Does the Hair Type Scale Create More Segregation Amid the Natural Hair Movement?

The purely natural hair motion, developed in the 1960s, was essentially designed to be inclusive and to give Black women of all ages a area in which they could rejoice their hair as it grew, sans manipulation. Despite the fact that the movement was created to uplift normal hair styles, that is not necessarily what transpires in apply. In Chris Rock’s 2009 documentary “Very good Hair” — an exploration of the value of hair in the Black neighborhood — the comedian says, “If hair is nappy, they usually are not pleased.” Around a decade later on, we continue to find ourselves in circumstances exactly where this is correct.

Time and time again, all those of us with textured hair experience discrimination in the place of work, faculties, and everyday existence. Absolutely sure, movements and even legal guidelines like the CROWN Act have stepped in to assistance depoliticize Black hair, but discrimination is nevertheless deeply embedded. The idea that hair textures nearer to straight hair are additional suitable still persists. And what might be propelling these ideals is the hair kind scale.

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Jatina Nixon is Mielle’s direct hairstylist.

Michelle O’Connor is a hairstylist and Matrix’s world-wide artist director.

Leigh Hardges is a hairstylist at Maxine Salon.

Who Designed the Hair Variety Scale?

The heritage of the hair typing program is a intricate one particular. The unique hair kind method, the hair gauge, was designed in 1905 in existing-day Namibia by Eugen Fischer — a German scientist whose concepts educated the Nazi Party’s Nuremberg Legal guidelines — to recognize an individual’s proximity to whiteness primarily based on their hair texture. A long time later on, all through South Africa’s apartheid, this type of discrimination was echoed with the “pencil take a look at,” which stated if a pencil could perfectly situation alone inside of your hair though you shook your head, you could not be categorized as white.

Right now, we frequently reference Oprah Winfrey’s previous hairstylist Andre Walker as the creator of the 1A-4C process we use now, widely acknowledged as The Hair Chart. The scale separates textures into 4 groups, starting at 1 for straight hair, 2 for wavy, 3 for unfastened curls, and 4 for the coarsest and most tightly curled texture. The scale then will get divided into letters A-C, with 4C hair being the kinkiest and curliest of them all.

For many, it can be appeared at as a guideline — making it possible for individuals to name their curl pattern and abide by routines and merchandise to fit their hair variety. On TikTok, for example, you’ll see above three billion views on movies about type 4 hair: detailing solution recommendations, how-tos, and hairstyles that complement the texture. “The chart is not a professional instrument, but as an alternative offers a visual reference for basic relatability,” Jatina Nixon, Mielle’s lead hairstylist, tells PS.

Does the Hair Variety Scale Perpetuate European Beauty Beliefs?

Even though it can be seen as prevalent language to recognize your hair, classifying tools have been used through history to compare and contrast how “white” persons are. It is really led numerous to imagine that The Hair Chart, which focuses entirely on curl circumference, has alienated those put at the conclude of the scale. (Walker did not instantly answer to PS’s ask for for remark on the subject matter.)

“It has inadvertently made a hair hierarchy, with lots of evaluating curl varieties with a person being presumably improved and one currently being presumably even worse,” says Michelle O’Connor, Matrix’s global artist director.

All those with 4C hair are usually billed far more at salons for the preconceived notion that their hair is far more challenging to deal with and could consider a for a longer period time. Walker himself explained to Elle in 2011 that unlike looser 1A-3C hair, “Kinky hair can have minimal styling options which is the only hair variety that I propose altering with expert calming.” Sort 4 hair clientele are also frequently necessary to arrive with their hair thoroughly detangled or blow-dried right before acquiring braids, trims, or sew-ins.

Not only can the scale alienate specific curl kinds, but it also won’t incorporate all hair forms. Most naturals, myself provided, have unique curl designs on our head. The entrance of my hair is 4A, while the crown is nearer to 4B and the nape and sideburns are 3B. My 4A hair could reply quite in another way from a person else’s 4A hair, based mostly on products and solutions — producing it even more challenging to create a routine that is effective for all of the strands on my head.

“When there is a categorization, inclusivity gets to be a issue,” suggests Leigh Hardges, a stylist at Maxine Salon. “There will usually be people unique instances that will not uncover their location inside of the groups, and mainly because of the categories, providers and brand names start to alienate the textures that are not their main demographic.”

The hair sort scale assumes we all healthy neatly into these four packing containers. But some specialists and people opposed to the scale say it will not account for all the components that go into caring for your hair. “[The chart] is not the complete photo, for the reason that there are extra hair styles that exist than 1, 2, 3, and 4,” O’Connor says. “Issues like density, porosity, surface area texture, elasticity — those are other components that we look at in the experienced ecosystem in addition to curl circumference. The circumference of your curl does not inform you if it is good, medium, coarse, or other issues.”

How Has the Hair Sort Scale Affected the Pure Hair Motion?

Although The Hair Chart can guide as a visible aid to discovery, it doesn’t automatically mesh nicely with the purely natural hair motion. The movement originated in the 1960s, when Afros and pure hair were being embraced as a symbol of power and resistance, and groups like the Black Panthers had been main the way with big hair and pure curls.

Right after a 4-decade increase in chemical straightening — ladies ended up setting up to be a part of the workforce extra, and straight hair was synonymous with professionalism and upward movement — the purely natural hair motion reemerged in the early 2000s with all-natural-hair bloggers on YouTube who moved away from relaxers and heat equipment. These early influencers pored around study and information on how to design and style organic hair. Back then, almost everything was explorative it was exciting, instructive, but most of all, a celebration of textured hair.

Is the Hair Variety Scale Important?

O’Connor believes the tide is changing when it will come to hair typing. “I err on the facet of warning when I say [The Hair Chart] is vital mainly because curly hair is becoming so mainstream,” she states. “Heading into qualified salons, the scale can assistance bridge the hole, but it’s also not the complete photograph of details necessary.”

So what other things identify how to treatment for your hair? The industry experts all agree that the chart can be applied as a leaping-off place, but density, porosity, elasticity, and hair hurt need to also be regarded. “What our hair seems like exclusively does not determine how we should really treatment for it,” Nixon suggests.

Lots of see the LOIS scale or Circle Hair Procedure as alternate options to The Hair Chart. The LOIS scale, originally published by previous web page OurHair.net, does not reference figures but in its place considers sheen, glow, frizz, texture, and strand thickness of the hair. It uses “L” to explain hair with no curve “O” to describe hair that is rolled up into the condition of 1 or numerous zeros, like a spiral “I” for hair that lies flat with no distinctive curve or bend and “S” for hair with a wavy line. The scale attempts to steer clear of hierarchy and visibly displays you if you have a mix of distinctive curls or textures. The Circle Hair Technique, produced by hairstylist Pamela Ferrell in 2014, is based on the circle dimension deciding the traits of your hair. For case in point, when it will get wet, the circle size will establish if it stands up or hangs down. Ferrell states that the more compact the circle, the more the hair shrinks.

Finally, lots of hair industry experts concur that The Hair Chart is an optional software, not the be-all and conclusion-all holy grail. O’Connor encourages all hairstylists to “check in just you about any precise feelings you may perhaps have about unique curl patterns so it isn’t presented in a biased way to the clientele.” These techniques could get us nearer to decolonizing the way the public views and behaves toward folks with tighter coils and spirals.

Natasha Marsh is a freelance writer who writes about manner, attractiveness, and life style. Prior to freelancing, she held styling team positions at The Wall Road Journal, Burberry, Cosmopolitan Magazine, British GQ, and Harper’s Bazaar.