Curl Stylist Sydnei Cave grew up with a lot of the same "curl wisdom" as many women of color. Oil your scalp, braid your hair, use relaxers. But, as she became educated in hair science and curl styling, Syd increasingly understood that those approaches were based in a philosophy of beauty generations before her had adopted as a legacy of slavery. First, absorbing society's attempts to keep women of African descent as "tame" as possible, to control them and then, as Black women in the United States fought for civil rights, to present themselves as close to whiteness as possible to be taken seriously, and be heard. While she understands and respects the experiences of her elders, Syd is part of a generation which sees--and is starting to do--things differently.

On this episode of the Curl Code, Oasis Curl Salon's youngest stylist educates Wafaya on how far her vision of natural hair has come since her childhood, and how she thinks her generation, and hopefully one day, the world, will see things differently.

MORE from this episode:

Ubuntu: an African philosophical concept of oneness popularized to English-speakers by Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Sometimes translated as “I am because you are,” it is part of a Zulu phrase, “Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu”, meaning that a person’s personhood only exists through other people.

The CROWN Act: The CROWN Act, which stands for “Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair,” is currently being adopted on a state by state basis to ban hair-based discrimination at schools and workplaces. Braided twists or locs, “as long as style is neat in appearance” are allowed for women–but not men–in the military.

Relaxer lawsuits

Hair Relaxer Cancer Lawsuit | Potential Settlement Amounts

https://www.consumersafety.org/product-lawsuits/hair-relaxers/

Dozens of lawsuits claim hair relaxers cause cancer and other health problems | US news | The Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/06/loreal-hair-relaxer-lawsuit-cancer

US woman files lawsuit against L'Oréal, claiming chemical hair straightening products are linked to her cancer | CNN

https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/24/health/hair-straightening-products-lawsuit/index.html