100 Objects #18: Hair Relaxer
· 35 min · Bonus
Episode 100 Objects #18: Hair Relaxer
Somewhere between 85 to 95 percent of Black women in the United States have used a chemical hair relaxer at least once in their lifetime. It is a ubiquitous American product with a complicated legacy: it built Black wealth and opened economic doors, but also taught generations to see their hair as a problem to be solved. And now research is revealing a physical cost. Roman Mars and producer Priscilla Alabi explore how a single product became a mirror for all of America's contradictions.
A History of the United States in 100 Objects is a production of 99% Invisible and BBC Studios.
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