Afro discrimination: Performer fights for equality after experience with 'out-of-touch' film and TV hair stylists

A London-based performer is fighting for diversity to extend to the behind-the-scenes sector of the film and TV industry after experiencing first-hand how stylists are “out of touch”.

Jessica Walker, 26, is the founder of AfroIsMassive, an online platform with tips, advice and products for combatting the lack of knowledge surrounding afro hair – especially for hairstylists.

“I got my first film job just after completing my dance degree,” she said. “I noticed straight away on my first job that the styling team didn’t have any diversity within it. The lead stylist didn’t know how to work with afro hair – and pretty much all of the rest of the team were the same.

“As soon as they saw my long natural afro hair, they had a look of fear in their eyes and all they wanted to do was straighten it.”

Jessica remembers the uncomfortable atmosphere of the stylist room and the clear lack of understanding that they had. She said: “Subconscious biases come into play when these people are given hair they know they can’t work with – calling it wild and untameable which is dehumanising and problematising the black body.

“Afro hair isn’t a standard that’s taught in many stylist schools and this can lead unskilled stylists doing irreversible damage to our hair.”

A picture containing person

Description automatically generated

Jessica notes that the diversity found in industries like film and TV are often surface level and the industry “wants to use the black body but doesn’t want to acknowledge the discrimination and trauma that it faces”.

“Black performers have been told by their agents to stop speaking out on racism online,” she said, “We have to change this standard so that we can safeguard future black performers looking to get into the industry and ensure they don’t experience this too.”

Originally from Buckinghamshire, Jessica links her experience on various sets with ones she had in school. She said: “There was one day when I wasn’t let into a classroom because of my hair – I was told it was too ‘distracting’. I wasn’t let back into the classroom unless I had a plastic bag on my head.

“When you’re 15, you don’t know how to protect yourself and you think you’re the issue – just like how I was made to feel on those film sets.

“Ironically, it was at that school where I got the name for my platform. I was called ‘AfroIsMassive’ in the style of that ‘Jungle is massive’ song but now I’ve turned it into a way to talk positively about afro hair. When I first looked up afro hair on YouTube I’d never seen black women talk about their hair positively so AfroIsMassive is my answer to it always being seen as a problem or inconvenience.”