Revolutionary Short Film “Hair Love” Wins an Academy Award

for Ramapo Record

The Oscar win for Best Animated Short Film this year was “Hair Love,” a tale of a father trying to style his young daughter’s hair by watching his wife’s old hair tutorials.

“Hair Love” winning the Oscar is not only an accomplishment for director and writer Matthew A. Cherry and producer Karen Rupert Toliver, but it is a win for black fathers and black communities around the world.

“Hair Love was done because we wanted to see more representation in animation,” Cherry said in his acceptance speech. “We want to normalize black hair.” 

While many of the wins at this year’s Oscars were debatable, “Hair Love” was seemingly a fan favorite, especially among young film enthusiasts.

“I think what I liked the most was that there was little to no dialogue, and it was just as moving,” Natalie Tsur, a 19-year-old college student said. “It’s also important that there was intersectionality because you wouldn’t have gotten the same story if it starred a white family with straight hair.”

By Cherry’s side for his acceptance speech was DeAndre Arnold, a young high school student that has recently been discriminated against for his dreadlocks.

DeAndre Arnold made national headlines in January when he announced that his high school, Barbers Hill High School in Mont Belvieu, Texas, had suspended him solely for his hair. He claimed that the school told him his hair was suddenly against dress code, and unless he cut it, he would not be allowed to attend his prom or his high school graduation.

Cherry invited Arnold as his guest after hearing his story, creating an even greater impact.

“There is a very important issue that’s out there. It’s The CROWN Act, and if we can help this get passed in all 50 states, it’ll help stories like DeAndre Arnold, who’s our special guest tonight, stop happening,” Cherry said in his acceptance speech.

The CROWN Act

The CROWN Act, an acronym for “Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair,”  is described on its website as “a law that prohibits discrimination based on hair style and hair texture.” The act has been approved in multiple states such as California, New York, and New Jersey.

However, Cherry’s goal is to prevent more stories like DeAndre Arnold’s from happening. The only way for this to be a reality is if the CROWN Act is approved in every region of the country.

If you support this message, the petition to have this law be nationally recognized is available to be signed at thecrownact.com.