Zha is a physician and a nonfiction writer. Following the 2022 publication of the NIH's 10-year epidemiological study that found an association between hair straightening products and uterine cancer, thousands of Black women filed lawsuits alleging hair product companies sold hair relaxers containing chemicals that increased their risk of developing uterine cancer -- and failed to warn customers. Meanwhile, the FDA missed its own deadline this month to propose a ban on one of the harmful ingredients (formaldehyde) in hair relaxers.
This is all part of a larger story about racist beauty standards in the U.S., and the physical and emotional harms they cause to women of color.
Looking "White" to Succeed When asked in an interview what motivated her to straighten her hair, a Black woman who is now rocking beautiful natural curls told the NBC News reporter: "I wanted a job." "She wanted a job!" All five women on camera laughed. "Going to an employer with an Afro back in those days -- would not have cut it.
" It still doesn't. Having non-white features continues to hinder one's growth in many job markets. TV personality and news anchor Julie Chen disclosed that she had blepharoplasty -- double eyelid surgery -- when she was a young journalist because an agent suggested that if she got the surgery, a better job market would open up for her.
The billion-dollar global blepharoplasty industry -- one of the most performed plastic surgeries -- was popularized in the 1950s as a tool for Ko.
