That is our hair. So when a black woman tells me she is not her hair, I think, well actually you are. And this is the second way I want to reflect on this issue. Of course a black woman is her hair. Just as her teeth, blood, sweat, bones, etc., are part of her, so is her hair. A black woman’s hair is part of her DNA. Hair has been used to identify people. For example, hair found at a crime scene can be traced back to the perpetrator who has committed the crime. So how anyone can say they are not their hair mystifies me. The hairstyle a person chooses to wear says a lot about them. For example, a conservative person would never wear a Mohican, whilst a person with a flamboyant personality may not only wear a Mohican but dye it an outrageous colour. Just by seeing this, you decipher something about the person. So, again, people who state, “I am not my hair” really mystify me. But try as I might to get this point over to black women who weave, they just never seem to get it. Then there is the issue of choice. Yes, I totally agree that as human beings, we have the right to make our own choices in life. However, I also believe sometimes, the choices we as individuals make, have to take into account the effect our choices have on others. And I wish women who weave would bear in mind how their choice affects all black women. You see, we live in a world in which we are bombarded with the image of a beautiful woman being one who is European with long hair. For the black woman to be considered beautiful she too must look like her European version. Hence the weaving of false hair. And the bleaching of the skin. Aside from the beauty aspect, there is also this notion that for a black woman to be accepted, both in the workplace and socially she must conform to this look. To be continued