Getting to the roots of black hairstyles

Barber Markius Freeman, 30, has been growing his dreads for 4 years and he's not about to cut them.

"Cutting them would be like cutting yourself short," he said. "It would be like a sacrifice. It would have to be very, very, important to me, like a job."

While Freeman of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., has kept the same style for years, Tartra Plummer, of Lauderhill, Fla., changes her hairstyle every two weeks. The 30-year-old cashier emerged from the salon recently sporting ridges done with a hot iron, a creation by her stylist, Tracey Irvin.

Both are examples of the power of hair in the black community, where styles are a complex and constantly evolving reflection of cultural and political values -- and fashion.

Black Americans spent $3.9 billion in 2007 on hair care products and services, according to Ken Smikle, president of Target Market News, a Chicago-based black consumer tracking firm.

No other community debates the quality and texture of hair, and goes as far as designating hair as "good" because it's straight, and "bad" when it's kinky, coarse and nappy.

Regina Kimball, a Los Angeles filmmaker, has documented the politics of black hair from its ancient African roots to today's hip-hop designs in her film "My Nappy Roots: A Journey Through My Hair-itage."

The 78-minute film uses black hair to explore cultural, societal, and political issues in the black community over time. The film reveals the significance and pride of African hairstyles, such as cornrows and braiding.

These days, stylists say anything goes with black hairstyles for men and women. Natural hairstyles, dreadlocks, Afros, permed styles, bobs, weaves, extensions, even mullets, fades and Mohawks.

Kevin Donjoie wears what he calls "a 'fro Mohawk," inspired by Mr. T.

"You've got to be a little different to pull it off," said Denjoie, 31, of Ft. Lauderdale. "There's a very wide range of hairstyles now. Afros, dreads, brush cuts, designs -- and the girls have plenty of styles. Too many of them I can't name."

Theresa Lewis, a hairdresser in West Palm Beach, Fla., said the most popular styles these days are ones that are easy to maintain: nice short cuts or natural hairstyles or braids and weaves that are not time-consuming to care for.

Christy Lubin, a graduate student at Nova Southeastern University, prefers a "wash and wear" natural style. Her hair is puffy and she's received some criticism from other students, who have told her she has bad hair. "No perm," she says. "This is my true beauty."

Lewis has been doing the hair of Anna Rosier, a speech language pathologist from Boynton Beach, Fla., for more than 20 years.

"When you find a hairdresser you trust, you stick with her," Rosier said.

Last week, Lewis gave Rosier a short cut that wrapped her face, with loose curls hanging down her neck. It's a professional look that fits her life, Rosier said.

Yolle-Guida Dervil wears her hair in natural short box-cut braids. She is what many call tender-headed, and used to cry in pain when her mother combed her hair.

Frustrated, her mother got her a perm. Her father was furious. Now, a decade later, he disapproves of his daughter's braids.

"My dad has a problem with natural hair," Dervil said. "He considers it unprofessional."

But she likes her hair natural. "I'm either confident or brave," she said. "I've found comfort in it."

http://www.freep.com/

Beard boom: More men sporting facial hair

WALNUT CREEK California,USA. - It’s not the honey-flecked brown hair or hoop earrings that define Sam Larson’s look. It’s the 3-inch beard. Larson, of Alameda, Calif., has been sporting it for a decade. He’s worn it long and full. He’s trimmed it when it’s gotten scraggly. In fact, Larson doesn’t give it much thought. He comes from a long line of beard bearers. All the Larson men back in Colorado wear them.

“I just like it,” said the 28-year-old, chatting at Tip Top Bike Shop in Oakland, Calif., where he works and where it seems beards are as common an accessory as bike packs. “It keeps me warm.”

Beards could be the biggest trend in facial hair since the ‘90s grunge goatee. In the past, beards reflected a mood or made a statement. That’s still happening. But more and more men are sporting them just for style’s sake.

Peek into the pubs on San Pablo Boulevard in Berkeley, Calif. Take a look at the hipsters in Oakland’s Temescal district. They’re moving past sexy stubble and into some serious hair territory.

So are the men of the red carpet. At last month’s Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards, it was hard to spot a clean-shaven face. Sting, actors Jeremy Piven and Vincent Kartheiser (“Mad Men”), and directors Sam Mendes and Ron Howard were among the many celebs sporting beards. It’s the next expression in the evolution of male facial hair, says Allan Peterkin, a pogonologist, or beard scholar, and author of “One Thousand Beards: A Cultural History of Facial Hair” (Arsenal Pulp, 2002).

“If you look at the 20th century, every decade has a little bit of fur,” Peterkin said. In the 1950s, it was the pointy, beatnik goatee. In the 1960s, hippies grew out their hair — and their beards. The 1970s was a time of swinger mustaches, and in the 1980s, men wore designer stubble. The goatee of the 1990s had staying power, Peterkin says, and unleashed a whole expression of partial beards and facial hair combinations.

“The full beard is the next progression,” he said. “It’s about playful rebellion and being a free man. It’s about saying, ‘I’m not a corporate slave.”‘ On a purely superficial level, it is also one of the few ways a man can change up his look.

World Beard and Moustache Championships?

Even so, full beards aren’t socially acceptable yet, at least according to Jack Passion, a Walnut Creek, Calif., musician and beard champion who heads to Alaska in May to defend his title at the World Beard and Moustache Championships. Passion attributes the growth in beards to an overall increased consciousness.

“Everything we’ve seen on television for the past 50 years told us we had to shave, and if we didn’t, it was dirty,” said Passion, who has a fan club of 1,500 Passionistas. “But now, there’s a focus on sustainable practices. People are starting to say there are better ways to live. Men just want to see who they are and experiment with new looks.”

And those looks can have layered meanings. Growing a beard can stand for affiliation, especially in sports. In some religions, it is a sign of mourning. Beards can also demonstrate support for a cause. Recall when David Letterman grew a beard last year to show support for the writers’ strike.

Beards are also a quick and easy way to change an image.

“When Al Gore lost the election and was becoming an academic at Columbia University, he grew a beard,” Peterkin said. The on-again, off-again beards of Brad Pitt and Ryan Gosling are important accessories for actors who want to prove they’re more than a pretty face, Peterkin says. Beards are quite favorable for men who are balding, he adds. Others might grow one to cover a double chin or make their faces appear bigger or more masculine.

Bonus for the ladies?

Another beard bonus: Some women have a thing for them. “I’ve been into beards for five years,” said Jennifer Matamoros, 32, of Oakland. “I think they’re extremely sexy. It’s that whole lumberjack thing.”

Haseeb Wahedy of Vallejo, Calif., admits his short, kempt beard is popular with the ladies. He’s been wearing it on and off for about two years, depending on his mood. “It’s trendy. It’s appealing. And I don’t like to shave,” Wahedy said.

Marty Parker of Denise’s Barber Salon gets a bearded customer every now and then in his Oakland barber shop. Most men interviewed for this story groom their own, however. Parker, 63, wore a beard for 30 years but finally shaved it off in 2000 when it started turning gray. “I wanted to clean up my act a little bit too,” Parker said.

But he wore it long and full throughout the 1970s in and around Berkeley — “Meant you didn’t sell out,” he said — until potential employers told him to trim it. When asked why he kept a beard for so long, he is blunt. “For one thing, it didn’t hurt me with getting any young girls,” he said.

But a beard backlash does exist. While you’ll find beards in the halls of hospitals and dot-coms, they can be the kiss of death in politics and finance, Peterkin says. “William Howard Taft was the last president to sport facial hair, and that was just a mustache,” he said.

When it comes to history, the beard’s place varies. During Victorian times, a beard was a sign of great means. However, the more common images associated with the Great Depression are of bearded men standing in line at soup kitchens. And post-World War II, the assumption was that a guy with a beard had something to hide, Peterkin says.

Yet the postmodern beard is more elusive. It changes meaning. For some, it’s Santa Claus. For others, Osama bin Laden. “It’s all about your own experience,” Peterkin said, adding that the full beard could also be an “answering back” to the metrosexual label. “The beard is macho,” Peterkin said. “And it’s something women can’t do.”

Lisa Sciacca isn’t wild about her husband’s full beard. “He doesn’t keep up the loose, scraggly hairs,” said Sciacca, who lives in Pacifica and preferred when Pete wore a goatee. “There are no straight lines, so it’s just here and there and everywhere.”

But she understands why it appeals to her husband, who works the graveyard shift at a San Francisco hotel.

“It’s just easy,” she said. “We always joke about women who spend an hour in the bathroom in the morning. Men can spend a long time in there, too.”


Five grooming tips

Not sure why your scruff is rough? Heed these grooming tips courtesy of Jack Passion, a Walnut Creek world beard champion and author of the forthcoming e-book, “Jack Passion’s Facial Hair Handbook.”

• A beard is a barometer of a man’s health. So eat right, drink plenty of water and get enough sleep. It will show in your beard. Also, beard care is skin care. So don’t forget to nurture the skin underneath.

• To control the itching while growing a beard, brush regularly with a light bristle brush to promote circulation and flow of oxygen. Take a flaxseed oil supplement to soothe the skin.

• When shaping your beard, use a clean razor and never shave with a dull blade. Use shaving gel rather than cream so you can see through it and avoid mistakes.

• Cleanup around the beard depends on how fast your hair grows and how you want the beard to look. To clean up your lines, soak a rag in hot water and apply to face for 20 seconds. Remove and apply a shaving oil to the face. Then, apply gel. Shave without applying pressure. Soak rag in cold water and apply it to face. Finish with astringent.

• Want to change the length of your beard? Invest in a trimmer or small clipper. They range from $20-$100 and make all the difference. Then, be patient. Remember: “You can’t make a harvest until the crop is fully grown,” Passion said.

http://www.pantagraph.com/
By Jessica Yadegaran
Contra Costa Times

Is my man gay?

Being involved with a man living on the down low must be a woman's greatest fear; or certainly something she wouldn't believe could happen.

Unfortunately in Barbados, as elsewhere, it is not uncommon for men who are in a public relationship with a woman to be having discreet sexual relations with other men.

Although there is a growing tolerance for homosexuality, it is still not widely socially acceptable in Barbados. So, many men and women hide their sexual preference to maintain the status quo. Having a girlfriend is one way a gay man may try to keep a "straight image".

Sadly, this can have dire consequences if he fulfils his gay desires outside the relationship; for instance, his female partner may be unknowingly exposed to sexually transmitted diseases if her cheating boyfriend doesn't use adequate protection.

So, how can you tell if your man's gay?

According to a young homosexual interviewed by the SATURDAY SUN, there are quite a few tell-tale signs, including those that would be considered clichés. These are:

* He cries at movies.

* He glances at men when they pass, especially the attractive ones.

* He has no qualms expressing, or even gushing, about how attractive another man is.

* He prefers anal over vaginal sex with you.

* He has an intense interest in fashion and dresses very fashionably; is well groomed and is a little too knowledgeable about different brand names.

* He consistently compliments women about their clothes, hair and shoes, as opposed to their face and body.

* He makes a lot of flamboyant gestures with his hands when he talks.

* He brags about how many gays think he is attractive.

* He likes to watch or is turned on by gay porn.

* He has a lot of homosexual friends.

* When you ask him if he's gay, he responds evasively as opposed to denying it.

These guidelines probably do apply to many men on the down low – especially the last three – but clinical psychologist Dr Marcus Lashley was quick to shoot down all of them.

"There is no absolute way to determine someone's sexuality," he said in a telephone interview.

He insisted there was no set criteria or prototype for the gay man and one could only judge on an individual basis.

According to Lashley, a man might display these traits because of his upbringing and cultural background, but not because of his sexuality.

For instance, the well-groomed, fashionable man might be "metrosexual" – American slang referring to a heterosexual who spends a great deal of time and money on his appearance.

Even the man who goes on about how sexy another man is may be expressing what he subconsciously wants for himself; in other words, he's probably wishing he had six-pack abs like his object of admiration.

Seeing that there may be no real criteria that applies to all men on the down-low, your instincts may be your best "gaydar".

So what do you do if you think your man is gay?

Make sure you're listening to your intuition and not your paranoid fears. You need to ask yourself if you really think he's gay or if you are subconsciously sabotaging your relationship.

Take a moment to meditate on this before you make any drastic decisions.

by GINA AIMEY-MOSS
ginaaimeymoss@nationnews.com
http://www.cwc2007publications.com/