Is Hair Just Hair? : The Role of Hair in Identity Processes and Contestations of Black Women in Sweden

Abstract: This bachelor thesis provides an analysis of hair and its role for the racial and ethnic identity of Black women living in Sweden. This is achieved by analyzing interviews with five women who reside in different urban areas throughout Sweden. In the analysis, the concept of Othering and social identity theory by Fiske and Taylor (2016) have been used to examine the position of the interviewees within Swedish society and the role of hair in their racial and ethnic identity. The results of the analysis show, that hair is a significant part of the interviewed women’s racial and ethnic identity. Furthermore, the results also show the ambivalence of hair for the women; though their hair is crucial for their self-identification and self-esteem, women are in a constant struggle with insecurities stemming from perceived external identification processes through negative labels attached to their hair.