Reclaiming Narratives: Embracing Black Hair in Professional Spaces

I love my hair, but it has often been part of an internal battle for me in the workplace and an often complex topic for many people of Black Heritage. 

My natural hair is a mass of curls that require an extensive hair care and maintenance routine, that is often a lot of work to balance with an already busy life. So, you will often see me in a protective style such as box braids, faux locs or twists intended to protect my curls and provide a much more manageable routine for multiple weeks.

However, it took me years to embrace my curls and I still get anxious about changing my hairstyle. I was often told that my hair looked better when I straightened it, especially at work and in professional environments. However, such styles don't last very long and a lot of Black people, women especially, will use a chemical relaxer to achieve straight hair on a more permanent basis - however all of these straightening methods often lead to damaged hair and lost curl patterns.

I, and many others, have and continue to use those methods in order to fit in, often for fear that our natural or protective hairstyles will not be considered professional or appropriate. However, my hair has never made me any less capable of doing my job or be less professional.

Wearing your natural hair or an alternative style can also come with undesired attention and microaggressions. Microaggressions are instances of indirect, subtle, or unintentional discrimination against members of a marginalized group. I am always happy to discuss my changing hair styles as I appreciate that that they are different to how many people wear their hair. Questions often come from a place of curiosity and intrigue which is something that is so important for us all to have in a world that changes so much. 

However, this curiosity also often leads to a breach of personal boundaries for many Black people, due to their hair being touched without permission. I personally have had people, including those who I don't know, touch my curls or play with my braids, often without knowing me or even having spoken a word to me first.

It can be a deeply comfortable moment and hard to navigate your response, especially when saying that you do not like it can be perceived as aggressive or angry, two emotions often applied to Black stereotypes. Solange Knowles has a song called "Don't touch my hair" which may be interpreted this way. You'll note that there's no ‘please’ in that title, but there shouldn't have to be. I don't think many of us would seek to touch another person's body generally without permission and hair should not be any different.

When writing this blog, I found a number of children's books that guide children on implementing these personal boundaries and understanding why they are needed. It made me so happy to know that we are now at a place where it is widely known how problematic such interactions can be and younger generations have avenues to learn more about it.

The availability of such resources and the increased visibility and awareness of such issues is so important for the younger generation and aspiring professionals.

I have had the opportunity to attend a number of school events on behalf of the firm, and participate in Early Careers and DEI panel sessions, often with a focus on those from Black Heritage such as the 10,000 Black Interns Programme and the firm’s LIFT initiative. I always make sure to wear my hair in a natural or protective hairstyle for these events to show that there is already someone here, who feels comfortable to do so and accepted by their firm and colleagues, in the hope that the next generation does not feel the pressures I and others have experienced to change or adapt themselves to join a professional field.

Nowadays, I mostly feel content enough to tell people that I don't wish for my hair to be touched, but that isn't the case every time, nor is it for everyone. Hair discrimination continues to be an issue throughout the world. Progress is still being pushed for, and for World Afro Day 2024, the “Fix the Law, Not Our Hair” campaign encouraged the UK Government to make Afro hair a protected characteristic and to prevent hair discrimination.

When I joined Clyde & Co, I found out that the firm had adopted the Halo Code, the UK’s first Black Hair code which explicitly protects employees who come to work with natural hair and protective hairstyles associated with their racial, ethnic, and cultural identities.

I was greatly encouraged by this and felt a more confident in wearing my hair as I wished. This led to me having faux locs (a protective style) for my professional headshot as a permanent reminder of this being embraced.

Awareness is so important and is one of the main reasons why the ACED Network (Achieving Cultural and Ethnic Diversity) have planned a hair workshop as part of this year’s Black History Month events. This year’s theme is “Reclaiming Narratives” which encourages those of Black Heritage to shape how their stories are told. We hope these events will help colleagues understand the complex history of Black hair, understand more about the maintenance and different processes that go into these styles and the impact and importance of being able to wear our hair as we like, so that all colleagues and future generations will have different stories of welcoming and support to tell.

I hope to see many of you there and look forward to celebrating with you.

Michaela Brown, Junior Associate and ACED Co-Chair