Intervention Project: Natural Hair Movement

 My intervention project centered around the Civil Rights Movement and the Natural Hair Movement. To me, these movements are very closely related as they are reactions to European standards of society and beauty. Although both the Civil Rights Movements and the Natural Hair Movement began many years ago, the issues are still prevalent today with laws still being passed, such as the Crown Act. The Crown Act is an act first passed in California that "prohibits discrimination based on hair style and hair texture by extending protection under the FEHA and the California Education Code. Since then the act has been passed in the following states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Virginia, and Washington.  

The physical aspect of my intervention is a collage of different photos of individuals with their natural hair. The photos consist of Civil Rights Activists and members of the Black Panther Party who were prominent figures in the Natural Hair Movement. There are also photos of celebrities who are unafraid to wear their natural hair in public and on the red carpet. Finally, other subjects in the collage are friends and family members are love their natural hair and embrace it any chance they get. On to of the collage are the words "Black is Beautiful" which becomes the official slogan for the Natural Hair Movement. 

Unfortunately, I was unable to do the actual intervention aspect of my project due to the weather advisory canceling classes today. I intended to walk around campus with my poster and ask people how they felt about it as well as asking them questions about hair discrimination, the Crown Act, and the Natural Hair Movement in general. My intended questions were:

• "Do you know what the Crown Act is?"
• "Do you know which states have already passed the Crown Act?"
• "How do you feel about the Crown Act only just being passed in 2019... only four years ago? Should it have been sooner?"
• "Have you ever felt discriminated against because of your natural hair?"
• "Have you ever felt like you had to change your hair depending on certain events to look more "presentable"?"
• "What does your natural hair mean to you?"
• "What can we do as a community to to uplift our youth who might be struggling with embracing they natural beauty and natural hair?"