The division within the beauty aisle of our favorite stores may not be something we’ve paid much attention to. Crammed at the end of the aisle is the ethnic section, somewhere many women of color find themselves.
But how do you get rid of the racial division hidden in plain sight?
SheaMoisture answered that question in less than a minute and a half with a video titled #BREAKTHEWALLS.
Featuring three popular natural hair video bloggers, the video showcased the shopping anxiety black women internalize when searching for products catered to them. Instead of settling for having a section, they imagined the shifting and tumbling of the shelves with each twist and twirl of their curls until the SheaMoisture brand appeared in front of them, blended in with the rest of the beauty products in the aisle.
When I watched the video, I understood the frustrations many women of color have faced. Growing up, I always memorized where “my” section in my favorite drugstore would be so I wouldn’t spend time strolling down the aisles looking at products I didn’t believe were for me. Until the video, I’d never seen much of an issue with it. I’d become so conditioned to the segregation, and that itself is an issue for many of us also.
SheaMoisture is known for catering products to anyone with hair that grows from their scalps. The brand is most popular among women of color; just type in the name on YouTube and you’ll come back with over 100,000 videos. Type it in a search engine and you’ll be flooded with hair blogs raving about the products used in wash day regimens and what to use when sealing in moisture.
#BREAKTHEWALLS wasn’t selling any of their shampoo, makeup or skin products. It is the catalyst for social dialogue to begin within the beauty industry. Conversations have already begun where much praise has already been given to the brand for the newest commercial on Twitter. Numerous users have weighed in on the video and shared their own experiences.
Diversity in the beauty industry has turned around for the better in the past years, with shade ranges expanding in drugstores and department stores around the country. SheaMoisture’s campaign isn’t to point fingers and place blame on anyone in particular, but to highlight an overlooked problem in the everyday life of the woman of color.
Beauty doesn’t have a color or standard, so there’s no need for separation between us.
All beauty should be equally represented in the beauty section of your favorite store.