It took me a long time to love my Ethiopian heritage. My pride in my culture and identity grew once I started to love my hair. Black people have a very emotional relationship with our hair. It’s clear from a young age what the cultural beauty standard was: white, straight blonde hair, blue eyes. Lack of representation plays a significant role in this. Even though I went to very diverse schools my whole life, I was still the only or one of the only Black people in my classes. It’s hard to appreciate your identity if there is no one around you that looks like you.

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