In many societies, especially in the black community, having long, straight hair is a sign of beauty and anything beyond that standard is rejected. As such, many black women with kinky hair are often met with stigma, discrimination and criticism.

Kamille Jackson, a 46-year-old engineer and realtor, has used her personal experiences of discrimination while growing up to write the children’s book, The Crown That I Wear, to empower young girls to love and embrace their hair, despite its texture and length.

“Growing up there were many instances when I heard, ‘Why your hair stay so?’, ‘Why your hair so short?’, ‘Why your hair can’t grow?’ and it made me feel that my hair wasn’t enough. It wasn’t enough because my hair wasn’t long and flowing,” she said.

As Jackson grew older, these beauty standards were reflected in the working world as it dictated what the ideal employee should look like.

“I remember when I wanted to get a job at a particular company and persons who were there said ‘You cannot work here with your hair like that, they won’t take you, you have to perm your hair or wear it like this’,” she said.

“I took a job, wanting to lock my hair, and it was after the probationary period that I advised my supervisor, ‘Hey, I am going to lock my hair’, because I had to ensure I secured the job first.”

She outlined that her perspective on her hair later changed after migrating to Norway in her early 20s.

“When I got older, I lived in a Caucasian society where, ironically, there, people would come up to me and say ‘I love your hair’ and I didn’t understand that. They wanted to touch it and that made me feel very awkward. There was a full shift and that’s when I wore my hair up,” she said.

Jackson said the reaction from this Caucasian society helped to boost her confidence and she learnt to love her hair.

“At that point, my eyes opened to the beauty of my hair. I don’t need to put on a wig or braids to look beautiful, my hair can be worn out as it is. Ironically, I learnt that love in a predominantly Caucasian society,” she said.

Breaking the stigma around afro-centric hair

Jackson outlined that the stigma attached to afro-centric hair is an ongoing issue, especially in Jamaica.

“I see that there has definitely been a shift and a greater embrace of our African heritage, and I am very grateful for that, but the stigma is still there. The campaign is really for the conversation to be had and also for persons to embrace who God made them to be,” she said.

She outlined that the book, The Crown That I Wear, published in October 2022, was written to encourage young black girls to embrace their Afro-textured hair and bring awareness to persons who may not understand its beauty.

“Many persons who are adults also face trauma with their hair. So, it’s not only for the little girls but for the adults who may have hair issues and not even realising, because it has been engrained in them, that it has become a part of who they really are. So, the book is to allow them to see who they really are and see that as beautiful,” she said.

She went on to say that the main aim of the book is to allow Jamaicans to celebrate the beauty of the afro-textured hair.

“We want others to know that black is beautiful, black hair is beautiful and it ought to give that little boy and little girl that sense of self love that they can now love on others in a better way,” she said.

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