
Arts & Culture
The Big Hair Assembly & World Afro Day
10:00 am
- 10:00 pm
|
15 September 2019
Peckham Palms Arcade | FREE
Unit 1-14 Bournemouth Close, Peckham Rye, London SE15 4PB
THE BIG HAIR ASSEMBLY on Friday 13th September is an exciting event, linking schools around the world at one time in one giant assembly.
From South Africa to America and Britain to Brazil, children will be joining together in a celebration of hair, identity and equality. The event aims to change negative attitudes towards Afro hair into positive inclusion.
TV Presenters, special guests and international Child Champions like Celai West, will be inspiring children to be confident change makers for 2019. Celai is a star of both the classroom and the catwalk, becoming the youngest ever model to feature in the New York Fashion Week with adults, when she was just 10 years old!
The event, will be streamed live around the world as well as with global media coverage. Every child will be part of making history! If you want your school to be a world leader? Sign up for the Big Hair Assembly to receive our free resource pack here
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World Afro Day founded by Michelle De Leon, is held annually on the 15th September. It is a global day of change, education and celebration of afro hair.
On the 5th September 2016, a U.S. federal court, ruled it was legal to ban dreadlocks in the workplace! This is a barrier not faced by any other hair type or group in the world.
In 2017 World Afro Day was endorsed by The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. A World Record was set for the largest hair education lesson and received extensive national and international media totalling 2.5 million coverage views worldwide.
Bias against Afro hair in society can create exclusion, shame and and feelings of inferiority. This has also had a long-lasting impact on health and economic opportunity, especially for Black women, who are pressurised to conform to societal norms.
Straight hair is considered the epitome of success and beauty and it is promoted everyday, through fairy tales, films, television, social media, consumer products and advertising etc. Afro-hair is rarely celebrated, especially globally and World Afro Day seeks to change this
The Day has two key focuses, which is an annual event, that will spotlight Afro excellence, raise awareness and create normalisation and aspiration relating to Afro hair. Secondly, our education programme for young people, teaches about Afro hair and society. This will benefit children of all backgrounds, through empathy, equality and empowerment.
For more information, download the Hair Equality Report 2019