This book will provide insights and answers to the issue of the "hot comb" and the "pressing" or "conking" of black hair so that it can approximate the texture of Caucasian hair. I begin with some background on why such behavior is collective and why it began, what the purpose is, and the link between this "process" and the presence of low Black self-esteem. Providing some information on the days of enslavement, the book addresses: (a) slavery in isolation; (b) slavery today; (c) slavery today II: the harassment sistahs and (d) slavery today III: the feminization of prison. All of these will explain the impact on black hair and the male and female attitudes about black hair. After background on "the first rite of passage" for black girls, I offer a section called, "The Realpolitik of Hair." That is followed up with "Hair and Our History: A Distorted Message," and I correct some of the errors regarding Madame C.J. Walker and other mythological messages surrounding hair alteration. "The Cost of the 'Hookup' is explained both as an economic reality and a revenue stream for non-black people. A discussion on "the beauty shop" looks into some of the psychological issues taking place as black hair, male and female, "gets done." For historical purposes our hair reflects our consciousness, hence sections providing historical snippets and analyses of: (a) the Harlem Renaissance; (b) the Civil Rights Movement; (c) the Black Nationalist Movement (with emphasis on revolutionary Black Nationalism, cultural nationalism and religious nationalism. There is also a section that is titled, "Hip Hop: A Message of Misogyny." I then take on the comments of an international hair expert regarding various scalp-related issues and then comes the focus on the young girls: (a) the role of education; (b) the role of media and hair definition; (c) stoicism and young black girls; and (d) the young girls grow up: celebrities, ghetto stars and inter-racial relationships. It should also be noted that in January of 2010, a group in Omaha sponsored a forum under the name "X Factor Outreach" and used the name of the 2-day event, "Beyond the Straighten (sic) Comb." I did not approve the poor spelling or the name of that forum. It had nothing to do with the issue of black hair but instead focused on a timeline that claimed that black people have never been together for more than a 2-year period since our presence here in America. This book is designed to provoke thought and discussion. It is meant to be a valuable contribution to our own understanding of ourselves.
About the Author: Matthew C. Stelly is a doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee working on a degree in Urban Education and Community Policy. He holds three Master's degrees: Urban Studies (1982), Urban Education (1983) and Political Science (2000). He is working toward his doctorate in Community Policy/Urban Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He is the former editor of the Milwaukee Courier newspaper, former director of the Great Plains Black Museum and the Plano (TX) African American Museum, and lead archivist for The Black Academy of Arts and Letters (TBAAL) in Dallas, Texas. Stelly has more than 2,500 articles in print and has won two national essay competitions. He is the founding director of the largest African-American neighborhood group in Nebraska, the Triple One Neighborhood Association and Parents Union. He is publisher and editor of the Triple One News, a two-time nationally recognized newsletter. He is the father of five children - Mandla, Malik, Clariece, Charisse and Shannon -- and remains actively involved in community organizing and neighborhood development in several cities, including Milwaukee and Omaha.