Why girls of color use Guerilla Glue/ harmful chemicals to feel pretty... How these issues impact confidence & productivity at school and work.

As a child, I got in trouble a lot in school and my behavior stemmed from personal issues. The trauma I experienced as a child from experiences in foster care, living in a poverty-stricken area and issues of safety were always at the forefront of my mind. Despite this, I loved the summer and the freedom I felt swimming in my neighborhood pool in Philadelphia. The pool was a place where I could feel safe and be free to splash, float, smile, and forget any issues in my mind or at home.

However, these moments and my place of bliss quickly subsided when I came home from the pool to "you are getting so black and your hair is a mess." I knew from the tone and mannerisms that this was not an ideal state to occupy.

At 9 years old, I learned that chlorine coupled with the sun led to a darker complexion and kinky hair that made me less atrractive and undesirable.

My solution to getting so dark was to come home and sit under the air conditioner for 2 hours until the sun went down. My "great idea" stemmed from the observation that I got lighter in the winter months so this would obviously solve my complexion issue. This became a ritual.

I would come home from swimming and sit under the air conditioner to "get my color back". So I understand how ignorance and the pressure to feel beautiful in a world that prioritizes European standards of beauty may have gotten the best of little Megan and #TessicaBrown. Out of ignorance, many black women will do anything to achieve an unrealistic standard of beauty even when it doesn't make sense/has chemicals that are detrimental to our health.

Tessica Brown's viral video of her struggling to deal with her hair after using Guerilla Glue to achieve a hairstyle was not a real shock to me as I have personally interacted with many women who told me that they hated their frizzy, kinky, or curly hair and would do anything to "tame" it. Tessica ran out of hairspray marketed to "tame" natural hair with the strength of a gorilla and instead picked up a construction adhesive Guerilla Glue to achieve just that.

The #guerillagluegirl story is an example of the heights black women will climb, in order to feel beautiful in a world that praises black culture & not raw natural black beauty; coarse edges, kinky/ tangled afros, & transitioning hair as everyone is not what is celebrated as #hairgoals. To achieve this designation and health hair, love, care, and more importantly education is needed.

Many people don't understand that these issues impact everyone. When girls and guys of color are forced to cut their locs, straighten their hair, and experience hair discrimination in the workplace, productivity and performance is impacted.

• 58% of Black students experience name-calling or uncomfortable questions about their hair at school
• 1 in 4 Black adults had a negative experience at school in relation to their hair texture.

All of these examples impact people of color on an implicit level. They are impacted and the extra weight of worry and anxiety around personal grooming causes lower performance due to a mental distraction. Personally, I have examined how my confidence and performance was influenced due to the stress of my natural hair and the discomfort it caused for me in the workplace, read it here. So I am thankful that the Crown Act is addressing hair discrimination in the workplace and urging the U.S to protect people and allow them to be their full selves in the workplace. In the UK, the Halo Collective is calling on schools to adopt policies and a pledge to be a more inclusive environment for students.

This is a global conversation that is causing many more people to understand the real issue; there are many narratives of colonialism that we ALL need to unlearn together.

Further, I decided to start the Crownworkshop to solve this issue by focusing on middle schools and organizations globally. The goal of the Crownworkshop is to do this and highlight the interconnectedness of confidence, personal grooming, mental health, and productivity. This is a wellness solution for organizations and schools to be better and more inclusive as this is a conversation for everyone if we want sustainable change. My personal experiences inform my work and create an environment where vulnerability is celebrated and there is only space for connection and growth.

The Crownworkshop is a social enterprise that curates educational experiences around wellness, mental health personal development, grooming via technology for individuals and corporations

To learn more or discuss an experience for your organization, schedule a consultation.

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Thank you for reading,

this is REALLY important to me.

Megan V Green

P.S This is very uncomfortable for me to share but I want to create a world where young girls and boys globally are free of the stress I experienced more than I want comfort. I hope this is worth the risk.