Along with a myriad of other things, black women have to navigate a world that believes their hair is a petting zoo free and open to the public.
Talk to any black woman, and she'll have at least one story about a white person either attempting to touch or actually touching their hair without permission.
Twitter user Dustin Chambers watched this happen in broad daylight Friday.
This is the craziest shit I’ve seen in a minute wow wow wow. Yesterday at Little Azio’s. pic.twitter.com/sdHJn48x3a
— Dustin Chambers (@dustchambers) September 7, 2018
"This is the craziest s**t I’ve seen in a minute wow wow wow. Yesterday at Little Azio’s," Chambers captioned the video.
What the?
In the clip, a white woman is seen transfixed by the hair of a black woman simply trying to order at a restaurant. The sound is a bit muffled on the video, but you can tell by the black woman's body language that she politely explained why that move wasn't okay.
According to Chambers' account, the black woman said, "I'm being very friendly today but please don't touch my hair."
I saw her playing with it as I walked in, and decided to film when I realized they didn't know each other. She says "I'm being very friendly today but please don't touch my hair."
— Dustin Chambers (@dustchambers) September 7, 2018
The white woman puts her hand over her mouth, appearing shocked and apologetic.
Did y'all peep the, "Girl, don't test me" smile she gave OG Becky at the end, though? All black woman know (or have done) that smile.
Just like us, folks on Twitter were like, "Girl, wtf is you doing?"
The utmost amount of class. I yelled at this lady.
— Okoye’s Side Eye (@aawbaby0129) September 7, 2018
in what world do you just walk up to someone and start touching their hair……………………………………
— ???? TyJo Video ???? (@TyjoVideo) September 7, 2018
wipipo.
— Shéa (@beyonzeh) September 7, 2018
The cashier was all of us.
THE CASHIER LMAO pic.twitter.com/hVM8ASxyXE
— Dawit (@dawdawg) September 7, 2018
The guy behind the counter's reaction is priceless pic.twitter.com/WR7TJwSybD
— Derek (@Latin4Cookies) September 7, 2018
One user rightfully pointed out the ramifications stemming from a much different response and how that affects black women as a whole.
The most irritating part of this is how the black woman would’ve been perceived as “aggressive” or “overreacting” by many people if she’d had a different response.
— Jewel Wicker (@jewelwickershow) September 7, 2018
Solange tried to tell 'em, but they refuse to listen. Because entitlement.
Alas, here's a helpful cartoon for the grabby white folks.
— Barry is at Rose City Comic Con table BB-07 (@barrydeutsch) September 7, 2018
Becky (and Becky's people), keep your hands to yourself.
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This is why you can't touch my hair
Why black hair will always be personal, political and cultural