White People with Dreadlocks

This entry is part 1 of 1 in the series White People Dreads

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White People Dreads

• White People with Dreadlocks

THIS ARTICLE IS A REPRINT OF AN ARTICLE ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON NAANI.COM IN 2002. WE’VE DECIDED TO REVIVE THE DEBATE TO SEE HOW MUCH WE AND VISITORS HAVE GROWN…HOPEFULLY.

I remember back in college that every now and then I’d spot a (dread)locked head on campus. The irony was that none of them belonged to my African-American peers. I didn’t know what to think when I saw a White person with dreadlocks. At the time, I didn’t fully understand their historical significance myself so I thought, “Who am I to judge?”

white people with dreadlocks

Obviously these people were brave enough to embrace a traditionally African style that even some Blacks have difficulty accepting, so why hate?

When I started researching (dread)locks and natural hair on the web, most of the sites I stumbled upon catered to a White audience. I thought dreadlocking African hair was a trial but after reviewing some of these sites, it seemed White people take locking to a whole notha level.

I’ve seen sites that not only recommend using vats of beeswax, but also toothpaste, glue…honey???? On top of that, some boast the ability to lock one’s hair in a matter of just a few weeks which anyone with locked hair knows is a joke.

So it got me thinking and I decided to pose a few questions. What do you think of White people with dreadlocks? Is it a lifestyle or hairstyle for them? Are they ever truly dreadlocked?

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67 Responses to “White People with Dreadlocks”

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1. 13
   Moe Says:
   February 27th, 2009 at 10:05 PM

   i’d like to offer the blunt views of an athiest who takes things as they come i.e i dont care wat u look like or where ur from no1 is the same and nothin in this world will change before the majority of people in it come to terms with this way of thinkin. how can u hate some1 for the hair style they have? isnt that hypercritical to say dont b racsist but i hate u for havin hair like that! its stupid people shouldnt care that much about stupid things. oh well i guess some people see it different i”ll let them kill each other over stupid things.

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2. 14
   Dominic Says:
   February 27th, 2009 at 10:06 PM

   I have seen plenty of whites with locks and before I found naani, their sites were the only sites for info, on locks. I think they wear it for a hairstyle and that purpose only. Which upsets me but who am I to tell them how to wear their hair. Like Beanie man said once on BET, “Who am I to teel you how to wear your hair, even though I am rasta, I can”t tell you not to wear your locks.” To answer the question of are they truly locked, I think not. They lack one important dene for locks, the coarseness of the texture of their hair. Just like their skin lacks melanin, they lack nappy roots.

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3. 15
   Rastafarian Marxist Feminist a.k.a. Anton Says:
   February 27th, 2009 at 10:07 PM

   “I am a pale human, and I am considering growing my hair long, to one day dread it. I am disturbed by the results of your poll on “white people with dreads”… how can you think a hairstyle can be stolen? Who has the right to think there is patent on dreadlocks, reserved just for “black” people. Bob Marley is the king of dreadheads, and he is both white and black. One love, One Blood.

   To make a poll on dreads and not add an option for people whom practice rastafarian culture and traditions. Until the color of a man’’s skin, is of no more signifance than the color of his eyes. Dont make a war over “your” hair.” Practice Peace

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