Celebrate Juneteenth-A Lesson in Hair-Story
In celebration of Juneteenth, Yummy Hair Extensions wants to pay homage to the innovation in hair styling that those who came before us so boldly ventured into so that we all could boldly express ourselves through our hairstyles today.
Abraham Lincoln declared the enslaved African American population free on January 1st 1863. However, the last of the enslaved African American population who were located in Texas were not freed until June 19th 1865.
And thus, Juneteenth also known as “Emancipation Day” or “Day of Freedom” was born.
Yummy Hair extensions wants to celebrate today by acknowledging and honoring the resilient history of black hair trends in the United States of America.
When we look at the past, we can see what those who have come before us endured so that we could be in the position we are in today. In this article, we honor the innovative initiatives by the black community to express freedom in hair styling since the beginning of time.
6000 years ago- The invention of the Afro Pick can be traced back to over 6,000 years ago in Egypt. The afro pick is still an essential tool in 2022.
1600’s- Enslaved Africans used their hairstyles to relay messages such as road maps and a signal of wanting to escape bondage
1700’s - The Tignon Law in Louisiana made an effort to censor the style and dress of African American Women. The Tignon law forced African American women to cover their glorious locks with fabric as their hair was seen as boisterous and too alluring. However, even within the Tignon law the creativity and resilience of African American fashion and self-expression prevailed.
Beautiful head wraps of all patterns and colors became all the rage. The influence of this fashion can still be seen today in styles like the elegant head wraps of Erykah Badu.
Early 1900’s- Annie Turnbo Malone- creates her own product line of hair safe tools and products for African American Hair Care. She sells these items door to door and becomes one of the first African American Female millionaires.
Early 1900’s- Madam CJ walker creates her own line of hair products and relaxers popularizing the sleek and relaxed look of afro textured hair. This was a way of offering variety and assimilation in a time where collectivism was the norm and essential for securing a better way of life.
1940-1950’s - the relaxer was highly popular and revolutionized. Icons like Chuck Berry and Little Richard sported the sleekest of the sleek hairstyles all while charming the United States with their talent and debonair.
1970’s - ’1980’s- The afro was popularized and became bold a symbol of self-love and activism for many African American people. This hair style made its appearance everywhere. From the big screen to the political meetings to the budding new genre of hip hop. The afro is forever an ingrained and significant part of American history.
1990’s – Du-rags, pixie cutes, finger waves, and colored hair were all the rage. The impact that these hairstyles left on pop culture can still be seen being expressed today.
2003-2005 – The Natural hair movement begins to make a comeback. The reduced use of texturizers and perms can be attributed to the growth and advancement in protective styles like lace fronts.
2010 - CURLFEST was founded - Curlfest started off as a simple meet-up between natural haired curl-friends and has grown into a mega-festival that currently host 75,000 attendees to celebrate all expressions of African American hair care.
2013- Yummy Hair Extensions was born! We are committed to providing luxurious hair extensions and posh buying experiences to all Yummy Girls!
2019- The Crown Act was created and passed in 2019 by Dove and the CROWN Coalition to ensure protection against discrimination based on. race-based hairstyles by extending statutory protection to hair texture and protective styles such as braids, locs, twists, and knots in the workplace and public schools.
2021- Juneteenth becomes a Federal Holiday!
The legacy of the past allows us the freedom to choose almost any form of self-expression we see fit for our hair in today’s day and age.
Just like with the advance of modern technology, hair extensions have improved by leaps and bounds in the last 30 years. High quality hair extensions and lace items are the industry standard in 2022. The hair extensions industry also accounts for 6 billion in revenue for the global the economy and is projected to double within the next 10 years.
Yummy Hair Extensions is committed to acknowledging and honoring the legacy of African American Hair-story just as much as we are committed to continuing to be one of the leading forces in luxury extension hair products for all people and communities. We celebrate this fact with the following qoute by the late Maya Angelou.
“You can’t really know where you are going until you know where you have been” - Maya Angelou
Happy Juneteenth everyone!