My immediate family was always very supportive. It was my own fear of the rest of the world not accepting me, the rest of our society not accepting my wish to be an actor.
Lupita Nyong'ORead
Before the advent of the white man, black people were doing all kinds of things with their hair. The rejection of kinks and curls did come with the white man.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the cultural significance of black hair and critiques the imposition of Western beauty standards that reject natural hair textures.
Lupita Nyong'o's quote emphasizes the rich history and variety of hairstyles among black people prior to colonial influence. It critiques how white Western beauty ideals have often led to the devaluation of natural hair textures, promoting a narrow definition of beauty that does not honor the diversity present in black culture's relationship with hair.
Themes
Black HairCultural SignificanceBeauty StandardsDiversityColonialism
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a speech celebrating cultural heritage and self-acceptance.
More from Lupita Nyong'O
All quotes β[My mother] always said I was beautiful and I finally believed her at some point.
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What is fundamentally beautiful is compassion: for yourself and for those around you.
Lupita Nyong'ORead
That you will feel the validation of your external beauty but also get to the deeper business of being beautiful inside. There is no shade in that beauty.
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As human beings, we aren't as individual as we'd like to believe we are. And I think that's what makes acting possible. Despite the fact that I have not experienced something, I have it in my human capacity to imagine it and to put myself in someone else's shoes, and to take someone else's circumstances personally.
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I've loved the opportunity to learn about the fashion world and appreciate it as an art form, and I look forward to my continued education, but I never want it to take over my acting.
Lupita Nyong'ORead
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