Jada Pinkett-Smith Responds to HairTroversy About Willow

By Tenisha Mercer



Willow Smith's newest hairstyle -- pink, shaved hair.

Willow Smith  is quite the hair chameleon:  she's rocked a TWA, pink hair, braids,  shaved off styles with hair on top,  wigs, and quite a few other hair styles, and she's only 12!

Now, her famous Mom has come to her daughter's defense, after criticism about her lack of parenting skills. She posted this on Facebook:

"This is a world where women, girls are constantly reminded that they don’t belong to themselves; that their bodies are not their own, nor their power or self determination.

I made a promise to endow my little girl with the power to always know that her body, spirit and her mind are HER domain. Willow cut her hair because her beauty, her value, her worth is not measured by the length of her hair.

It’s also a statement that claims that even little girls have the RIGHT to own themselves and should not be a slave to even their mother’s deepest insecurities, hopes and desires. Even little girls should not be a slave to the preconceived ideas of what a culture believes a little girl should be."

 

 

The many hairstyles of Willow Smith

My take?

Interesting. Mrs. Pinkett-Smith's comments comments echo her husband's comments a few months ago: They are consistent in that they want Willow to decide how SHE wants to wear HER Hair.

I very much agree with her mother's statements about her beauty is not measured by the length of her hair. Yes, Miss Smith is an actress/singer in  Hollywood, and she's doing what society, particularly African American society, views as a damn near cardinal sin -- purposely shaving off a child's hair.

What's All The Fuss?

Lots of us have a our panties in a knot about this one. And many of us can't separate all of that Illuminati theories or the Smith's reported Church of Scientology affiliations with her hair.

It's Willow. Let her be Willow. Most little girls are probably not going to following in her footsteps.

But what if they do?

This gives me food for thought as a parent: Am I pushing my hair standards on my children, particularly the natural hair standards of not getting a perm? Am I letting my children express themselves? Would I allow my daughters to cut their hair like Willow?

What do you think?

Will Smith Talks About Willow Smith and Big Chop

Willow Smith big chop with Mom Jada

Willow Smith's hair -- color, wigs, shaved sides, big chop, etc. -- is often the subject of debate on blogs.

Willow Smith's big chop sparked debate on blogs earlier this year. Her superstar Dad, Will Smith, talks about the family's decision to let Willow, 11, manage her hair in an interview with Parade.


In an interview with Parade, Will Smith talked about Willow's hair and giving her free reign.

“We let Willow cut her hair," Smith said. "When you have a little girl, it’s like how can you teach her that you’re in control of her body? If I teach her that I’m in charge of whether or not she can touch her hair, she’s going to replace me with some other man when she goes out in the world. She can’t cut my hair but that’s her hair. She has got to have command of her body. So when she goes out into the world, she’s going out with a command that it is hers. She is used to making those decisions herself. We try to keep giving them those decisions until they can hold the full weight of their lives.”

Would You Let Your Child Get A Big Chop? 

I say, it works for them and Willow. I'm not gonna judge. My 11-year old rocked pink hair dye (the spray kind) for a few days after an event in school. Did I care? Not much. Will she do it again? I don't know. I didn't make a big deal about, so who knows.

Now, a big chop? I can definitely see where lots of folks might wonder about such a drastic step. Black folks and drastic hair cuts are a BIG step, especially when it comes to a child. And don't let that child have long hair! The only way that many of us can accept that is if it's a fiasco at the stylist or the child is sick. It would definitely NOT be on purpose!

It's easy to see why we feel that way. We think our kids are extensions of ourselves; they are mini-mes. And so if it's a style that "we" don't necessarily approve of, then we don't approve of it for our children. I get it. A big chop is a drastic step -- for an adult or child.

Testing Hair Boundaries 

And you know back in the day, we tested our hair limits, too. Remember asymmetric cuts, anyone? We just knew we were cute (I never got one, but admired them). And of course you had the punk rocker look, with the mohawk cuts and spiked hair, mainly worn by Caucasians. 

There are a lot of  "what ifs" -- would you let your daughter relax her hair, wear locs, etc. Sometimes, there are no easy answers, because all children are different.


But if my child insisted on a big chop -- and I'd talked to her about it being a temporary change that you can't revert -- I'd let her do it. Though, I probably would advise her to start with a haircut first to see how she likes it, maybe shaved sides first and then the big chop.

I get where Will is coming from, though. It's her hair and she'll have to live with it even if she doesn't like it. It's hair, it grows back. I would NOT, however, let my daughter wear a wig/weave permanently once she's done a big chop. That's like telling her it's OK to make a big step and then if you don't like it, that you don't have to live with the weight of your decisions.


I can understand Will and Jada's reasoning to a certain extent -- giving Willow the freedom to style her hair and set her own hair boundaries. It's clear that Willow isn't your typical 11-year old.


What do you think? Would you let your daughter do a big chop?