The Race Card Project
By Michele Norris
Samyiah Presley,
Grand Prairie, TX
I chose these six words because they reflect the experience of being judged based on my appearance—specifically my dreadlocks—rather than who I am as a person. As a lighter-complexioned Black American with locks, I face assumptions and stereotypes tied to my hairstyle, which has deeper cultural meaning. My race card highlights the tension between self-expression and societal judgment.
Terence P Ward
New Paltz, NY
I’m one year in to a five-year exploration of dreadlocks as a participant-observer, so I can learn about the experience and the perceptions; it’s called Dread Like Me and I maintain a blog about it at dreadlikeme.blogspot.com. I expected people to treat me differently because they would think I looked dirty or was a drugged-out hippie, maybe, but I was NOT anticipating a racial component to this hairstyle!
There is a sentiment that white people with dreadlocks are guilty of cultural appropriation, and there’s also quite a bit of pushback by whites against this idea. Now that it’s on my radar I ask people about it specifically, and it doesn’t appear to be a majority view by any stretch, but it’s certainly not uncommon.
Nicolette,
Alpine, WY.
“You’re not black.” “No, I’m not.” “Then why do you have black-girl hair?” “I just like braids, that’s all.” When I had my white-girl hair professionally braided by an African hairstylist from Togo, I never expected I would lead people to such confusion. Why did I do it? I just like braids. That’s all. My first grade African American students asked me if i was a “Sister” even though I have glaring white skin. A lady at the grocery check out asked if I was from Jamaica. Many people asked how long it took to braid my hair, to which I replied, “The same amount of time as it takes to braid an African-American’s hair.” This seemed a novel idea to most people. My boss told me that she liked my “Halloween costume.” Some people liked my hair. Some people became angry with my hair. And some people were just plain confused by my hair. I had no idea it would cause such social upset in my life. I just like braids, that’s all.
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