ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Cheyenne Cochrane - Storyteller
Cheyenne Cochrane is an ambassador for the natural hair movement.

Why you should listen

Cheyenne Cochrane is a storyteller who leverages digital and social media to share her ideas and experiences with her followers and subscribers, seasoned with a dash of humor. A Chicago native and Howard University Graduate, Cochrane lives to inspire, inform and connect with diverse audiences. She is currently the development manager for a national education non-profit. When she's not raising funds to support educational equity for underserved students around the country, she is the creator and visionary behind The Level Up blog, as well as her social media brand, @onmylevel_chey.

Cochrane began documenting her natural hair journey in 2014, while struggling to maintain the integrity of her hair after so many years of applying heat and harsh chemicals. She wanted to adopt a new routine, but like so many other women of color she'd been programmed to believe that straight, long hair was the most appealing, most professional and widely accepted look for a black woman. She knew that deciding to "go natural" would be a journey of self-exploration and would require her to let go of the conventional standards of beauty that she'd adhered to for so many years. What she did not know, however, was how many other women she'd inspire and empower along the way by sharing her journey.

Today, Cheyenne continues to share her natural hair story and lessons with women around the world via her social media platforms and YouTube channel. She also maintains a blog where she posts about all things natural hair and beauty, millennial culture and features young entrepreneurs of color.

More profile about the speaker
Cheyenne Cochrane | Speaker | TED.com
TEDxBeaconStreet

Cheyenne Cochrane: A celebration of natural hair

Cheyenne Cochrane: Uma celebração ao cabelo natural

Filmed:
1,438,022 views

Cheyenne Cochrane explora o papel que a textura do cabelo desempenhou na história de ser negra na nos Estados Unidos - dos produtos de alisamento térmico da era da pós-Guerra Civil para os milhares de mulheres hoje que decidiram parar de perseguir um padrão de beleza convencional e começaram a aceitar seus cabelos naturais. "Isso não é sobre um penteado", diz Cochrane. "É sobre ser corajosa o suficiente para não se dobrar sob a pressão das expectativas dos outros".
- Storyteller
Cheyenne Cochrane is an ambassador for the natural hair movement. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
I am from the South Side of Chicago,
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Sou da região sul de Chicago,
00:15
and in seventh grade,
I had a best friend named Jenny
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e, na sétima série, tive
uma melhor amiga chamada Jenny,
00:19
who lived on the Southwest
Side of Chicago.
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que morava na região sudoeste de Chicago.
00:23
Jenny was white,
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Jenny era branca,
00:25
and if you know anything about
the segregated demographics of Chicago,
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e, se vocês sabem algo sobre os dados
demográficos de segregação em Chicago,
00:29
you know that there are
not too many black people
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sabem que não há muitos negros
00:32
who live on the Southwest Side of Chicago.
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que moram na região sudoeste,
mas Jenny era minha amiga
00:34
But Jenny was my girl
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00:35
and so we would hang out every so often
after school and on the weekends.
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e, então, saíamos de vez em quando
depois da escola e nos finais de semana.
00:40
And so one day we were
hanging out in her living room,
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Assim, um dia estávamos
na sala de estar dela,
00:44
talking about 13-year-old things,
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batendo papo sobre coisas de adolescentes,
00:47
and Jenny's little sister Rosie
was in the room with us,
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e a irmãzinha de Jenny,
Rosie, estava na sala conosco,
00:50
and she was sitting behind me
just kind of playing in my hair,
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sentada atrás de mim
brincando com meu cabelo,
e eu não estava atenta
ao que ela estava fazendo.
00:53
and I wasn't thinking too much
about what she was doing.
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00:58
But at a pause in the conversation,
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Mas, numa pausa na conversa,
01:00
Rosie tapped me on the shoulder.
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Rosie bateu de leve no meu ombro.
01:03
She said, "Can I ask you a question?"
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Ela disse: "Posso fazer uma pergunta?"
01:06
I said, "Yeah, Rosie. Sure."
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Eu disse: "Sim, Rosie. Claro."
01:08
"Are you black?"
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"Você é negra?"
01:10
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
01:12
The room froze.
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A sala parou.
01:14
Silence.
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Silêncio.
01:16
Jenny and Rosie's mom
was not too far away.
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A mãe delas não estava muito longe.
01:19
She was in the kitchen
and she overheard the conversation,
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Estava na cozinha e ouviu a conversa,
01:22
and she was mortified.
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e ficou transtornada.
01:24
She said, "Rosie! You can't
ask people questions like that."
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Ela disse: "Rosie! Você não pode
perguntar isso às pessoas".
01:28
And Jenny was my friend,
and I know she was really embarrassed.
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E Jenny era minha amiga, e sei
que estava realmente envergonhada.
01:32
I felt kind of bad for her,
but actually I was not offended.
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Eu me senti meio mal por ela mas,
na verdade, não fiquei ofendida.
01:36
I figured it wasn't Rosie's fault
that in her 10 short years on this earth,
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Achei que não era culpa de Rosie que,
com seus 10 anos de idade,
01:41
living on the Southwest Side of Chicago,
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vivendo na região sudoeste de Chicago,
01:44
she wasn't 100 percent sure
what a black person looked like.
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não tinha tanta certeza
de como era uma pessoa negra.
01:47
That's fair.
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É justo.
01:48
But what was more surprising to me was,
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Mas o que mais me surpreendeu foi:
01:51
in all of this time I had spent
with Jenny and Rosie's family --
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em todo esse tempo que tinha passado
com a família delas,
01:55
hanging out with them,
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convivendo e brincando com elas,
01:57
playing with them,
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01:58
even physically interacting with them --
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mesmo interagindo fisicamente com elas,
02:01
it was not until Rosie
put her hands in my hair
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foi só quando Rosie tocou o meu cabelo
02:05
that she thought to ask me if I was black.
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que pensou em me perguntar
se eu era negra.
02:09
That was the first time I would realize
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Essa foi a primeira vez que percebi
02:12
how big of a role the texture of my hair
played in confirming my ethnicity,
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quão grande é o papel da textura do meu
cabelo na confirmação da minha etnia,
02:17
but also that it would play a key role
in how I'm viewed by others in society.
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mas também havia um papel fundamental
em como era vista na sociedade.
02:23
Garrett A. Morgan
and Madame CJ Walker were pioneers
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Garrett A. Morgan e
Madame C.J. Walker foram pioneiros
02:26
of the black hair-care and beauty
industry in the early 1900s.
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na indústria de cuidados com cabelos
crespos no início de 1900.
02:30
They're best known as the inventors
of chemically-based hair creams
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São conhecidos como os inventores
dos cremes de cabelo com base química
02:34
and heat straightening tools
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e alisadores térmicos
02:36
designed to permanently,
or semipermanently,
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projetados para permanentemente,
ou semipermanentemente,
02:39
alter the texture of black hair.
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alterar a textura dos cabelos crespos.
02:43
Oftentimes when we think
about the history of blacks in America,
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Muitas vezes, quando pensamos
sobre a história dos negros nos EUA,
02:47
we think about the heinous acts
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pensamos nos atos hediondos
02:50
and numerous injustices
that we experienced as people of color
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e nas inúmeras injustiças
que experimentamos como pessoas de cor
02:54
because of the color of our skin,
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por causa da cor da nossa pele,
02:56
when in fact, in post-Civil War America,
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quando, na verdade,
nos EUA do pós-Guerra Civil,
03:00
it was the hair of an
African-American male or female
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era o cabelo de uma mulher
ou homem afro-americano
03:05
that was known as the most
"telling feature" of Negro status,
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que era conhecido como a característica
mais reveladora de ser negro,
03:10
more so than the color of the skin.
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mais do que a cor da pele.
03:13
And so before they were staples
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E, então, antes de serem itens básicos
03:15
of the multibillion-dollar
hair-care industry,
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da indústria multibilionária
de cuidados com o cabelo,
03:19
our dependency on tools and products,
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nossa dependência de aparelhos e produtos,
03:22
like the hair relaxer
and the pressing comb,
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como o relaxante e a prancha
alisadora para o cabelo,
03:25
were more about our survival
and advancement as a race
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foram mais sobre nossa sobrevivência
e avanço como raça
03:30
in postslavery America.
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nos EUA da pós-escravidão.
03:33
Over the years,
we grew accustomed to this idea
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Ao longo dos anos,
nos acostumamos com a ideia
03:37
that straighter and longer
hair meant better and more beautiful.
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de que cabelo mais liso e longo
significava ser melhor e mais bonito.
03:43
We became culturally obsessed
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Ficamos culturalmente obcecadas
03:46
with this idea of having
what we like to call ...
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com essa ideia de ter
o que gostamos de chamar de
03:50
"good hair."
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"cabelo bom".
03:53
This essentially means:
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Isto significa essencialmente:
03:55
the looser the curl pattern,
the better the hair.
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quanto menor o padrão
de ondulação, melhor o cabelo.
03:59
And we let these institutionalized ideas
form a false sense of hierarchy
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E deixamos tais ideias institucionalizadas
formarem um falso senso de hierarquia
04:06
that would determine
what was considered a good grade of hair
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que determinaria o que era
considerado um bom grau de cabelo
04:11
and what was not.
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e o que não era.
04:15
What's worse is that
we let these false ideologies
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O pior é que deixamos
essas ideologias falsas
04:18
invade our perception of ourselves,
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invadirem nossa percepção de nós mesmas,
04:21
and they still continue
to infect our cultural identity
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e elas continuam a infectar
a nossa identidade cultural
04:24
as African-American women today.
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como mulheres afro-americanas hoje.
04:28
So what did we do?
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Então, o que fazíamos?
04:30
We went to the hair salon
every six to eight weeks,
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Íamos ao salão de beleza
a cada seis a oito semanas,
04:34
without fail,
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sem falta,
04:35
to subject our scalps
to harsh straightening chemicals
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sujeitar nossos couros cabeludos
a produtos de alisamento agressivos
04:39
beginning at a very young age --
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começando muito jovens,
04:41
sometimes eight, 10 --
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às vezes aos oito, dez anos,
04:43
that would result in hair loss,
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o que resultaria em perda de cabelo,
04:46
bald spots,
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áreas calvas,
04:47
sometimes even burns on the scalp.
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até queimaduras no couro cabeludo.
04:50
We fry our hair at temperatures
of 450 degrees Fahrenheit or higher
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Fritávamos nossos cabelos
a temperaturas de 230 °C ou mais
04:55
almost daily,
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quase diariamente,
04:56
to maintain the straight look.
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para manter o cabelo liso.
04:59
Or we simply cover our hair up
with wigs and weaves,
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Ou simplesmente cobríamos nossos
cabelos com perucas e tecidos,
05:04
only to let our roots breathe in private
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só para deixar nossas raízes respirarem
05:07
where no one knows
what's really going on under there.
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onde ninguém sabe o que está acontecendo.
05:11
We adopted these practices
in our own communities,
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Adotamos essas práticas
em nossas próprias comunidades,
05:14
and so it's no wonder
why today the typical ideal vision
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e não é de se admirar porque
hoje a visão ideal típica
05:20
of a professional black woman,
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da mulher negra profissional,
05:22
especially in corporate America,
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especialmente nos EUA corporativo,
05:24
tends to look like this,
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tende a parecer assim,
05:28
rather than like this.
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em vez de assim.
05:31
And she certainly doesn't look like this.
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E, certamente, não parece assim.
05:35
In September of this year,
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Em setembro deste ano,
05:37
a federal court ruled it lawful
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um tribunal federal decidiu legalizar
05:39
for a company to discriminate
against hiring an employee
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a discriminação por uma empresa
na contratação de uma pessoa
05:44
based on if she or he wears dreadlocks.
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caso ela use dreadlocks.
05:48
In the case,
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No caso, a gerente de contratação
em Mobile, Alabama,
05:49
the hiring manager in Mobile, Alabama
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05:52
is on record as saying,
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está na gravação, dizendo:
05:54
"I'm not saying yours are messy,
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"Não estou dizendo que é sujo,
05:57
but ...
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mas...
05:59
you know what I'm talking about."
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você sabe do que estou falando".
06:02
Well, what was she talking about?
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Bem, do que ela estava falando?
06:05
Did she think that they were ugly?
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Achou que eram feios?
06:08
Or maybe they were
just a little too Afrocentric
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Ou talvez fossem muito africanos
06:13
and pro-black-looking for her taste.
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e a favor do visual negro
para o gosto dela.
06:16
Or maybe it's not about Afrocentricity,
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Talvez não tenha a ver com afrocentrismo,
06:18
and it's more just about
it being a little too "urban"
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mas é muito urbano para
o ambiente profissional.
06:21
for the professional setting.
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06:23
Perhaps she had a genuine concern
in that they looked "scary"
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Talvez tivesse a preocupação genuína
de que pareciam assustadores
06:27
and that they would intimidate
the clients and their customer base.
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e que intimidariam a base de clientes.
06:32
All of these words are ones
that are too often associated
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Todas essas palavras são
muitas vezes associadas
06:37
with the stigma
attached to natural hairstyles.
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ao estigma ligado
aos penteados naturais.
06:42
And this ...
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E isso...
06:43
this has got to change.
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tem que mudar.
06:47
In 2013,
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Em 2013, um relatório branco da Deloitte
Center for Leadership and Inclusion,
06:48
a white paper published by the Deloitte
Leadership Center for Inclusion,
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06:53
studied 3,000 individuals
in executive leadership roles
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estudou 3 mil indivíduos
em cargos de liderança executiva
06:56
on the concept
of covering in the workplace
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sobre o conceito de vestuário
no local de trabalho
06:59
based on appearance,
advocacy, affiliation and association.
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com base na aparência, defesa,
afiliação e associação.
07:04
When thinking about
appearance-based covering,
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Ao pensar em vestuário
baseado em aparência,
07:07
the study showed
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o estudo mostrou
07:08
that 67 percent of women
of color cover in the workplace
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que 67% das mulheres de cor
se vestem no local de trabalho
07:14
based on their appearance.
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com base na aparência.
07:17
Of the total respondents who
admitted to appearance-based covering,
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Do total de inquiridas que admitiram
o vestuário baseadas em aparência,
07:21
82 percent said that it was
somewhat to extremely important
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82% disseram que era algo
extremamente importante
07:26
for them to do so
for their professional advancement.
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elas fazerem para o avanço profissional.
07:29
Now, this is Ursula Burns.
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Esta é Ursula Burns.
07:33
She is the first African-American
female CEO of a Fortune 500 company --
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É a primeira CEO afro-americana
a chefiar uma empresa Fortune 500,
07:38
of Xerox.
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a Xerox.
07:40
She's known by her signature look,
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Ela é conhecida pelo visual típico,
o que vocês veem aqui.
07:42
the one that you see here.
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07:44
A short, nicely trimmed,
well-manicured Afro.
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Um afro curto, bem cortado e bem cuidado.
07:49
Ms. Burns is what
we like to call a "natural girl."
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A Sra. Burns é o que gostamos
de chamar de "garota natural".
07:53
And she is paving the way
and showing what's possible
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E ela está preparando o caminho
e mostrando o que é possível
07:56
for African-American women
seeking to climb the corporate ladder,
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para as mulheres afro-americanas
que procuram escalar a escada corporativa,
08:00
but still wishing
to wear natural hairstyles.
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mas ainda desejam usar penteados naturais.
08:03
But today the majority
of African-American women
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Mas, hoje, a maioria das afro-americanas
08:08
who we still look to as leaders,
icons and role models,
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que vemos como líderes, ícones e modelos,
08:12
still opt for a straight-hair look.
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ainda opta pelo visual de cabelo liso.
08:16
Now,
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Agora,
08:17
maybe it's because they want to --
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talvez seja porque elas queiram;
08:19
this is authentically
how they feel best --
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é genuinamente como
elas se sentem melhor;
08:22
but maybe --
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mas, talvez,
08:23
and I bet --
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e aposto,
08:25
a part of them felt like they had to
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parte delas sentiu
como se precisassem disso
08:28
in order to reach the level of success
that they have attained today.
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para atingir o nível de sucesso
que elas alcançaram hoje.
08:34
There is a natural hair movement
that is sweeping the country
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Existe um movimento pelo cabelo
natural que está varrendo o país
08:39
and also in some places in Europe.
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e também alguns lugares da Europa.
08:42
Millions of women are exploring what
it means to transition to natural hair,
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Milhões de mulheres estão explorando
a transição para o cabelo natural,
08:47
and they're cutting off
years and years of dry, damaged ends
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e elas estão cortando anos
de pontas secas e danificadas
08:51
in order to restore
their natural curl pattern.
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para restaurar o padrão
de ondulação natural.
08:54
I know because I have been an advocate
and an ambassador for this movement
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Sei, porque tenho sido defensora
e embaixadora desse movimento
08:59
for roughly the last three years.
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nos últimos três anos.
09:01
After 27 years of excessive heat
and harsh chemicals,
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Após 27 anos de calor excessivo
e produtos químicos agressivos,
09:07
my hair was beginning to show
extreme signs of wear and tear.
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meu cabelo estava começando a mostrar
sinais extremos de desgaste.
09:13
It was breaking off,
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Estava quebradiço, diminuindo,
09:15
it was thinning,
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09:16
looking just extremely dry and brittle.
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parecendo extremamente seco e frágil.
09:19
All those years of chasing
that conventional image of beauty
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Todos esses anos perseguindo
essa imagem convencional de beleza
09:22
that we saw earlier
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que vimos anteriormente
09:24
was finally beginning to take its toll.
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estavam começando a cobrar seu preço.
09:27
I wanted to do something about it,
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Eu queria fazer algo sobre isso,
09:30
and so I started what I called
the "No Heat Challenge,"
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e, então, comecei o que chamei
de "No Heat Challenge",
09:34
where I would refrain
from using heat styling tools on my hair
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no qual me absteria de usar
aparelhos térmicos no cabelo
09:38
for six months.
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por seis meses.
09:40
And like a good millennial,
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E, como uma boa representante
da geração Y,
09:43
I documented it on social media.
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documentei nas redes sociais.
09:46
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
09:47
I documented as I reluctantly cut off
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Documentei quando cortei relutantemente
09:51
three to four inches of my beloved hair.
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oito a nove centímetros
do meu cabelo amado.
09:56
I documented as I struggled
to master these natural hairstyles,
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Documentei enquanto lutava
para dominar esses penteados naturais,
10:01
and also as I struggled to embrace them
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e também enquanto lutava para aceitá-los
10:05
and think that they actually looked good.
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e acho que realmente pareciam bons.
10:09
And I documented as my hair texture
slowly began to change.
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E documentei como minha textura
de cabelo lentamente começou a mudar.
10:16
By sharing this journey openly,
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Ao compartilhar esta jornada abertamente,
10:18
I learned that I was not
the only woman going through this
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aprendi que não era a única
mulher a passar por isso
10:22
and that in fact there were thousands
and thousands of other women
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e que, na verdade, havia
milhares de outras mulheres
10:26
who were longing to do the same.
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que desejavam fazer o mesmo.
10:28
So they would reach out to me
and they would say,
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Então, elas me escreviam:
"Cheyenne, como você fez
aquele penteado natural
10:31
"Cheyenne, how did you do
that natural hairstyle
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10:33
that I saw you with the other day?
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que a vi usando outro dia?"
10:35
What new products have you started using
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2016
"Que novos produtos começou a usar
10:37
that might be a little better
for my hair texture
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que podem ser melhores
para a textura do cabelo
10:39
as it begins to change?"
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quando ele começar a mudar?"
10:41
Or, "What are some
of the natural hair routines
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Ou: "Quais são algumas
das rotinas de cabelo natural
10:45
that I should begin to adopt
to slowly restore the health of my hair?"
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que devo adotar para restaurar
lentamente a saúde do cabelo?"
10:51
But I also found that there were
a large number of women
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Mas também descobri que havia
um grande número de mulheres
10:54
who were extremely hesitant
to take that first step
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que estavam extremamente
hesitantes em dar o primeiro passo
10:59
because they were paralyzed by fear.
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porque estavam paralisadas pelo medo.
11:03
Fear of the unknown --
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Medo do desconhecido: qual seria
a aparência delas agora?
11:05
what would they now look like?
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Como elas se sentiriam sobre si mesmas
com esses penteados naturais?
11:07
How would they feel about themselves
with these natural hairstyles?
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11:11
And most importantly to them,
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E, o mais importante para elas:
como os outros as veriam?
11:14
how would others view them?
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11:17
Over the last three years
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Nos últimos três anos,
11:19
of having numerous conversations
with friends of mine
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tendo várias conversas com minhas amigas
11:23
and also complete strangers
from around the world,
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e também com desconhecidas
de todo o mundo,
11:27
I learned some really important things
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aprendi algumas coisas muito importantes
11:29
about how African-American women
identify with their hair.
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sobre como as mulheres afro-americanas
se identificam com os cabelos.
11:34
And so when I think back
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1976
E, então, quando me lembro
11:36
to that hiring manager in Mobile, Alabama,
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daquela gerente de contratação
em Mobile, Alabama,
11:40
I'd say, "Actually, no.
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eu diria: "Na verdade, não.
11:43
We don't know what you're talking about."
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Não sabemos do que está falando".
11:45
But here are some things that we do know.
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1960
Mas eis algumas coisas que sabemos.
11:48
We know that when black women
embrace their love for their natural hair,
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Sabemos que quando as mulheres negras
aceitam o amor pelos cabelos naturais,
11:53
it helps to undo generations of teaching
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isso ajuda a desfazer
ensinamentos de gerações
11:57
that black in its natural state
is not beautiful,
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de que o cabelo do negro
no estado natural não é lindo,
12:00
or something to be hidden or covered up.
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ou que é algo a ser escondido ou coberto.
12:04
We know that black women
express their individuality
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Sabemos que as mulheres negras
expressam sua individualidade
12:08
and experience feelings of empowerment
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e conhecem sentimentos de empoderamento
12:11
by experimenting with different
hairstyles regularly.
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experimentando diferentes
penteados com regularidade.
12:16
And we also know
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E, também sabemos
12:18
that when we're invited
to wear our natural hair in the workplace,
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que quando somos convidadas a usar nossos
cabelos naturais no local de trabalho,
12:23
it reinforces that we are uniquely valued
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isso reforça que temos um valor único
12:26
and thus helps us to flourish
and advance professionally.
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nos ajudando a florescer
e avançar profissionalmente.
12:32
I leave you with this.
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Deixo vocês com isso.
12:34
In a time of racial and social tension,
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Num momento de tensão racial e social,
12:38
embracing this movement
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abraçar esse movimento
12:40
and others like this
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e outros assim
12:42
help us to rise above
the confines of the status quo.
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nos ajuda a superar
os limites do status quo.
12:46
So when you see a woman with braids
or locks draping down her back,
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Quando virem uma mulher com tranças
ou dreadlocks cobrindo as costas,
12:52
or you notice your colleague
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ou repararem numa colega
12:55
who has stopped
straightening her hair to work,
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que parou de alisar
os cabelos para o trabalho,
12:59
do not simply approach her and admire
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não se aproximem dela apenas e admirem,
13:02
and ask her if you can touch it --
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e perguntem se podem tocá-lo.
13:05
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
13:07
Really appreciate her.
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Realmente a apreciem.
13:09
Applaud her.
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1216
Aplaudam-na.
13:11
Heck, even high-five her
if that's what you feel so inclined to do.
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Cumprimentem-na, se é o que
se sentem mais inclinados a fazer.
13:15
Because this --
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Porque isso
13:17
this is more than about a hairstyle.
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é sobre mais do que um penteado.
13:20
It's about self-love and self-worth.
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Trata-se de amor-próprio e autoestima.
13:24
It's about being brave enough
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É sobre ser corajosa o suficiente
13:26
not to fold under the pressure
of others' expectations.
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4040
para não se dobrar à pressão
das expectativas dos outros.
13:31
And about knowing that making
the decision to stray from the norm
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E sobre saber que tomar
a decisão de fugir do padrão
13:36
does not define who we are,
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não define quem somos,
13:38
but it simply reveals who we are.
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mas simplesmente revela quem somos.
13:42
And finally,
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E, finalmente,
13:43
being brave is easier
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ser corajosa é mais fácil
13:45
when we can count
on the compassion of others.
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quando podemos contar
com a compaixão dos outros.
13:48
So after today,
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Então, depois de hoje,
13:50
I certainly hope that we can count on you.
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espero que possamos contar com vocês.
13:54
Thank you.
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Obrigada.
13:55
(Applause)
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(Aplausos)
Translated by Carolina Aguirre
Reviewed by Maricene Crus

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Cheyenne Cochrane - Storyteller
Cheyenne Cochrane is an ambassador for the natural hair movement.

Why you should listen

Cheyenne Cochrane is a storyteller who leverages digital and social media to share her ideas and experiences with her followers and subscribers, seasoned with a dash of humor. A Chicago native and Howard University Graduate, Cochrane lives to inspire, inform and connect with diverse audiences. She is currently the development manager for a national education non-profit. When she's not raising funds to support educational equity for underserved students around the country, she is the creator and visionary behind The Level Up blog, as well as her social media brand, @onmylevel_chey.

Cochrane began documenting her natural hair journey in 2014, while struggling to maintain the integrity of her hair after so many years of applying heat and harsh chemicals. She wanted to adopt a new routine, but like so many other women of color she'd been programmed to believe that straight, long hair was the most appealing, most professional and widely accepted look for a black woman. She knew that deciding to "go natural" would be a journey of self-exploration and would require her to let go of the conventional standards of beauty that she'd adhered to for so many years. What she did not know, however, was how many other women she'd inspire and empower along the way by sharing her journey.

Today, Cheyenne continues to share her natural hair story and lessons with women around the world via her social media platforms and YouTube channel. She also maintains a blog where she posts about all things natural hair and beauty, millennial culture and features young entrepreneurs of color.

More profile about the speaker
Cheyenne Cochrane | Speaker | TED.com