By: Rhadamés Julián
Like many Dominicans living the states, I wasn’t born there, but both of my parents are from a town called La Romana. My first visit to the Dominican Republic was a bit of a culture shock. At 17, I didn’t have any real expectations, but I certainly was not ready for the amount of negative backlash that I got just for having a curly afro. Everyone that I encountered, starting with my family, had a problem with my pajón (pajón is slang for big, bushy hair) and they didn’t shy away from telling me either. At the time, I didn’t understand why it seemed as if the entire Dominican population had set out to systematically hurt my feelings and make me feel like there was something wrong with my hair.
Over a decade later, there is still an overwhelming sense that if you have curly, kinky or even wavy hair, you should straighten it. Every time I walk down the streets of my predominantly Dominican neighborhood, I see nothing but straight hair. I can often smell the famous Dominican blow-outs from the salons lined down Broadway where the hair is cooked to a straight perfection.
All of this begs the question – why? Why are Dominican people known for often denying their Blackness and harboring an overwhelming desire to straighten out the kinks and spirals from their hair?
The answer lies in the not so distant history of the Dominican Republic. From 1930 -1961 the Dominican Republic was ruled by the infamous dictator Rafael Trujillo. He was known for his brutality, his ultimate rule and his disgust for darker skinned people in particular the Haitians that bordered the DR. He did all that he could to portray the DR as a European like nation where the people were closer to being White than of African decent. Henry Louis Gates Junior has a documentary that goes into further detail about this very topic called Black in Latin America. Sadly, Trujillo’s influence is still felt today. It seems as if it’s the older generations that promote and are stuck on this idea that lighter skin and straighter hair is better. Some would argue that there is a similar parallel here in the states as well.
When I visited the DR a few months ago, I counted three women with natural hair. Even this small representation seemed like a marked improvement. I think that natural hair movement is very slowly starting to gain traction, but there is still a very long way to go. When we see people like Sammy Sosa magically turn white over night, pop in green contacts and straighten his hair this does nothing for the cause of getting Dominicans to accept and eventually embrace their Blackness. Actions like those set us back because the media wields the greatest influence over perception. Not all is lost though. Activists like Carolina Contreras of missrizos.com are fighting the good fight in the DR. She lives there and is a huge advocate for natural hair. She has regular meet-ups where she gives classes on managing and styling natural hair as part of her overall holistic healthy living platform.
When It comes to wearing my hair big and curly, negative comments and side-eye looks from my fellow Dominicans have been my biggest hurdle. I haven’t let their attitudes deter me from embracing natural hair. I feel sorry for those people still treating their African ancestry as a source of shame rather than a point of pride. If you run into a Dominican who is hell bent on straightening their hair and denies any connection to Blackness, just remember that they were taught to think that way. Undoing the impact of decades of negative conditioning may sadly take generations. I’m just glad there are people in the Dominican community like Carolina, who are committed to doing the work.
How comfortable with natural hair is your community?
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Filmmaker and activist Rhadamés Julián was born in Puerto Rico, and raised in Texas, but his parents are from the Dominican Republic. In 2006 he graduated with a BA in Communication from the University of Texas at Arlington. After working as a public school teacher, in television, the fashion industry, high-end retail and as a professional male model he realized that he was very confused not only about his path in life, but also his identity. His experiences and world travels have inspired him to make Follicle. In the film, hair and imagery are the two barriers that he focuses on. Rhadamés is traveling the world trying to get a deeper understanding of how these two barriers construct identity amongst people of color with in the African Diaspora. For more on Rhadamés and his upcoming film Follicle visit www.folliclefilm.com and follow him on Instagram.
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