0:00:14.336,0:00:16.853
I am from the South Side of Chicago,

0:00:17.199,0:00:21.086
and in seventh grade,[br]I had a best friend named Jenny

0:00:21.086,0:00:23.942
who lived on the Southwest[br]Side of Chicago.

0:00:24.803,0:00:26.430
Jenny was white,

0:00:26.430,0:00:30.623
and if you know anything about[br]the segregated demographics of Chicago,

0:00:30.623,0:00:34.027
you know that there are[br]not too many black people

0:00:34.027,0:00:36.083
who live on the Southwest Side of Chicago.

0:00:36.083,0:00:37.398
But Jenny was my girl

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and so we would hang out every so often[br]after school and on the weekends.

0:00:42.341,0:00:45.569
And so one day we were[br]hanging out in her living room,

0:00:45.569,0:00:48.403
talking about 13-year-old things,

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and Jenny's little sister Rosie[br]was in the room with us,

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and she was sitting behind me[br]just kind of playing in my hair,

0:00:55.023,0:00:59.353
and I wasn't thinking too much[br]about what she was doing.

0:00:59.986,0:01:02.132
But at a pause in the conversation,

0:01:02.132,0:01:04.534
Rosie tapped me on the shoulder.

0:01:04.534,0:01:07.092
She said, "Can I ask you a question?"

0:01:07.521,0:01:09.496
I said, "Yeah, Rosie. Sure."

0:01:10.380,0:01:11.804
"Are you black?"

0:01:11.804,0:01:14.068
(Laughter)

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The room froze.

0:01:15.880,0:01:17.106
Silence.

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Jenny and Rosie's mom[br]was not too far away.

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She was in the kitchen[br]and she overheard the conversation,

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and she was mortified.

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She said, "Rosie! You can't[br]ask people questions like that."

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And Jenny was my friend,[br]and I know she was really embarrassed.

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I felt kind of bad for her,[br]but actually I was not offended.

0:01:38.022,0:01:42.989
I figured it wasn't Rosie's fault[br]that in her 10 short years on this earth,

0:01:42.989,0:01:45.611
living on the Southwest Side of Chicago,

0:01:45.611,0:01:48.773
she wasn't 100 percent sure[br]what a black person looked like.

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That's fair.

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But what was more surprising to me was,

0:01:52.727,0:01:57.103
in all of this time I had spent[br]with Jenny and Rosie's family --

0:01:57.103,0:01:58.546
hanging out with them,

0:01:58.546,0:01:59.907
playing with them,

0:01:59.907,0:02:02.507
even physically interacting with them --

0:02:02.507,0:02:07.074
it was not until Rosie[br]put her hands in my hair

0:02:07.074,0:02:09.625
that she thought to ask me if I was black.

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That was the first time I would realize

0:02:13.681,0:02:18.383
how big of a role the texture of my hair[br]played in confirming my ethnicity,

0:02:18.383,0:02:23.279
but also that it would play a key role[br]in how I'm viewed by others in society.

0:02:24.689,0:02:28.126
Garrett A. Morgan[br]and Madame CJ Walker were pioneers

0:02:28.126,0:02:31.819
of the black hair-care and beauty[br]industry in the early 1900s.

0:02:32.232,0:02:35.937
They're best known as the inventors[br]of chemically-based hair creams

0:02:35.937,0:02:37.461
and heat straightening tools

0:02:37.461,0:02:41.027
designed to permanently,[br]or semipermanently,

0:02:41.027,0:02:43.808
alter the texture of black hair.

0:02:45.037,0:02:48.734
Oftentimes when we think[br]about the history of blacks in America,

0:02:48.734,0:02:51.702
we think about the heinous acts

0:02:51.702,0:02:56.420
and numerous injustices[br]that we experienced as people of color

0:02:56.420,0:02:58.022
because of the color of our skin,

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when in fact, in post-Civil War America,

0:03:01.567,0:03:06.761
it was the hair of an[br]African-American male or female

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that was known as the most[br]"telling feature" of Negro status,

0:03:11.754,0:03:13.848
more so than the color of the skin.

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And so before they were staples

0:03:17.139,0:03:20.911
of the multibillion-dollar[br]hair-care industry,

0:03:20.911,0:03:23.699
our dependency on tools and products,

0:03:23.699,0:03:27.162
like the hair relaxer[br]and the pressing comb,

0:03:27.162,0:03:31.525
were more about our survival[br]and advancement as a race

0:03:31.525,0:03:33.697
in postslavery America.

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Over the years,[br]we grew accustomed to this idea

0:03:38.914,0:03:44.106
that straighter and longer hair[br]meant better and more beautiful.

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We became culturally obsessed

0:03:48.602,0:03:51.916
with this idea of having[br]what we like to call ...

0:03:52.443,0:03:53.760
"good hair."

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This essentially means:

0:03:56.985,0:04:00.613
the looser the curl pattern,[br]the better the hair.

0:04:01.520,0:04:07.906
And we let these institutionalized ideas[br]form a false sense of hierarchy

0:04:07.906,0:04:13.045
that would determine[br]what was considered a good grade of hair

0:04:13.045,0:04:14.763
and what was not.

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What's worse is that[br]we let these false ideologies

0:04:20.327,0:04:22.960
invade our perception of ourselves,

0:04:22.960,0:04:26.501
and they still continue[br]to infect our cultural identity

0:04:26.501,0:04:28.783
as African-American women today.

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So what did we do?

0:04:31.881,0:04:35.893
We went to the hair salon[br]every six to eight weeks,

0:04:35.893,0:04:37.363
without fail,

0:04:37.363,0:04:40.778
to subject our scalps[br]to harsh straightening chemicals

0:04:40.778,0:04:42.676
beginning at a very young age --

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sometimes eight, 10 --

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that would result in hair loss,

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bald spots,

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sometimes even burns on the scalp.

0:04:52.907,0:04:57.639
We fry our hair at temperatures[br]of 450 degrees Fahrenheit or higher

0:04:57.639,0:04:59.002
almost daily,

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to maintain the straight look.

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Or we simply cover our hair up[br]with wigs and weaves,

0:05:06.360,0:05:09.016
only to let our roots breathe in private

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where no one knows[br]what's really going on under there.

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We adopted these practices[br]in our own communities,

0:05:17.460,0:05:22.870
and so it's no wonder[br]why today the typical ideal vision

0:05:22.870,0:05:25.348
of a professional black woman,

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especially in corporate America,

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tends to look like this,

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rather than like this.

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And she certainly doesn't look like this.

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In September of this year,

0:05:39.656,0:05:41.816
a federal court ruled it lawful

0:05:41.840,0:05:46.176
for a company to discriminate[br]against hiring an employee

0:05:46.200,0:05:49.280
based on if she or he wears dreadlocks.

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In the case,

0:05:52.023,0:05:54.700
the hiring manager in Mobile, Alabama

0:05:54.700,0:05:56.960
is on record as saying,

0:05:56.960,0:05:59.112
"I'm not saying yours are messy,

0:06:00.090,0:06:01.426
but ...

0:06:01.710,0:06:03.282
you know what I'm talking about."

0:06:04.910,0:06:07.150
Well, what was she talking about?

0:06:08.260,0:06:09.980
Did she think that they were ugly?

0:06:11.710,0:06:16.166
Or maybe they were[br]just a little too Afrocentric

0:06:16.200,0:06:18.480
and pro-black-looking for her taste.

0:06:18.950,0:06:20.886
Or maybe it's not about Afrocentricity,

0:06:20.886,0:06:23.422
and it's more just about[br]it being a little too "urban"

0:06:23.422,0:06:24.822
for the professional setting.

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Perhaps she had a genuine concern[br]in that they looked "scary"

0:06:30.186,0:06:33.706
and that they would intimidate[br]the clients and their customer base.

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All of these words are ones[br]that are too often associated

0:06:40.560,0:06:44.000
with the stigma[br]attached to natural hairstyles.

0:06:44.600,0:06:45.800
And this ...

0:06:46.350,0:06:48.310
this has got to change.

0:06:49.832,0:06:51.168
In 2013,

0:06:51.168,0:06:55.574
a white paper published by the Deloitte[br]Leadership Center for Inclusion,

0:06:55.574,0:06:59.120
studied 3,000 individuals[br]in executive leadership roles

0:06:59.120,0:07:01.662
on the concept[br]of covering in the workplace

0:07:01.662,0:07:06.320
based on appearance,[br]advocacy, affiliation and association.

0:07:07.019,0:07:10.036
When thinking about[br]appearance-based covering,

0:07:10.060,0:07:11.346
the study showed

0:07:11.346,0:07:17.276
that 67 percent of women[br]of color cover in the workplace

0:07:17.310,0:07:18.590
based on their appearance.

0:07:20.196,0:07:23.816
Of the total respondents who[br]admitted to appearance-based covering,

0:07:24.450,0:07:28.601
82 percent said that it was[br]somewhat to extremely important

0:07:28.601,0:07:31.800
for them to do so[br]for their professional advancement.

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Now, this is Ursula Burns.

0:07:38.471,0:07:43.796
She is the first African-American[br]female CEO of a Fortune 500 company --

0:07:43.796,0:07:45.276
of Xerox.

0:07:45.583,0:07:47.825
She's known by her signature look,

0:07:47.825,0:07:49.590
the one that you see here.

0:07:49.590,0:07:53.570
A short, nicely trimmed,[br]well-manicured Afro.

0:07:54.729,0:07:57.450
Ms. Burns is what[br]we like to call a "natural girl."

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And she is paving the way[br]and showing what's possible

0:08:01.964,0:08:05.420
for African-American women[br]seeking to climb the corporate ladder,

0:08:05.420,0:08:09.060
but still wishing[br]to wear natural hairstyles.

0:08:10.210,0:08:14.076
But today the majority[br]of African-American women

0:08:14.076,0:08:18.604
who we still look to as leaders,[br]icons and role models,

0:08:18.604,0:08:21.594
still opt for a straight-hair look.

0:08:22.388,0:08:23.653
Now,

0:08:23.653,0:08:25.437
maybe it's because they want to --

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this is authentically[br]how they feel best --

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but maybe --

0:08:29.883,0:08:31.114
and I bet --

0:08:31.554,0:08:34.298
a part of them felt like they had to

0:08:34.843,0:08:39.260
in order to reach the level of success[br]that they have attained today.

0:08:41.619,0:08:46.133
There is a natural hair movement[br]that is sweeping the country

0:08:46.615,0:08:48.600
and also in some places in Europe.

0:08:49.631,0:08:54.442
Millions of women are exploring what[br]it means to transition to natural hair,

0:08:54.442,0:08:58.968
and they're cutting off[br]years and years of dry, damaged ends

0:08:58.968,0:09:01.558
in order to restore[br]their natural curl pattern.

0:09:02.425,0:09:06.800
I know because I have been an advocate[br]and an ambassador for this movement

0:09:06.800,0:09:08.963
for roughly the last three years.

0:09:10.170,0:09:15.296
After 27 years of excessive heat[br]and harsh chemicals,

0:09:15.705,0:09:20.726
my hair was beginning to show[br]extreme signs of wear and tear.

0:09:21.723,0:09:23.209
It was breaking off,

0:09:23.209,0:09:24.787
it was thinning,

0:09:24.787,0:09:27.331
looking just extremely dry and brittle.

0:09:27.778,0:09:31.364
All those years of chasing[br]that conventional image of beauty

0:09:31.364,0:09:32.722
that we saw earlier

0:09:32.722,0:09:34.909
was finally beginning to take its toll.

0:09:36.151,0:09:38.064
I wanted to do something about it,

0:09:38.064,0:09:42.229
and so I started what I called[br]the "No Heat Challenge,"

0:09:42.831,0:09:46.422
where I would refrain[br]from using heat styling tools on my hair

0:09:46.422,0:09:48.223
for six months.

0:09:48.716,0:09:51.203
And like a good millennial,

0:09:52.155,0:09:54.238
I documented it on social media.

0:09:54.238,0:09:56.076
(Laughter)

0:09:57.109,0:10:00.910
I documented as I reluctantly cut off

0:10:01.531,0:10:04.644
three to four inches of my beloved hair.

0:10:06.060,0:10:10.850
I documented as I struggled[br]to master these natural hairstyles,

0:10:11.487,0:10:15.179
and also as I struggled to embrace them

0:10:15.704,0:10:19.213
and think that they actually looked good.

0:10:19.902,0:10:25.068
And I documented as my hair texture[br]slowly began to change.

0:10:26.354,0:10:29.008
By sharing this journey openly,

0:10:29.008,0:10:32.452
I learned that I was not[br]the only woman going through this

0:10:32.452,0:10:36.761
and that in fact there were thousands[br]and thousands of other women

0:10:36.761,0:10:38.888
who were longing to do the same.

0:10:38.888,0:10:41.154
So they would reach out to me[br]and they would say,

0:10:41.154,0:10:43.636
"Cheyenne, how did you do[br]that natural hairstyle

0:10:43.636,0:10:45.702
that I saw you with the other day?

0:10:45.702,0:10:47.885
What new products have you started using

0:10:47.885,0:10:50.205
that might be a little better[br]for my hair texture

0:10:50.205,0:10:52.155
as it begins to change?"

0:10:52.155,0:10:55.906
Or, "What are some[br]of the natural hair routines

0:10:55.906,0:11:00.160
that I should begin to adopt[br]to slowly restore the health of my hair?"

0:11:01.099,0:11:04.474
But I also found that there were[br]a large number of women

0:11:05.097,0:11:08.657
who were extremely hesitant[br]to take that first step

0:11:09.823,0:11:12.404
because they were paralyzed by fear.

0:11:13.467,0:11:15.267
Fear of the unknown --

0:11:15.280,0:11:17.476
what would they now look like?

0:11:17.639,0:11:21.723
How would they feel about themselves[br]with these natural hairstyles?

0:11:21.723,0:11:24.007
And most importantly to them,

0:11:24.341,0:11:26.608
how would others view them?

0:11:28.214,0:11:30.216
Over the last three years

0:11:30.216,0:11:34.068
of having numerous conversations[br]with friends of mine

0:11:34.068,0:11:37.524
and also complete strangers[br]from around the world,

0:11:37.853,0:11:40.588
I learned some really important things

0:11:40.588,0:11:44.432
about how African-American women[br]identify with their hair.

0:11:45.780,0:11:47.716
And so when I think back

0:11:47.716,0:11:50.590
to that hiring manager in Mobile, Alabama,

0:11:51.273,0:11:53.830
I'd say, "Actually, no.

0:11:54.110,0:11:56.573
We don't know what you're talking about."

0:11:56.573,0:11:58.994
But here are some things that we do know.

0:11:59.606,0:12:04.246
We know that when black women[br]embrace their love for their natural hair,

0:12:04.495,0:12:07.816
it helps to undo generations of teaching

0:12:07.816,0:12:10.970
that black in its natural state[br]is not beautiful,

0:12:11.134,0:12:14.222
or something to be hidden or covered up.

0:12:15.529,0:12:19.238
We know that black women[br]express their individuality

0:12:19.632,0:12:22.706
and experience feelings of empowerment

0:12:22.706,0:12:26.542
by experimenting with different[br]hairstyles regularly.

0:12:27.720,0:12:29.593
And we also know

0:12:29.593,0:12:34.119
that when we're invited[br]to wear our natural hair in the workplace,

0:12:34.119,0:12:37.581
it reinforces that we are uniquely valued

0:12:37.581,0:12:41.395
and thus helps us to flourish[br]and advance professionally.

0:12:43.358,0:12:45.219
I leave you with this.

0:12:45.219,0:12:48.250
In a time of racial and social tension,

0:12:49.227,0:12:51.253
embracing this movement

0:12:51.253,0:12:52.995
and others like this

0:12:52.995,0:12:56.865
help us to rise above[br]the confines of the status quo.

0:12:57.652,0:13:02.933
So when you see a woman with braids[br]or locks draping down her back,

0:13:03.475,0:13:06.360
or you notice your colleague

0:13:06.360,0:13:09.561
who has stopped[br]straightening her hair to work,

0:13:10.155,0:13:13.481
do not simply approach her and admire

0:13:13.869,0:13:16.620
and ask her if you can touch it --

0:13:16.620,0:13:18.149
(Laughter)

0:13:18.149,0:13:20.081
Really appreciate her.

0:13:20.782,0:13:22.226
Applaud her.

0:13:22.226,0:13:26.247
Heck, even high-five her[br]if that's what you feel so inclined to do.

0:13:26.247,0:13:27.840
Because this --

0:13:27.840,0:13:30.625
this is more than about a hairstyle.

0:13:31.634,0:13:34.804
It's about self-love and self-worth.

0:13:35.457,0:13:37.492
It's about being brave enough

0:13:37.492,0:13:41.610
not to fold under the pressure[br]of other's expectations.

0:13:42.588,0:13:47.087
And about knowing that making[br]the decision to stray from the norm

0:13:47.087,0:13:49.309
does not define who we are,

0:13:49.634,0:13:52.126
but it simply reveals who we are.

0:13:52.785,0:13:54.372
And finally,

0:13:54.372,0:13:56.491
being brave is easier

0:13:56.491,0:13:59.480
when we can count[br]on the compassion of others.

0:13:59.480,0:14:01.146
So after today,

0:14:01.146,0:14:04.681
I certainly hope that we can count on you.

0:14:05.381,0:14:06.628
Thank you.

0:14:06.628,0:14:09.435
(Applause)