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Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates - Ta-Nehisi Coates is a senior editor for The Atlantic, where he writes about culture, politics, and social issues for TheAtlantic.com and the magazine. He is the author of the memoir The Beautiful Struggle. More

Born in 1975, the product of two beautiful parents. Raised in West Baltimore—not quite The Wire, but sometimes ill all the same. Studied at the Mecca for some years in the mid-’90s. Emerged with a purpose, if not a degree. Slowly migrated up the East Coast with a baby and my beloved, until I reached the shores of Harlem. Wrote some stuff along the way.

Black Hair

By Ta-Nehisi Coates
Aug 28 2009, 9:16 AM ET Comment

This Times article reminded of my days back at Howard. I came in insistent on only dating honeys that knew Fanon, rocked Black Uhuru, and most obviously, had natural hair. Meh, that lasted all of a year. By next September, I was standing outside the School of B handing out my card.

"Those cultural chicks are crazy," I'd snort. "Give me a Chicago honey, who can fry a chicken, and needs a touch-up every couple weeks." I ended up somewhere in between. Got the Chicago. Got the natural hair. The fried-chicken and the touch-up, not so much.

Anyway, my sense is that this really isn't the debate it was thirty, twenty or even ten years ago. White folks got dreads now. The Times piece takes it a cue from some Freepers who thought Malia's hair didn't rep for America. I think the very fact that you need Free Republic to make the case against natural hair, pretty much proves the point.

We aren't perfect, but I think quite a bit has changed since Kane was on that, "Sexy young ladies of the light-skin breed," tip.


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