theme 1
Four groups of co-researchers engaged in photovoice through photography, small group discussions, and interviews.
We first hosted a training on photography and unsafe personal care products (products containing chemicals of concern, such as endocrine disrupting chemicals). During this training, the co-researchers also provided feedback on what words they look for when shopping for safer personal care products. Some co-researchers connected with “natural” while others preferred the word “safe”. We changed the theme to reflect each group’s preference for natural versus safe.
After this training, the co-researchers were asked to take photos of any experiences, items, people, or places that represented the first theme.​
what self-care looks like to me
My hair journey tells the story of how my hair style traditions paired with lack of knowledge, led me to adopt some unhealthy habits and beauty standards. But, as I got older and learned to love myself, I also learned to appreciate and love my hair texture and all it takes to care for it. In that process I began to question the type of products I used and what were some healthier, more natural alternatives to reduce the use of harmful products like relaxers and coloring I would use. Which led me to the decision to grow out my natural hair and subsequently chop it off for easier management. Now, going to the barbershop is not only hair care, but also self-care and self-love.
-PP
SHE/HER SAGA
Chemical treated to natural hair for the healthier care look for my own personal well being. To uplift and inspire myself, by saying girl be your natural self!!! Every day became a new yesterday, what I mean is, I no longer have to be what the world thinks pretty is, long straightened chemical hair is my yesterday, today is my natural. I can confidently comfortably say me, she, her is fabulous!!!!!
​ - RC
Growth and Strength
Trying this product out to get good results. I look for anything with black castor oil or avocado oil—anything that stands for health and growth. Natural hair products have ingredients like avocado oil and black castor oil, which I believe are there for hair growth and strength. The fact is that these products are a little bit more expensive.​
- Anonymous 1
Here’s a little bit about the product. The Cantu Shea Butter for Natural Hair Sulfate-Free Cleansing Cream Shampoo deeply cleanses hair and scalp allowing hair to grow while the unique sulfate-free formula helps reduce breakage. It’s made with pure shea butter and formulated without harsh ingredients, Cantu restores your real, authentic beauty. Embrace your curly, coily, or wavy hair with Cantu. It goes on to state that there’s no Mineral Oil, Sulfates, Parabens, Silicones, Phthalates, Gluten, Paraffin or Propylene. This all really sounds convincing right? When I looked at all the ingredients on the label, it was hard for me to pronounce some of them such as hydroxypropyltrimonium, Ethylhexylglycerin and Cocamidopropyl, just to name a few. Here’s a complete list of the ingredients on this shampoo label. Aqua (Water), Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Acrylates Copolymer, Cocamide DIPA, Glycerin, Glycol Distearate, Steareth-4, Phenoxyethanol, Parfum (Fragrance), PEG-150 Distearate, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Polyquaternium-39, Polyester-11, Sodium Hydroxide, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Disodium EDTA, Panthenol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Polysorbate 20, Sodium Chloride, Citric Acid, Benzyl Benzoate. Because of these harmful ingredients, these do not support more natural and safe hair products. The list of ingredients are difficult to read and understand what they mean. I will be looking for products with a shorter list of ingredients moving forward.
​ - AB
Consumer beware
stylistically me
Brings out my hair better and draws me to a community of hair product users. I use more healthy things that nourish my hair shaft.
- LB
Manipulative and Deceptive Practices
Personally, I'm shocked at the government's manipulation regarding ethnic products. RESTYLE is shedding light towards clarity and accountability for future generational health.
- LM
Growth and Strength
You're a PRODUCT of your environment; Some things that may prevent safer hair product use are the small writing on the ingredient label which makes it difficult to read and the branding of the product as natural may be both something that supports but also prevents safe product use (since we don't always know if they are telling the truth).
​ - DC
Lurking in the deep
I reflect on our history and realize we still have a long way to go of being bamboozled and dismissed as a people. I believe our voices shall rise up against the systemic injustice of ethnic exploitation. I believe the world has gone cold it's all about lining their pockets with our money without regard to health, integrity, APPARENTLY TRANSPARENCY.
​ - LM
from a trusted
source
This product was recommended to me by a beautician I know who mentioned that cellophane dyes are safer and won't cause cancer. After researching it further I look at reviews, ingredients, and if they have labels such as "natural", "vegan", or "cruelty-free". I learned that this product was not a cellophane dye and that cellophane dyes may also not be better for our health.
- AP
Good healthy hair doesn't have to hurt your pockets. In my research, I've noticed that Black hair products, specifically, are a slurry of industrial waste priced at extremely high price points. Trying to find something that lacked the [endocrine] disruptors was extremely difficult, but I came close, and it was affordable. ​Here's an affordable suggestion for your personal natural hair care regimen.
​ - T
https://haskbeauty.com/products/hair/sensitive-care/sensitive-care-shampoo
Great hair on a budget
Now in my hair journey, I have asked myself what did people use in their hair a million years ago? They didn't have products back then. If using natural products from the earth worked a million years ago, why wouldn't it work now?
- MM
my best natural self
Beauty is more than skin, it's health too. Use items that will help you, not hurt you. Maximize who you are by taking care of you. I use this product with one unhealthy ingredient (fragrance), which is better than using products with many unhealthy ingredients. This product is also affordable.
​ - TJ
beauty is health
the go to look
Echo gel gives a go to look on all types of hair, which most rely on for every day use, from slicking down the edges, to making the locs neat. Unfortunately, over a long time of chemical exposure, it can give skin irritations and even cause cancer.
- MH
opportunity
While there are opportunities to find safe products for our hair, there are immense barriers. There's environmental pollution; there's scarcity of products in tiny "ethnic hair care" aisles in convenient stores; and there's a paucity of U.S. laws preventing detrimental chemicals from infiltrating our hair products. Even though there are significant barriers, there is still the opportunity for awareness and knowledge to prevail. We have to be vigilant because not all chemicals are harmful and not all that is natural is safe for
our hair.
- AY
appearance can be misleading
I’ve been using a product for years not knowing that it was said to have had an ingredient in it called tea tree. Tea tree has a harmful ingredient in it that isn’t safe and can cause health issues. It was brought to my attention that the harmful ingredients wasn’t listed in the product and there was no tea tree ingredient listed. I didn’t know whether to be happy that it wasn’t listed in the ingredients or sad that I was led to believe it did. Some of us are not aware of the products we use and what’s in them. ​
- SH
Know what's safe
in your hair
products
When looking at the products I use, they don't typically list the words “safe” on the bottle and instead, you have to know what ingredients you want to avoid or see if they list that they are “free of” certain ingredients such as sulfates. It is important that we look at ingredient labels and pay attention to the ingredients when choosing what hair products to use.
​- SS
Why dove? Thinking on where to buy dove? Think again!
​ - JB
Why dove?
Is this tea tree oil?
Tea Tree Oil? After examining the ingredients in this products, I was surprised to see so many other ingredients listed. With such a small concentration of the active ingredient, I question whether it can be considered Tea Tree Oil at all. I also learned from the training that some essential oils have been found to have endocrine blocking properties, including tea tree oil. Tea tree oil is a very common, inexpensive product and is used widely in the Black community.
- Anonymous 2
Melanin authentic
In the urban community, many African and migrant women voiced their concerns and experience with the beauty products after using it within a year. For a product that makes our hair grow healthy and feel rich causes so many damages after certain time frame. The loss of our hair, skin irritation and loss of confidence it come to realization that the black owned hair products is sold by a white man which they change the hair ingredients. They even try to use the words “natural, organic, healthy, safe” as part of their marketing. Now many urban community
started to make their own homemade natural products from home. Not sure why the white man is so focused on the black brand and black hair, what can they possibly know about?!? The real truth is explained in the movie called “They cloned Tyrone” also many of the hair products are going through lawsuits due to cancer. Only the black community is affected by this.
- KL​
Perhaps one of the biggest uncalculated costs of safer hair care is the time invested in acquiring the "best" products. There's so much to sort through. The hours spent online or in store aisles checking availability, reading ingredients labels (or trying to), reading reviews—they add up. If there were a clock keeping track, I'm sure I've spent days...maybe even weeks of my life trying to identify products that work for my hair AND for my health.
​ - A
overwhelm
BROKEN C.R.O.W.N
Many people of color are fighting around the country for the right to wear their natural hair, as it is. There are policies in place that create additional struggles to embrace one’s natural hair, and this image highlights how broken the system is by seeing black hair products primarily marketed to black and brown bodies, locked behind plexi-glass.​
- JP
doing the right thing
When using black hair product/s read the ingredients to see if it is best for your hair texture. The reason is it may be harmful and damage your hair or affect your health. Example: causing cancer or hair loss. Mizani is a black hair product which many hair stylists use even though the company sold it to another hair company called Redkin. Hair stylists still use this product because it is still recommended by beauty school instructors. As well as being a popular product for their black clients.
​ - EC