by: Randi M.
Emory Professor Clifton Green braiding his 4-year-old daughter's hair.
I personally don’t have a problem with Interracial Adoption, because I am happy when any child is given the chance to have a loving family. Lately I have seen a lot more White couples adopting African or African-American children. I always hear people saying how White parents can’t teach a child how to be Black. And that may be the case, but that isn’t my issue today. A little Black girl’s hair is her crown. And when people see little Black girls running around with their hair looking a mess, they say “Why would her parents let her walk out the house looking like that?” It bothers me when I see these girls out and their hair is wild and doesn’t look like you can comb through it. I feel her White parents need to take the time to learn how to do her hair. That little girl is going to be criticized by other children and some adults, because her hair is unkempt. I recently received an email from a friend entitled, “A Father Braiding Daughter’s Hair A Labor of Love. It was about a White man who learned braiding techniques to
Miriam Tigist Green getting her hair done.
do his adopted Ethiopian daughter’s hair. He and his wife explained they didn’t want their daughter “to feel like her hair was a burden but was something that should be celebrated.” A lot of times too much pressure is placed on girls today about their appearance. But we can’t change a society overnight. I love that her father took the time to try and make her feel more accepted. I also feel it should be the same vice versa. A Black couple that has adopted a White or Asian or any child should take the time to learn what goes into taking care of the child’s hair. Let us know how you feel about this.
Clifton Green and his daughter, Miriam Tigist Green.
1 Comment
StatusMediaGlobal 
i think it’s wonderful that this family recognized the issue and took the initiative to do something about it themselves. They could’ve easily just sent her to a salon to have it done (which is fine also, especially if effort was put forth and the result just aint pretty lol) but taking the time to learn how to do it themselves is so much more personal and loving. Especially, for the father to learn. The mother, as a woman already knows the basics and could probably get it to look half-way decent with no problem, but males are often out of the loop completely. It creates more father-daughter/mother-daughter time for them to bond and build their relationships.