The Politics of Black Hair: Using Children’s and Young Adult Literature to Teach and Affirm Black Identity

By Tiffeni Fontno

Hair plays a vital role in a Black person’s identity, especially as Black children grapple with understanding how they belong. Historically, Black hairstyles originating from Africa could identify a region, a person’s age, religion, or status in society, and in some cultures, hair has spiritual connections (Dabiri, 2020).

Reintroduced into the conversation through The Crown Act, even in education, Black hair has been policed through discriminatory school codes and policy standards, widening the marginalization against culturally inclusive, responsive, and sustainable identity practices. 

Black hair has been subjected to colorism, discrimination based on color, and texturism; the belief that certain hair textures are better than others. Based on enslavement and Western standards of beauty,  the idea of "good hair," straight more European, and "bad hair," hair that is curlier and kinkier, creates a standard of sociocultural standards that are a source of contention to this very day (Byrd, 2001). 

Culturally responsive teaching involves incorporating culture, knowledge, language, perspectives, and experiences into the curriculum and instruction for more engaging and meaningful learning experiences (Ladson-Billings, 2009). Educators may not be culturally proficient or prepared through teacher education programs to connect with the nuances of relationship building and teaching diverse student populations (Gay, 2002). In this post, I share books and resources for educators to learn and understand the importance of the representation and appreciation of Black hair for students from kindergarten through-8th grade. 

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History

The Story of Afro Hair (Upper-Elementary-High School) 
Centered from a Black British perspective, Chimbiri’s non-fiction book The Story of Afro Hair sensitively tells a detailed account of the history of Black hair. This stylized journey details hairdos, products, innovations, the science of Black hair, and the philosophy behind styles, like locks. 

Also included in the back matter are a glossary and additional references.

Cornrows (Elementary-Middle School) 
Cornrows is a fictional story that intertwines and connects the history and pride of Black culture through hair design. Released in 1997, Yarbrough's book, told through the storytelling of Great-Grammaw, inspires pride, hope, and courage. 

Both books provide an entryway to a discussion on Black hairstyles, through cultural understanding and historical significance. 

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Hair Care

Bedtime Bonnet (Elementary) 
Nancy Redd’s Bedtime Bonnet shows the Black experience of the nighttime hair routine, which many people of African descent experience. The illustrator Nneka Myers does a beautiful job showing the different textures of hair and preparation.

Know your Hairitage: Zara’s Wash Day (Elementary-Middle School)
Know your Hairitage: Zara’s Wash Day by Zenda Walker and illustrated by Princess Karibo tells the story of Zara, who is frustrated by the weekly ritual of wash day and not having silky straight hair. While doing Zara’s hair, her Mom explains the cultural significance and connection of different styles to regions of Africa and the Rastafari influence, which gives Zara a greater appreciation of her identity. The back matter has a glossary of hairstyles, geographical and cultural terms. 

Hair Love (Elementary)
Hair Love by Matthew Cherry follows a father who bravely takes on the challenge of doing his daughter Zuri’s hair for the first time. Using online video tutorials this story shows, dad navigating products and accessories to try and create the perfect hairdo to make Zuri happy.

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International Books

The following books provide insight into Black hair stories and perspectives beyond America to understand the prevalence of Black hair stigma and culture internationally.

​Bad Hair Does Not Exist!/Pelo Malo No Existe! (Elementary-Middle School) 
Author Sulma Arzu-Brown's bilingual book uses different phrases to describe kinky, curly hair to counter the negativity of the term ‘pelo malo’ while instilling pride and self-worth. This book is framed through the Afro-Latinx perspective and identity. Arzu-Brown words are culturally affirming throughout the story by reiterating that bad hair doesn’t exist. 

Bintou’s Braids (Elementary-Middle School)
Bintou’s Braids by Sylvaine A. Diouf, is the Senegalese story of a young girl who impatiently wants the longer, more complex, braided hairstyles of the women in her village. We learn about the culture of maturation from girlhood to womanhood in understanding self-acceptance and identity through this story. Bintou learns the lesson of patience and enjoying being a child instead of receiving things immediately.

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Don't Touch

Don’t Touch My Hair (Elementary-Middle School) 
Don’t Touch My Hair by Sharee Miller addresses the importance of agency and boundaries. This book gives a funny take on a serious topic of cultural curiosity, permission, and understanding differences.

Can I touch Your Hair? (Elementary)
Told in paired poems,  Qualls and Alko’s Can I touch Your Hair? Poems of Race, Mistakes, and Friendship, explores race through navigating childhood friendships. The story centers on Irene and Charles, who are classmates working together on a 5th-grade poetry project. They struggle, awkwardly negotiating challenging moments to relate to one another while working on completing their school project.  

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Boys and Barbershops

Barbershops are a significant space in the Black community, especially for Black males. The following books provide perspectives on the barbershop experience.  

El Primer Corte Mestiza de Fuquan/Furqan's First Flat Top (Elementary) 
Robert Liu-Trujillo’s bilingual story of Furqan who wants a cool new haircut as he anxiously visits the barbershop for the first time.

Crown: Ode to the Fresh Cut (Elementary-Middle School) 
The story, Crown: Ode to the Fresh Cut, authored by Derrick Barnes and illustrated by Gordon James, pays tribute to the barbershop as a community space by experiencing the ‘glow-up’ and joy of getting the perfect cut that gives the feeling that anything is possible.

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Educator Preparation

In addition to resources in the blog, I’ve created a K-12 guide that lists trade books about the culture of Black hair, providing background knowledge for educators. Books, journal articles, news stories about policing Black hair, and The Crown Act legislation are included. The resources accumulated provide context to creating discussion and ways of knowing in relating and relaying Black culture to validate, teach and normalize cultural differences of hair in affirm student identities.  

 

Boston College Libraries
ERC Libguide

Black Hair in Children’s Literature

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References

Byrd, & Tharps, Lori L. (2001). Hair story : untangling the roots of Black hair in America (1st ed.). St. Martin's Press. 
 
Dabiri. (2020). Twisted : the tangled history of black hair culture (First U.S. edition.). Harper Perennial. 

Gay, G. (2002). Preparing for Culturally Responsive Teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 53(2), 106–116. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487102053002003  

Ladson-Billings, G. (2009). The dreamkeepers: Successful teachers of African American children (2nd ed..). Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Tiffeni Fontno is Head Librarian at the Educational Resource Center of Boston College Libraries. She is a former classroom teacher and school librarian.

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