It’s 2026: Why Are We Still Calling Braids "Undone"?
Last night was one of the biggest nights for Hollywood, the Oscars. While it wasn't anything nearly as messy as the BAFTAs, there was a moment that stuck out to me and not for a good reason. It's disheartening that in 2026, we must still have conversations. While the Oscars are a night to celebrate artistry, talent, and culture, once again, the red carpet discourse has been marred by ignorance and coded language.
What should have been a celebration of Chase Infiniti's talent and her stunning gown was overshadowed by a single, lazy, and deeply problematic comment from the E! News broadcast. Let me explain. During the red carpet coverage, a commenter described Chase's hair as undone, specifically stating, "Let's think about this awesome, almost like undone hair with the done dress."
The hair in question was a flawless, intentional, and skilled set of something similar to a boho knotless braids, to call a labor-intensive protective style "undone" isn't just a terrible fashion critique, it's intially a microaggression. It dismisses the tentative artistry required to achieve this specific look and reinforces a narrow Eurocentric standard of what "formal" hair is supposed to look like.
This matters because of the narrative it sets in 2015, Zendaya stepped out with faux locs, and there was a message that is the exact same one a decade later, that textured hair and protective styles are viewed as casual, unpolished, or even undone by those who haven't bothered to learn about them.
As a black woman, I looked at Chase and immediately saw the hours of labor, precision, and intention behind the style. Anyone who knows anything about our hair can tell that those are some type of boho knotless braids. They are not "undone," they are high-maintenance braids, and to call them unfinished is a slap in the face to the stylist and to every black woman who has spent at least six hours in a chair getting their hair "done." There is a persistent, exhausting expectation when it comes to our hair in formal spaces. It feels like our hair isn't bone-straight or slicked back into something "presentable"; it is perceived as "undone". There is this underlying bias that our natural state or any style that leans into texture and volume is inherently "undone."
When things like this happens it constantly proves that years change, but the ignorance remains stagnant. We have to stop labeling Black hair as "messy" or "unfinished" when it doesn't fit a straightened mold. It's time for commentators to do their homework so their "critiques" can finally catch up to the culture. Our hair is "done" because we said it is. It's "done" because it's styled with intention and pride. It is time for the industry to stop policing our textures and start educating themselves on the versatility of black beauty.
I completely agree with your points about how Black hair is often misunderstood and unfairly labeled. The “undone” comment really shows how much work still needs to be done in Hollywood’s understanding of beauty.
ReplyDeleteThis is an important topic to talk about!! I agree with this post, I'm so tired that this is still a topic on reporter's mind and how they have the guts to bring it up. If you don't know about black people's hair don't comment point blank and that's what angers me and it's not like this girl's hair was "undone" it was fresh. But great topic!
ReplyDeleteThe thing that's also really insane is because let's say if a white woman were to have this hairstyle or to mimic a style similar to it, she would've been praised for how beautiful she is. There's a stigmatism and ignorance surrounding black hair in Hollywood that's distressing to see -- usually shown in movies and tv show when a black woman is at her best, her hair is straightened and neat, but if she's at her worst, it's shown to be messily done. We need to still have these conversations no matter how uncomfortable they might be because of the disrespect that's still occurring in 2026.
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