I LOVE THIS!!! The Story of Stuff is a short, seven minute expose of the cosmetics industry. I say we all view and take note. Peace & Beauty doesn't intend to scare anyone or make anyone feel bad about their beauty care regimens. We simply want you to be aware. Instead of getting the Bath and Body Works lotion, which is primarily denatured alcohol, water, fragrance, and a bunch of harsh preservatives, perhaps you'll try some coconut oil, shea butter, or a product with fewer toxic ingredients, especially on our children. Their bodies are far more susceptible to toxins in our food and bath products. Check out http://www.storyofstuff.org/ and let me know what you think.

Black by Nature, Beautiful by Nurture

Why do I get more negative comments from Black women about The Peace & Beauty Project and more positive comments from women of other nationalities? I have had more Black women tell me that The Peace & Beauty Project will be controversial because it focuses on Black girls and not all girls. I celebrate rites of passage for Asian girls that focus on Asian girls, for Asian girls. I love this. I love Quinceaneras!!! This is a rite of passage for girls of Hispanic culture. It is not for ALL girls!!! There is nothing wrong with this, in fact, its all good.

When I launched our first event which was for Black girls, but not exclusive of anyone, I got more negative emails about not including other races on our panel, to why didn't the film include opinions from girls of other races. I wondered if these same sisters had ever attended an event for girls, particularly the Girl Power event here in Orlando and asked how come this event does not include Black women on its panel? I wondered if any of these sisters had ever attended a Quinceaneras and asked how come this ritual does not include African themes, Polynesian food, and Irish music?

The Peace & Beauty Project is for Black girls, period. We have been conditioned to think that there is something militant, anti-everybody else, belligerent, racist, and just plain wrong with celebrating being Black. The Peace & Beauty Project does not tell anyone they cannot attend an event, enjoy what we do, or learn more about us. In fact, we welcome it. The Peace & Beauty Project talks about the inner beauty of Black girls, the health of Black girls, and the sharing of what we learn with others. Everything is right with this!!! Now Black women, whachugottosayaboutthat!!!!!!??????

Five Days Left!!!!

There are only a few more bracelets and cuffs in the trunk this week. Go by www.peaceandbeautyproject.org to see what other wood pieces we have, and sign up to find out what will be up next. Don't forget, when you make your donation this week, you get a free Weleda Shower Cream which is divine by the way, and your donation is tax deductible.

Have a SAKILE Summer!!!!

This Could Be Your Daughter

My friend Lacey C. Clark has a post on her Facebook page where a 14 year old girl (not the one picured here) has had her face slashed to the inner facia (white tissue) from temple to chin; completely laid open so deeply that it makes my insides hurt to see it. When I saw this picture, I was reminded that The Peace & Beauty Project will do more. Our girls are our responsibility. We need to bring them back in. Back in the day a movie called Drop Squad kind of gave us an idea. We need to do a mass SANKOFA. We need to take our girls back. They are the leaders of this movement.

I just saw this picture today; this happened in March of this year, supposedly over a boy. A boy!!! I believe like my husband believes that these slashings have nothing to do with boys, but self hate. You have to really hate who you are to be able to do this to another person. Our girls can be using the energy they spend planning and plotting to scar someone for life to make some real potent and powerful moves in our communities; use their powers for good. This is one of the things that The Peace & Beauty Project is about. We need our girls to step up and lead this movement. Please visit http://www.peaceandbeautyproject.org/ to sign up for notification and to learn when and where we meet.

Blessed love my sisters and I look forward to seeing you in the tribe.

I Rock Rough and Tough w/My Afro Puffs

I admit it, I've been struggling with my hair too. When I had long locs, I could just put them up in a bun, twists, or a fish tail and be on my way. Now that I have cut them and I'm growing my hair out, it's in the "in between" stage and I often don't know what to do with it. I'm tempted to cut it down to a brush cut, but I really want to have this gigantic afro puff by next summer, so I'm staying focused.

I have rediscovered raw, uncut shea butter lately. The challenge I have with my hair is that it's so dry. I need to drink more water, which is the only way to truly moisturize the hair, but while I'm training to do this at 40 years old, I just wash and twist it with shea butter, and this simple process is so nourishing for my hair it's not even funny. I have been used to mixing up my own products as a former body and hair care product manufacturer, but there is no need to mix anything with raw shea. I just scoop up a heaping helping, and voila, I'm good and my twist out lasts longer too.

Hope you'll return to your shea butter, if you've left, and keep using if you haven't. I rediscovered why I used shea butter in most of my creations and I'm looking forward to having that big "Thelma off Good Times" afro puff real soon.

Perming Little Girls Hair Should Be Considered Abuse...That's Right...I Said It.

The last time I relaxed my hair, I cried. Hawaiian Silky was my poison of choice. At the time, freeze curls was the look - you know where they spray the spritz from the hot pink bottle onto some strands of hair and fry it to a hard crisp with a blazing hot curling iron? Kind of similar to the wisps and feathers they're doing today to make the mohawks and cokatoos. Anyway, this Hawaiian Silky burned so badly that tears began streaming from my eyes involuntarily!!!!! It was like someone had taken a veggie peeler, ran it over my scalp several times, poured alcohol over it, and then set a match to the whole thing. This wasn't the worst part of it. When the hair dresser went to rinse that bad boy - OH MY SNAP!!!!!! The water took it to an unprecedented level to a world known as hell. Hell was exploding on my head. Still this wasn't the worst of it. The worst of it was that I did NOTHING!!!! I said NOTHING!!! I paid this woman $50 for this torture, thanked her for the style and vowed with gleem in my eyes to return in a couple of weeks for more.

I was a grown ass woman when this happened to me, imagine what little girls go through in this process. By default we tell them that their hair is bad, that something needs to be done with it, that what they have naturally growing from their beautiful heads is not worth the time it takes to moisturize, condition, and honor. We have ritualized this torture treatment to become something that we spend $10 billion dollars a year on in the name of what we have been forced to believe is beautiful.

Think about it. There are typically more than 75 ingredients in a box of relaxer. Yes, there's some shea butter, olive oil, water, wheat protein, etc., but the majority of this poison has some great issues to reckon with. Perms contain ingredients that are known to cause cancer, cause reproductive and hormonal problems, and of course skin irritation and sensitivity. Lets say it doesn't permeate the skin and scalp, which it does, but lets just say it doesn't. Do I still want to put this cocktail of toxicity on my child's hair and skin?

OK, so if all this bad stuff comes from a box of perm, why does the government allow manufacturers to make and sell it? I am a former manufacturer of natural and organic beauty care products. Trust me when I say, there is not enough regulation in the cosmetics industry. European government has banned more than 1,100 toxic ingredients from beauty care products made in their country. The US has banned 10.

Think about this too. Our government still allows the sales of cigarettes even though we know it causes cancer, and some companies even market to our youth. In this county, if it makes money, it makes sense. Perms affect Black women. Who cares? Our false sense of beauty is worth tens fo billions every year. Who gives a flip if there are more Black women under 35 with breast cancer than any other group? Who cares if Black women have more incidences of breast cancer death than any other group?

Peace & Beauty does and we're doing something about it. Education, not judgement, information, not ridicule, sharing and celebrating our true selves, and most importantly planting seeds of self awareness for our girls so that they know that their hair is naturally beautiful. Back in the day, I didn't realize that my natural crown was beautiful. I didn't even realize there were real options to relaxing my hair. Relaxing my hair, as if it was tense or uptight anyway, was a part of everyday life and I never, ever, ever thougth twice about it. In fact, I wondered why the few girls that I did see with natural hair didn't perm their hair. I considered them to be out-of-order with the way things should be. I was always perplexed with these women. Now, I honor what they did to keep themselves safe, healthy, and free of these toxic, harmful chemcials.

Join http://www.peaceandbeautyproject.org/ to keep learning, becoming aware, and spreading the love. Whether you relax your hair or not, we embrace you sisters.

Black by Nature, Beautiful by Nurture

We're recruiting!!! The Peace & Beauty Project is a soul esteem renaissance that encourages girls to honor inner beauty, make health conscious choices, and share what they learn with others.

Throughout the summer, we're recruiting our tribe of youth advisors, product reviewers, and writers to let us know their thoughts on the most effective and not-so-effective natural, organic and good for you (and the Earth) goodies available for Black hair and skin. Your voice counts and we want to hear it.

http://www.rume.com/ was in full effect at our first teen ambassador meeting yesterday with their Spring in New York and Mini City Park eco-totes. The girls loved the bags, the Weleda http://www.weleda.com/ Seabuckthorn body wash, and the AVEDA gift certificates. Many thanks and shout outs to these companies for being what we call "on the strength" with The Peace & Beauty Project.

Join our email list at http://www.peaceandbeautyproject.org/ or our sweet tweets @sakiledotorg to learn what we'll be reviewing next and how you can get in on the bags, and it's FREE!!!!!

Next on the horizon, our first ever, Natural Hair and Beauty Expo in October and our first Soul Flower Film Fest in November. Check us out at http://www.peaceandbeautyproject.org/ to stay in the loop, sign up for our emails, and if you know of a natural and organic beauty care product we need to know about, drop us a line. Walk in peace, live in beauty......