Don’t Touch My Hair!: A Critical Examination on the Natural Hair Movement in the 21st Century

In the early 1960’s, there was a socio-political movement in the Black people in the United States for them to look more natural through their hair, which lead to the popularization of the afro style during this time. After a few decades, the natural style fell off and many Black women started chemically treating their hair or using excessive heat to straighten it. However, today, natural hair for Black people and non-Black people is a constant topic in social spaces, politics, and pop culture. I would consider this to be a new wave of appreciation for Black hair with a conversation crafted specifically around new thoughts about race in the 21st century. This thesis will examine the views on Black hair both historically and currently in the United States from a sociological lens. For my research, I aim to examine definitions of terms related to Black hair in order to help others learn how Black people understand and speak about their own hair; to explore how the history behind the hair has shaped the current day conversations of Black hair; and the representations of Black hair in literature, film, television, and on the Internet on platforms such as YouTube and Instagram in order to understand how people speak and think about Black hair in the 21st century.