In case you missed it, the most glamorous night in Hollywood took place this past Sunday on the 22nd. The biggest stars came out to celebrate the winners of the 87th Academy Awards, and as always, everyone had eyes on the red carpet to see what their favorite celebrities were wearing. Eighteen-year-old Zendaya Coleman was one of the stars on the Oscars carpet that night wearing a gown by Vivienne Westwood. The actress paired the gown with long and flowing dreadlocks, her inspiration coming from Lisa Bonet, the actress who played Denise Huxtable in “The Cosby Show.”
Any true fashion lover knows that the day after an awards ceremony there will be a special edition of E! “Fashion Police” where the hosts will decide who their best and worst dressed were from the previous night. One of the co-hosts, Giuliana Rancic made some comments in regards to Zendaya’s choice of hairstyle for the night. “I feel that she smells like patchouli oil…or weed,” said Rancic about the former Disney star. Immediately after the episode aired on Monday night Zendaya made a public statement via social media about Rancic’s comments stating how they were ignorant and disrespectful, and followed up by listing many influential people in today’s society that have dreadlocks such as Terry McMillan, Heather Andrea Williams, and Ava Du Vernay. The star went on to say there is already a lot of criticism when it comes to hairstyles of African Americans and she wore her locs to showcase how people of color can be proud of their hair no matter the type of curl. Guliana Rancic came back with a statement of her own saying that the comments had nothing to do with race and that she had crossed the line.
This comes at a crucial time in Hollywood as it was said that this year there was a major lack of diversity in the nominees. In fac,t it was said that the Oscars have not lacked this much in diversity since the late 1990’s. As an African American woman myself, I can see where Zendaya would feel offended in the comments that were made. I have had many people ask whether or not my hair was real or if I had extensions in with my natural hair, and every time I am asked, I wonder why people care so much about what grows on the top of my head and not about my personality or future career goals. I have never had dreadlocks in my hair, but I have had many friends and family members who have had them, all of which are upstanding citizens and doing very well in leading their lives. There is a fine line between disliking a person’s sense of style and stereotyping them and the culture that they are trying to represent in a beautiful and elegant manner. Zendaya stated well enough at the end of her statement by quoting India Arie’s “I am not my hair”. No one should be judged by the style or texture of their hair.