Last year, there was an argument in my class between my lecturer and myself about the wearing of wigs by us female students in our mid twenties, instead of our own beautiful curled natural hair.

That debate remains a burning issue but maybe the Miss Universe pageant 2019, won by Zozibini Tunzi, Miss South Africa in December will help the matter rest.

“I am not just teaching you to write and pass an exam, but it is also my duty, as your lecturer to shape and brand you as who you are – real Africans. Our dress code and standards are not just for mass media production, but to show people everywhere what true AFRICAN beauty is,” said the lecturer.

But, many African young ladies wear wigs while also spending scarce resources on chemical retouch creams to straighten and elongate their hair, and to get silky hair like white ladies.

Eventually, all hair is beautiful because all hair is different and unique.

Our natural hair is the black woman’s crown.

One can not run out of ideas when it comes to styling natural hair.

Even though it is a constant struggle for those who lacked hair grooming from childhood, our hair is beautiful in all shapes and forms.

There is so much to be proud of when it comes to black woman’s hair.

Looking at the length, texture, the volume and of course the curls, it is just so amazing.

So I keep on asking myself, “Why then do we spend so much on foreign hair styles and necessities when we can use our own God given natural beauty to look more charming and make others too fall in love with our beauty?

Taking Nandi Mngoma, a South African singer, actress and TV presenter, for an example, a lot of her fans have fallen in love with her looks.

In fact early last year, her beauty and natural hair style went viral on social media as she broadcast a TV show called “MADE IN AFRICA”.

Her fans were overwhelmed by her beauty which makes her show even more amazing and interesting.

Social media has been buzzing: “For the first time in history, Miss America, Miss USA, Miss Teen USA and Miss Universe are all Black women,” but looking critically at those images, it is only Miss Universe who wore her own hair, and this is a disappointment.

“A lot of black females don’t feel comfortable wearing their natural hair, but the ones that do—as an artist, I have to tell them how much I appreciate them for being comfortable and proud for rocking their natural hair,” Jean Pierre Louis, a Haitian hair artist was quoted on Africa.com recently.

Exploring the beauty and majesty of the black hair is and should be an African lady’s mission; right from childhood, we must accept and celebrate the beauty of our natural hair – simpliciter.

And of course the road to intelligent choices and action should begin with self knowledge and understanding.

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