Image is nothing, hair is everything?

I can’t begin to tell you the importance of image. Most people believe that when you portray a certain image that it is actually false; a façade that hides the hideous real you. Which in some cases I suppose that’s actually true. When Brittany Spears first came on the scene, we had no idea that she was really a trashy, hillbilly yokel. And who ever would have thought that Whitney Houston was really a (recovering) ghettofied crackhead! The images had us fooled, but is that really such a bad thing?

I began thinking about image a few weeks ago as I was going through resumes for a new editor position that just opened up at my job. As I sifted through all of the piles, there was one guy that I kept going back to time and time again. His resume (i.e. image) was impeccable. Ivy league grad, great internship experience, freelanced at some of the top magazines, had a stint at the NY Times and had a very strong passion for our industry. Hands down, he was the best candidate of the bunch. I called him and did a short interview over the phone and was still very impressed with him. I invited him in for an in person interview and was really looking forward to meeting him.

When Mr. Writer Extraordinaire showed up at the office, I was immediately taken aback by his hair. This dude had an afro that was out of this world! I mean, it was ridiculous! I’m not talking about a modern, styled ‘fro either. I’m talking about something that’s so scary looking, you’d expect small children to fall out of it at any minute screaming for their mothers. It was a cross between Don King and Buckwheat. Who in the hell shows up at a job interview looking like Don King or Buckwheat, unless you’re Don King or Buckwheat!?!? As we sat down and got to the business at hand, I couldn’t focus on anything because I was hypnotized by his hair.

Does he ever comb it?
Exactly what possessed him to do this? Is he just trying to keep it real?
How long has he been growing that thing?

As a black woman, I should know better. During my college years and time abroad I can’t tell you how many times confused white people have asked me similar questions.

“Why do you always wear a shower cap?”
“Why do you wrap your hair in a circle?”
“That’s a really cool scarf! How come you wear it to bed every night?”
“You don’t wash your hair everyday? That’s awesome!"

I could go on and on about the many questions non-black people have asked about my hair. I know exactly how it feels, so why was I so fixated on Writer Extraordinaire’s hair? It was because his image had me fooled. After looking at his resume and speaking with him on the phone, I expected him to look the part of the very polished and put together man that I had gotten to know on paper. But instead, I was faced with a man with unruly and spellbinding hair, and a very questionable suit. Despite of all this, I was still pulling for him to get the job, because like I said, he was the best of the bunch. The final decision wasn’t up to me, so I was hoping that everyone else would be just as impressed with him as I was and kindly ignore his unfortunate 'fro. Ultimately, Writer Extraordinaire did not get the job, and I will also wonder if his f*cked up hair was the reason behind it. Lesson of the day: comb your hair.