What is “hairism” and how do you counteract it? Makesha Harris, academic advisor at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, helped enlighten a group of people during her presentation, “#BlackHairMatters: Demystifying the Stereotypes of Black Hair, One Strand at a Time.”
The Black Studies Program at SIUE sponsored Harris’s talk on Wednesday, March 28 in Lovejoy Library’s Friends Corner.
“A black woman’s hairstyling choices may lead to her feeling marginalized and shamed in higher education,” Harris said. “The stereotype of what is an acceptable hairstyle can deeply affect a black woman’s opportunity and identity within higher education.”
Using the lens of Black Feminist Thought and Stereotype Threat as a framework, Harris gave voice to the lived experiences of a group of black women who are upper-class undergraduate and graduate students in higher education in the U.S.
The research study, conducted as part of Harris’s dissertation research project, illustrated their experiences of how hair styling choices influenced their personal, career and social interactions.
“Understanding the significance of ‘hairism’ to the positive development of student identity and sense of belonging is a timely issue facing higher education,” remarked Harris.
“Through research, knowledge sharing, and building understanding, student affairs and higher education leaders are better positioned to combat discrimination, marginalization, and stereotypes in the college environment,” she continued. “It is the responsibility of higher education leaders to be aware of and acknowledge the relationship hair has to developing identities of black women, and to build strategies for addressing the stereotype threats on their campuses.”
Photo: Makesha Harris, EdD, SIUE academic advisor.