Hair

There is an interesting phenomenon that I noticed here in Colombia and in Egypt. Women in both these countries love straight hair. They spend a lot of time and money blowing their hair straight, either with a blow dryer or chemically. When I was a teenager and would visit my family in Egypt, they would always tell me to brush my hair, because it was messy. I would explain that my hair is not messy, it's curly. There's a difference. They didn't think there was. My female cousins would tell me that my hair may be curly, but curly equals messy and I should really do something about my hair, like straighten it.
Once, when I was 17, I gave in to the pressure and let my cousin take me to a hairdresser in Alexandria, Egypt. After it was straightened, it was very long and flat. I actually didn't like it at all. I felt bald, even with all that hair. It sat so flat on my head. I straightened it once again a few years later after I was married. My husband didn't like it straight either. He loves my curly hair just as it is.
I noticed in Colombia that I haven't seen any women with curly hair. Almost every Colombian woman I have seen straightens her hair, just like in Egypt. I was talking about this with my two friends yesterday at lunch and they said they also noticed the lack of curly haired women here.
Last night I asked my husband to pick up bread from my favorite restaurant here. He came home later than I thought he would and he explained that the waitresses were talking to him about learning English. They knew who I was and they asked him about my curly hair. How funny is that?? I tried to get an exact quote as to what they asked about my hair, but he just said they commented on the fact that I have really curly hair. He said, they wondered about it.
There is a great documentary by Chris Rock called, "Good Hair," that I highly recommend watching. He focuses on the "hair culture" of African American women. Many women spend millions of dollars each year straightening their hair. The movie also addresses issues of identity and race, both of which play a role in how women accept (or not) their hair just the way it is.
I love my curls and (I also have no desire to spend more time on my hair than I have to) my daughter has inherited my curly hair. She did want a straightener and I did get her one. She does not use it everyday here. She uses it a couple of times a week and always for parties.
I don't know how she feels about curly or straight hair. I know she keeps it long and most of the time leaves it curly. I don't want to give her a complex either way. When she wants it straight, it is her choice to make it so.
I do lament that women feel they need to change something so central to who they are because of socially constructed ideas of beauty. Why do women in these two developing nations (I am sure there are many other nations that can be added to the list, I just haven't been there) believe straight hair is more desirable? I know sociologists and anthropologists have detailed answers this.
I ask it as food for thought.