Black Hair Care: Repeating History?

"The Life and Times of Madam C. J. Walker" by A'Lelia Bundles takes you back to your roots . . . of black hair care. I believe that "Those who do not know their history are destined to repeat it." From corporate politics to hair care, this statement has stood the test of time.
According to this excerpt, for over a hundred years, white-owned companies have pushed "hair straighteners." Their marketing images evolved from "wild haired caricatures" to "mulatto women with long, wavy hair."

Also, from page 66 of this book (not pictured), these straighteners was marketed as "hair growers" because as kinky hair starts to straighten out, it is amazing how the length of the hair expands from out of its original tightly coiled state. So from visual observation, hair looks likes it "grows" instantly in front of your eyes as it straightens. For a Closer "visual" look at "kinky" hair, please visit my article on "A Closer Look at Type 4c hair" for a picture of "nappy hair."

According to this excerpt, for over a hundred years, vaseline was already determined to be too strong for black hair. So why is petroleum still being used in some hair care products? I think that heavy petroleum hairdressings seems to attract too many pollutants from the air and makes the hair hard within a few days of using it. Hard hair can cause breakage.

This "On her own Ground" is about history, and history repeating itself in modern day times. From networking to marketing, nothing has changed; we are just cycling back and rediscovering our history.