The issue of hairstyle is a sensitive one amongst men and women of the African Diaspora. Hairstyle has been both a symbol of oppression and resistance, and a mark of freedom and individuality.

The politics of Black hair dates back to the 1700s, when the tightly curled hair of slaves was seen as a mark of difference by non-whites, most notably as an emblem of the slaves' inferiority. From the early nineteenth century, hair straightening was advocated as an essential part of the former slaves' reconstruction as free people. In the second half of the twentieth century, the decision to opt for either a relaxed or a natural hairstyle has led to friction within the African diaspora, symbolising as it does an individual's personal definition of what Black identity means for them.

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