I Discovered Self-love through My Hair
My journey of self-love began when I established my definition of beauty and became self-aware with other things around, than just my hair. This journey was not an overnight acceptance. It took time to overcome my low self-esteem, caused by trimming my hair. Accepting my trimmed hair was the beginning of discovering my true self. To help love me more, I had to understand my self-worth.
My Hijab, My Hair, and My Teacher’s Scissors
One Monday morning, just before assembly, the deputy headteacher called me to her office. She said and I quote, “we need you to stop covering your hair. It’s not part of the school uniform. Failure to do so will result to punishment.” Of course, I didn’t think my hijab was an issue, so I removed it for the day. The next day, I just wore it again because it was part of my routine.
An Island Afro-Arab Woman’s (AAW) Hair Story
I am a twenty-eight year old Muslim woman, and in Islam we are only allowed to show our hair to the men who cannot marry us, which for me is my father, my brothers, my kids and when I get married I will be allowed to show my hair to my husband as a part of my beauty. But please do not think that because I wear a hijab that my hair has no story. What you do not see, does not make it invisible or un-influential in my life. In Zanzibar, our hair can be complex, it can tell stories, and it can reveal our histories. Histories of an island culture and multi-ethnic families.
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