Monday, April 30, 2007

Black Hair and Oshala


"HAIR EMERGENCY: Can you send me some hair stuff ASAP. Shea Butter, Indian Hemp, Anything please!" This is the emergency text I sent to the states on Saturday and Im still reeling from the shock of trying to find hair product this weekend. When I was packing to come here, I tried to be very strict as to what I would bring. I had naively assumed that hair products would be something that I could easily find. This was brasil afterall! Beautiful black people with beautiful hair, right? Well my first clue should have been the first night that I arrived. I went out to get food with my landlady and somehow we started talking about hair and she said that it was still very unusual for people to have locks – she told me that black women here still mostly relax their hair or wear extensions. Hmmph -I thought to myself- well maybe that’s true for the older people (she is from a different generation) but there’s got to be people here who wear their hair natural. and in fact when I was here the last time these ladies hooked up me and my mom’s hair better than anyone I had gone to at home. So there’s got to be at least one place where I can find hair products – at the very least they must have that little section in the store for black hair care like they do at home. And with all the coconut, avocado, papaya, nuts, cocoa,- theres got to be some great natural stuff. So this week, as my own supply began to dwindle, I started to keep my eye out for product – in the supermarket, in the farmacia. Hmmm – not much. And it seems to all be made by L’Oreal and Palmolive – two companies that I do not associate with black hair. On Monday, over beers with my two friends – American black women who have been living here for a bunch of months – I asked them where they went. “I brought stuff with me” they both replied. One was going back for a few weeks soon and was planning on stocking up. She offered to bring me back some but my needs were more immediate. So this weekend I made it my goal to find hair grease. I took the bus up to the mall and began wandering around. I went into a Botanica – a place where they have shampoos, skin stuff, perfumes etc. The lady showed me sweet smelling hair products but there was nothing there for me. So I asked the first black woman that I saw- “onde e uma loja comprar crème por meu cabello? (where is there a store to buy cream for my hair - I emphasized the my). Lojas Americanas- she replied. I had heard about this store. This was like the K-Mart of Salvador with lines to prove it. So I went there and spent an hour diligently looking in their 3 hair aisles. Nothing. Absolutely nothing for natural black hair. Ok im in real trouble here I thought to myself as I walked out. Across the street was another farcmacia and out of desperation I went in there to continue my search. And deep in one corner of the store practically hidden, I found something that will suffice for the time being. It says it has brazil nut oil, avocado oil and mineral oil. The first ingredient listed ?- Vaseline.
Later that night I met up with my friend to go to dinner and then to a candomble ceremony. My friend who is a very cool ex-patriot, ex-mormon has been living in Salvador for many years. She was with her friend who is afro-brasilian. I expressed to them my shock at the lack of hair products for black hair and they both agreed. The afro-brasilian woman, who had a beautiful short natural do, kept shaking her head and saying “nada, nada.” and how people tell her she'd be more beautiful is she straightened her hair. Well now I know the business to start if I decided to move here.
After dinner, dressed in our whites, my friend and I went to the candomble (for more on Candomble: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candombl%C3%A9) ceremony. It was for Oshala
(he is the orisha of the the creation, the father) and in a very working class area of the city. As we drove, she pointed out the huge mormon temple that sat there looking completely out of place next to the shacks, and makeshift houses. As she and I waited outside for the ceremony to begin, we saw two young, white men in suits and backpacks walking down the street holding small black books. Mormons on their mission huh. – I asked. Yeah – she said. They’re big here.
The ceremony was supposed to begin at 8:00 pm -which meant it began at 9:30 pm. The bright clean room – called a terreiro- was packed with people of all ages in white - white dresses, pants, linens, t-shirts, shawls .The room smelled of soap, like everyone had just showered 5 minutes before they came. Men, women, teenagers, babies, men and women in their 80s mostly afro-brasilians with a few gringos thrown in, lined the room. Then the drumming started and a line of women in white came out and slowly danced and praised as they circled the room. Then more people came out mostly women but some men came and joined them and they carried what looked like big clay jars on their head. And others held a long sheet over them and they circled the room and made spirals folding into each other. Others went to hug and give praise to the mae de santo. You could see tears begin to stream down some of their faces, and some began to get weak and were held up by their fellow worshipers. And the drums continued, and the chanting and swaying. And some in the audience began to get the spirit and were taken and brought to a room where they later emerged ready to take part in the ceremony. My friend and I stood there for two hours entranced watching. Just swaying and watching.
And tomorrow is Labor Day. Why is it observed everywhere else in the world on May 1st except in the U.S?
and for those cats who claim they are going to visit me - check out these two sites for tickets
http://www.kayak.com/ and www.brol.com
i believe it when i see you on the beautiful beach also known as my backyard.

1 comment:

rubeeredslippers said...

ok challenge.
i am so there in july darlin! let's talk soon!
xo