Gabby Douglas Is Not Her Hair

Sometimes, we black women don't know how to act.

We have the first African-American woman to win a gold medal in the all-around women's gymnastic competition in the Olympics, and sisters are criticizing her hair?  Are you kidding me?

I've warned white folks to stay out the hair conversation when it comes to Malia's and Sasha Obama's hair.  Now, to my black sisters:  Grow up and stop projecting your own hair issues onto Gabby.

I am often among the hair challenged.  Some days my hair is bouncin' and behavin', some days, not so much.  But I'm too focused on handling my business to care if I've hit the hair mark each and every freakin' day.  I've got far more important things to do than to worry about whether other people approve of my hair.

And, apparently, so does Gabby Douglas.  Like coppin' two gold medals.

But I've seen this kind of criticism before.  I recently spent time with a friend who just couldn't let go of the fact that a black woman newscaster we were watching failed to wear false eyelashes during a broadcast.  She went on and on about how, with high definition television, the beauty bar had been raised for sisters on the air, and this sister, in her mind, had an epic beauty fail.

Not a mention was made about whether the sister newscaster was good at her job.  She wasn't wearing false eyelashes.

Puh-leeze.

This black women's hair thing and our appearance in general isn't about that newscaster or Gabby Douglas.  It's about how we as black women feel about our own appearances and hair and how we're projecting our own insecurities onto unsuspecting ACHIEVING black women in the public eye.

I, for one, hope Gabby Douglas isn't paying attention to any of this mess.  She's got far too much to do that's more important than her hair.  To her sister hair haters, I say, she's got two gold medals -- what you got?  Yeah.  That's what I thought.

For goodness' sake, don't ruin this young sister's triumph with your own issues about your hair and/or your appearance.  Go handle your hair issues and let Gabby do her thing, which, by the way, she's doing quite well, thank you, ma'am.

In the words of India.Arie, Gabby Douglas is not her hair; she is not her skin, she is the soul that lives within.

Congrats, Gabby.  And in the words of the late Billy Preston (way before your time), you are so beautiful to me.