The Journey to Natural Hair
February is a special month not only because it's Black History Month, but also because it is the month in which I celebrate my anniversary of breaking free from the "creamy crack." This year will mark my sixth year of being au naturale. Although I am thrilled to be relaxer free, the journey I took to get here wasn't easy. For some, the decision to go natural is deeply thought out, as it symbolizes a statement of one's identity as an African American with no European influence. There are a lot of people who believe that those who are relaxed are trying to be white. Perhaps some are, but for me, the issue really wasn't that deep. As a child, I saw relaxers more as a right of passage than anything else. My grandmother was relaxed, my mother was relaxed, and my older sisters were relaxed. In addition, most of my friends were relaxed, so of course, I wanted to be
relaxed too.
