferior products we were being offered and turned to an alternative source (the Internet) to get a greater selection. Today, after having had our business for a few years, we receive emails from women on a daily basis thanking us for providing them good information on their hair and skin care needs and for providing them with choices of products that are actually good for them. We also find that even with brands such as Black Opal that are distributed nationally, that many local stores don’t carry the entire line or have dropped Black Opal entirely. Women write to us thanking us for making these products available to them again. Our customers have found that they can have choices not being offered in their local stores by shopping with us. They have also found that they can find experts to talk with who share their experiences and can give them advice.
If you can find the products you need (quality and selection) at your local Asian Beauty Supply store, should you go out of your way to buy them somewhere else? How far should you go? How much more should you pay? Only you can answer those questions. A running poll on BOBSA shows that most of the women who answer the poll say they will make at least some effort to buy from black owned companies. But, polls are often skewed simply by who the people are being polled. The women answering the poll on BOBSA’s site are a.) on the Internet and b.) on a website all about trying to improve the situation of Black Suppliers in the beauty industry. We think that skews the results. Our intuition tells us the broader population buys from the source that is the least expensive and most convenient. And, more than ninety percent of the time that is going to be the Asian Beauty Supply store on the corner or the White-owned grocery or drug store. We are big believers in capitalism and the American way of life. We think the free market is a wonderful thing. It presents us with almost unlimited choices and opportunity as both consumers and as business people. But, we believe that there are also responsibilities that go along with being a consumer. Are you spending your dollars wisely? When you spend your money is your spending in line with your values? You might not have considered how buying a bottle of shampoo or a relaxer is a moral decision. But, on some level, it is. We prefer to patronize businesses that are in our “community”, all things being equal. Community can be geographical (we prefer local merchants over national chains) or along class lines (being entrepreneurs, we like spending with entrepreneurs) or racial lines (we prefer to shop with black owned businesses). As a company, most of our suppliers are black owned companies. Personally, we consciously avoid certain corporations even though their prices might be cheaper and they have the same products as others simply because of the way they treat their employees or the community or even their customers. We’re not masochistic about it. Ultimately, we end up doing what is best for us. But, when we’re deciding where we’re going to spend our hard-earned cash, the supplier’s values and position in the community is one of the factors we take into consideration.
The state of the ethnic hair care market is this. Currently, the market is about $1.5-2.0 billion/year in the United States. Black hair care products make up the largest single group of this market. Given that the Black community is economically disadvantaged, if we could buy from and sell products to ourselves, this would be a great way to help ourselves out of the hole we are in. We trail in business ownership, income, wealth and in just about every economic category there is. By sending our hair care dollars out of the community, we are passing up a tremendous opportunity to help ourselves. What has happened is mostly White-owned companies manufacture the products we buy and Asians distribute and retail the products. We even have a term for their beauty supply stores- “Asian beauty supply stores”. Even here in mid-America (Cincinnati, OH), Asian beauty supply stores dominate the landscape. Walk through the black neighborhoods of any city and you’re likely to see the same thing. For the most part, Treasured Locks buys directly from manufacturers. But, on those occasions where we have had to buy through distributors, our experience has been the great majority of them have been Asian owned and operated. And, most of our experiences have not been pleasant. Coincidence? The Koreans have done a wonderful job of creating their own supply chain and helping each other into the chain while effectively keep African-Americans out. They do a great job of taking care of their own. Some have accused the Asians of racism and predatory businesss practices. Some of that may be true. But, our view is, for the most part, they have been shrewd business people and we have simply handed the market to them. When a large African-American owned ethnic manufacture does manage to spring up it seems that inevitably they end up selling out to large White-owned corporations who see the value of the market that, for the most part, Black people are not stepping up to serve. In April 2002, we founded Treasured Locks for several reasons, one of which was to be a Black-owned company serving the Black community. As a small company with limited resources, we cannot go head-to-head with the established corporations who are placing their products on your grocery store or drug store shelves or even with the Asian Beauty Supply stores in the Black neighborhoods. One of the questions we get on a daily basis is “Can I buy your products locally?”. The answer is “Not yet.”. But, we have found a niche that we think we fill nicely and will expand as our growth allow us to. Through the Internet, we have found a way to serve our community, to help a few small manufacturers that we represent and, hopefully, to provide a living for our family and to raise productive members of the community (our children).
We find the term “Asian Beauty Supply Store” to be extremely ironic. And, frankly, annoying. Do they supply products to the Asian community? No. The vast majority of their clientele is Black. Where else do you hear of a store called by a term, not based on what it sells or to whom they sell it, but named for the ownership of the store? We think this is a sad state of affairs and would like to see this trend reversed, if possible. If you’re interested, there are a couple of videos available that document this in much more detail. One is the Black Hair Care DVD available for purchase at: http://blackhairdvd.com/ and for viewing free at You Tube (it’s in several installments including periodic updates). If this link doesn’t work, go to YouTube and do a search on Aron Ranen and/or Black Hair Documentary. Another is also on YouTube. Some claim this isn’t “fair” that Koreans have taken over the market. But, we’re not even going to go there. The fact is they have, and the question is “What, if anything, are we going to do about it?. It begins with awareness and education. We hope that this article will prompt you to think about whether you choose to do anything about it and what you will do. If Black people vote with our dollars, we can effect a change in this situation. We are certainly not powerless. Money talks!
There is an organization called BOBSA (Black Owned Beauty Supply Association) that is attempting to do something about the state of the Black Beauty Supply industry. We learned of BOBSA through viewing the Black Hair DVD. The idea sounds promising. But, a review of BOBSA’s website didn’t instill us with a lot of confidence that the organization has a solid plan for correcting things in the industry. This is not a criticism of BOBSA. But, we have joined other organizations and paid dues that just seemed to go into a black hole. So, admittedly, we’re a little skeptical. We plan to keep our eye on BOBSA to see if anything we find worthwhile comes out of it. We’re hoping it will.
So, what are we asking from you? First, of all, just to be aware of the state of things and to be conscious about the decisions you make. We are not suggesting you boycott Asian Beauty Supply Stores or stop buying your favorite L’Oreal or other products. We’re not asking you to break the bank to buy from Black companies. If you can find your favorite shade of Black Opal lipstick at your corner store for less than you can buy it from us, there’s no reason for you to pay more to us. We are asking that you consider giving Black owned businesses a chance and to consider other factors besides just price when making your purchasing decisions. Ultimately, if a Black owned business is not providing you with any value, you are not doing anyone any favors by buying from them- because they will not be in business long. Treasured Locks makes an effort to provide value in several ways- great products, great selection, personalized service, availability anywhere in the country, availability of information and advice, etc.
We hope you find this helpful. If you’d like permission to reprint this article or post it on your website, please contact us through our website.
Regardless of how one feels about the war in Iraq, we think it’s important to support our troops. The men and women who put their lives on the line for us every day deserve our unwavering admiration, unending prayers and our support.
We have found an organization that we would like to make you aware of. It’s called Soldier’s Angels and it gives several ways you can support our troops. They range from just writing them occasionally, to sending care packages to donating money to buy things like voice-activated laptop computers for soldiers who have been disabled.
You’ll find several “operations” listed on the site. The organization has found several needs and creates specific project to address them. Look around to see if there are any that really speak to you. Here are a couple of links to get you started.
We’ve been huge fans of India.Arie since her first album came out and we heard the song Video. India is not only a talented musician, she’s got a great spirit. Her lyrics are inspirational, spiritual and positive. As the parents of two little girls, we are glad to have a positive black female role model that we can listen to her music with our daughters.
Recently, we picked up India’s new CD Testimony Volume 1, Life & Relationship. While her other two albums are excellent, this is the best one to date. Tonight, my favorite song from the album “I Am Not My Hair (click to read the lyrics)” is going to be featured on a Lifetime Movie called “Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy”. It airs at 9pm (sorry for the late notice). The song featured in the movie is a version done with Pink (not the one on the album). Check out the album version video here. For more on the Lifetime movie, click here.
We can’t recommend India’s album highly enough. All of the songs are positive, uplifting and moving. Wings of Forgiveness is another standout song. But, given our profession and the impact that a black woman’s hair can have on her self-esteem, I Am Not My Hair has a special place in our hearts. We’re sure you’ll love it, too.
