HOW WE HAVE BEEN MADE TO "KILL " BLACK WOMEN SLOWLY AND PAINFULLY

Our system has been structured to victimize and kill the confidence of our women without us realizing it. We are a part of the problem but we do not seem to know that the problem even exists. Relax and read as I take you back through time and reveal to you the very things you and I have been doing that have resulted in killing the self esteem of many black women. Some women who could not handle the shame resort to committing suicide among other things.



The African woman has always loved wearing her own hair. This is evident in archaeological pieces and also in history embedded in folklore that has been passed down from generation to generation. The Ethiopians of old, ancient Egyptians and even the preserved images of the earliest slaves to arrive from Africa to the West Indies indicate that the black woman has always loved to wear her own hair.

 So what then has changed? Today, many African women are subjected to moral condemnation and emotional torture by society for the mere action of wearing hair or trying to look beautiful. How did we get to this point at the first place? I bet you never asked yourself this question.



Africa between the 18th and 19th century AD, faced imperialist aggression, diplomatic pressures, military invasions, and eventual conquest and colonization by European powers. By the early twentieth century however, much of Africa with the exception of Ethiopia had been colonized by European powers.

In an attempt to colonize not only the land but also the minds of the inhabitants, the colonialist sought to take away the identity and pride of the African people.

The Europeans in order to achieve this agenda to permanently colonize the minds of their subsidiaries enforced a barrage of regulations in the earliest schools here in Africa and also in other institutions. The African child for instance was asked to keep his or her hands by their sides whilst singing. 

This was very difficult for the African children whose society was more accustomed to drumming and dancing to complement their songs. One other very important rule the then Europeans implemented was for African children to keep their hair short. There are two main reasons why the Europeans wanted Africans to keep short hair. 

Firstly, they were scared of the locked hair that many of the Africans kept hence the name “dreaded locks” which was later corrupted to “dread locks”. The second reason behind this rule was the plot to take away the Africans’ identity and make the Africans vulnerable to “mental colonization”. These new rules and regulations were systematically introduced and enforced until the Africans accepted them and are now seeing them as the norm.

All of this happened centuries ago. The colonial masters had left and the individual nations of African have each seen the light of independence. One will expect the African to return to being him or herself. 

The perception that things have gone back to normal is therefore the reason why society to misplaces its anger and judgement by condemning hardworking black ladies for wearing fake hair, fake eye lashes, fake nails and the likes. Society on the other hand has failed at its core mandate; the obligation to protect each and every one of its members.



In Ghana, the Ghana Education Service still maintains the colonial rule that require every black student to keep short hair. The ladies therefore keep short hair from kindergarten until they complete senior high school. Most girls after Senior high school try to grow their own hairs before entering the respective tertiary institutions that may offer them admission in the future. 

On many occasions, a good majority of this ladies are unable to grow their own hair before having to enroll in their respective tertiary institutions. They are therefore left with one and only one option; to wear fake hair. Sometimes, they wear this "fake" hair until they are able to grow their own hair.



Why then do we continue to blame the poor women who just happen to be victims of society’s indecision and incompetence? Why can’t we use the same zeal and passion to tell the authorities who are failing these women to rather amend their archaic rules and regulations that seek to victimize our women?

 The black woman can no longer live with the constant shaming and systematic killing. That is why we must stand up for them. Instead of "killing" them, we must help them to live and to regain the confidence we have caused them to lose.



As a man, have you ever shamed a Ghanaian woman for wearing fake hair? As a woman, have you ever been shamed for wearing fake hair? Will you ever shame a black woman for wearing fake hair again? Was this article helpful? Kindly let me know in the comments section and remember that your feedback helps me to improve.