Michelle Obama Calls Out Harmful Eurocentric Beauty Standards ‘Trap’ Black Women

On Friday (Nov.14), Michelle Obama hosted a live conference, with Tracee Ellis Ross as its host, to discuss her book, The Look, and explore “Beauty, Culture & Confidence.”

Throughout the hour-long discussion, the former First Lady didn’t hold back her thoughts about harmful beauty standards—specifically, how straight hair is pedestalized and “traps” Black women. “Let me explain something to White people,” Michelle said to the crowd. “Our hair comes out of our heads naturally, in a curly pattern. So when we’re straightening it to follow your beauty standards, we are trapped by the straightness.”

Michelle continued: “That’s why so many of us can’t swim, and we run away from the water. [I] [mean] people won’t even go to the gym because we tryna to keep our hair straight for y’all.” The IMO Podcast host calls the process of maintaining straight hair “exhausting” and time-consuming.

She also pointed out why legislative efforts, such as the C.R.O.W.N. Act, had to be enacted to prohibit discrimination against Black people, especially Black women and girls, for how they wear their hair. “Why do we need an act—an act of law—to tell White folks out of our hair? Don’t tell me how to wear my hair, don’t wonder about it, [and] don’t touch it,” Michelle added.

Michelle Obama Reflects On Style Journey With New Book, ‘The Look’

Back in June, Michelle Obama shared the cover of her now-released book, The Look, which chronicles her journey with fashion, hair, and beauty.”During our family’s time in the White House, the way I looked was constantly being dissected — what I wore, how my hair was styled,” Michelle wrote in an Instagram post. “For a while now, I’ve been wanting to reclaim more of that story, to share it in my way. I’m thankful to be at a stage in life where I feel comfortable expressing myself freely — wearing what I love and doing what feels true to me. And I’m excited to share some of what I’ve learned along the way.”

She continued, “It’s a reflection on my lifelong journey with fashion, hair, and beauty. Inside, you’ll find some of the outfits that have meant the most to me, but more importantly, the moments that I lived through in them — big and small, personal and political, historic and ordinary — that were as memorable as the clothes themselves.”