Arthur |
Arthur Mutijima, 19
Born in Nairobi, Kenya Raised in Frankfurt, Deutschland Rwandan and Congolese descent 17 April 2016 |
Has someone said negative/hurtful commentary about your hair either purposely or mistakenly? What were they? Why did they hurt?
Arthur Mutijima: Whenever I don't get a haircut for a period of time and let my hair grow into a TWA, immediately people respond and say that it is unkempt or not the way men are supposed to wear their hair. I'd love to fleek in bantu knots and twist outs, but growing my hair out for me at least is difficult in that usually only men who have very strong masculine features can "pull off" that look.
VA: How is hair important to you? Is it important to you?
AM: Hair is always political for black people so yes, it is very important to me. I still rock a classic fade, but who knows! I might choose to grow my curls out and flaunt them despite people having told me that it was not the "right" look for me because my jawline ain't stiff enough or that my face is too feminine or chubby.
Arthur Mutijima: Whenever I don't get a haircut for a period of time and let my hair grow into a TWA, immediately people respond and say that it is unkempt or not the way men are supposed to wear their hair. I'd love to fleek in bantu knots and twist outs, but growing my hair out for me at least is difficult in that usually only men who have very strong masculine features can "pull off" that look.
VA: How is hair important to you? Is it important to you?
AM: Hair is always political for black people so yes, it is very important to me. I still rock a classic fade, but who knows! I might choose to grow my curls out and flaunt them despite people having told me that it was not the "right" look for me because my jawline ain't stiff enough or that my face is too feminine or chubby.
VA: Have you had struggles finding places to get your haircut being on a secluded campus in Towson?
AM: I took a while but a solid barbershop opened by the circle so I'm super happy about that!
VA: How you feel your experience with your hair differs from a women's experience?
AM: I think my experience differs from women's experiences in terms of my assigned hairstyle really not being that difficult or hard to manage or handle. But when it comes to branching out, it definitely is extremely tricky because of the fragility of masculinity and of course the hyper masculinity assigned to black men. People will draaaag men for exploring different hairstyles and criticize men for being too feminine which in itself is doused with misogyny because how is femininity a critique?
AM: I took a while but a solid barbershop opened by the circle so I'm super happy about that!
VA: How you feel your experience with your hair differs from a women's experience?
AM: I think my experience differs from women's experiences in terms of my assigned hairstyle really not being that difficult or hard to manage or handle. But when it comes to branching out, it definitely is extremely tricky because of the fragility of masculinity and of course the hyper masculinity assigned to black men. People will draaaag men for exploring different hairstyles and criticize men for being too feminine which in itself is doused with misogyny because how is femininity a critique?
VA: Does whitewashing/misrepresentation of POC in the media affect children of color and their perception of their natural features?
MA: The answer is already in the question! Of course it affects children, especially black kids. I've worked at a summer camp for a few summers and only once in a blue moon would there be black girls as campers. It is was sometimes disheartening to see how vulnerable and worrisome about their hair they were if it was not in a protective style like braids or cornrows. What tended to happen is that the little black girls would play with their white peers' hair and kind of obsess over it, not knowing the magic and beauty that was growing out of their own scalp, which of course was hard with people referring to it as steel wool or other derogatory descriptors.
MA: The answer is already in the question! Of course it affects children, especially black kids. I've worked at a summer camp for a few summers and only once in a blue moon would there be black girls as campers. It is was sometimes disheartening to see how vulnerable and worrisome about their hair they were if it was not in a protective style like braids or cornrows. What tended to happen is that the little black girls would play with their white peers' hair and kind of obsess over it, not knowing the magic and beauty that was growing out of their own scalp, which of course was hard with people referring to it as steel wool or other derogatory descriptors.
VA: If you had to give advice to a young person of color who was struggling with their natural beauty what would it be?
AM: Take a close look in the mirror and marvel at the beauty and magic you are. Explore your features, and even though they are not often magazine covers, they are still beautiful. Experiment with your appearance, whether it be clothes or hairstyles and rock it! It's your body and you can choose to do whatever it is your creative imagination desires.
AM: Take a close look in the mirror and marvel at the beauty and magic you are. Explore your features, and even though they are not often magazine covers, they are still beautiful. Experiment with your appearance, whether it be clothes or hairstyles and rock it! It's your body and you can choose to do whatever it is your creative imagination desires.
Photographer: Nathaniel Magloire
Interviewer: Victoria Awkward
Interviewer: Victoria Awkward